IMPORTANT question..please read.

[luvofallhorses]

Ginger our 5 year old rat terrier/chihuahua mix and Buster our one year old coonhound mix keep on getting in fights. Well they have gotten in 2 serious fights..one was last week and the other one was just a few minutes ago. The first one Ginger didn't get hurt just scared and today she did get hurt. She needs to learn how to back down because she got hurt today Then my parents think it's Buster's fault I need all the information possible that I can get to keep Ginger in the same home as Buster. I will work on it as best as I can to not have Ginger go to another home. Is there any advice anyone can give me books, websites, etc. PLEASE no negative comments.

[captain]

I know that some people on the board had this issue too ...... but that was with the introduction of a new furkid. But am sure the same rules apply

Lovemyshiba, 4/5/6 Dog Mother, Cincy's Mum .......

Mind you, I am sure EVERYONE will be able to give you good advice ...

[buckner]

First, I'd like to say I'm sorry about the dogs fighting. It's never good when animals fight.

I, unfortunately, have no experience with dog fights. The only advice I can give is an example of what I've done with rats. When my rats have fought, play fighting gone a bit too far, I spritz them with a spray bottle. Usually, the two rats fighting run in opposite directions to get away from the spritz. However, with dogs, you may need more than a spritz of water.

Best of luck to you! I hope better advice can be given.

[aly]

Who is initiating the fights? Do they start out of nowhere or does a certain situation trigger them?

A possibility is now that Buster is an adult, he may be trying to take over the alpha roll that Ginger held previously. I will be able to give you advice on that if that is what the problem is. It'd help if you could give some more information.

[Vette]

Sorry that i have dont any good advise for you.. but maybe try seeing how they act with no toys and food when both dogs are in the same room together.

if that doesnt work then try crating her,, and let her out when the other dog she has issues with is outside or something. pain the bucket,, but its better then having the heartache of rehoming her.

i wish you and your poochies the best of luck.

[chocolatepuppy]

Krista, Mandy attacks Lacey sometimes, usually a jealously thing. I watch for certain 'situations'. They are not together when we're not home and my house is small so I always know what they're doing. I guess I'm not much help but there are a lot of people here who can help you out more. I'm sure there's a way of working it out.

[luvofallhorses]

A possibility is now that Buster is an adult, he may be trying to take over the alpha roll that Ginger held previously. I will be able to give you advice on that if that is what the problem is. It'd help if you could give some more information.

I just think IMO that he might be. Vette, we don't have a crate but I will ask my parents to get one either that or a baby gate would that help?

Who is initiating the fights? Do they start out of nowhere or does a certain situation trigger them?

When Ginger acts like she has something the fight begins, and that was the 2 fights and she doesn't have anything at all..

pain the bucket,, but its better then having the heartache of rehoming her.

I doubt that we will rehome her..I will work on anything to get them to get along and I am SURE that my parents will work with me

[aly]

Who do you guys treat as alpha? IE: who gets fed first, gets treats first, gets pet first, etc etc.

Do you think Ginger would mind if Buster took over as alpha? Could she be more submissive than him?

The dogs might be fighting because of confusion. Ginger could be okay if Buster if alpha, but if she is still being treated as alpha by you guys, then itheir ranks aren't as clear. Buster may protest and try harder to establish his ranking, resulting in their fighting.

You could try treating Buster as alpha for a couple weeks and see if that smooths out their relationship.

[luvofallhorses]

Who do you guys treat as alpha? IE: who gets fed first, gets treats first, gets pet first, etc etc.

We give them their meals at the same time, we don't treat them any differently, we treat them equally.

Do you think Ginger would mind if Buster took over as alpha? Could she be more submissive than him?

Well, YES she would mind. She thinks she is head of the house, and Jenny should think that because she is older. Ginger is less maturer than Jenny so things bug her easily if you know what I mean. I got a suggestion to use NILIF for all 4 dogs. She is more submissive than him, by a lot.

[aly]

NILIF is great, but I'm not sure that it would solve the fighting issue. You can try it though.

Easy-going dogs can be treated equally, but sometimes you do need to give one preferential treatment. I know it sounds horrible at first, but if you think about it and research it, it will make more sense. Dogs live in a hierarchy and are used to "pack mentality". Studying wolves will give you a lot of insight on this. The "top dog" establishes his rank and the humans need to respect that. Most of the time, the other dogs are fine with taking subordinate roles. You run into issues when you have more than one dog fighting for the same rank or when there is confusion as to the pecking order. If the humans make it clear what the rankings are, the dogs' relationships will fall into line. You should always observe them to see who THEY decide the alpha is, and then treat that dog as alpha. Treating a lower ranking dog as alpha will sometimes create some chaos in relationships among the dogs.

They should all look up to the humans as higher than themselves, which is where NILIF comes in handy. But they also sometimes need rankings within themselves too.

[luvofallhorses]

Yeah, you're right. But how can I try and make Buster alpha?

[aly]

What is important to him? Food? Toys? Walks?

Whatever it is, be sure he gets it first. You probably already know which situations he is more controlling in. As long as he doesn't get nasty about it, just let him be first. First through doorways, first outside, sleeping higher or in a better position, etc. Watch how the other dogs react and see if they are okay with it.

This may or may not work. It usually does work though so it is worth a try. Good luck

[kt_luvs_kitties]

My dogs fight on occasion, Mainly with food and treats. We just keep them seperate and try to make it as comfortable for them as possible. Maybe try to seperate them for a few hours after a fight. I just dont have much advice...

[Dixieland Dancer]

Aly gave great advice. I really can't add anything except you really need to be conscience at all times of how you treat the dogs. Buster is clearly fighting for alpha status and until you acknowledge this in everything, including greeting him first, letting him out first, feeding him first, etc. the fights will continue. If you accept Buster as the alpha, then so will Ginger!

In our house Dusty challenged his mom for alpha status. It was hard for me to accept since it was his mom, but after I did, harmony reigned.

Best wishes for a harmonous house!

[luvofallhorses]

What is important to him? Food?

Food is Very important to him..