Need Helpful Advise re: Dogs Fighting

My dogs are fighting over dominance. Both males, 1 Boston Terrier & 1 Kerr Dog(Hound). They are both 13 months old. They usually get along fine... they play and share food, sleep cuddled up next to each other & their sister Leah (2 year old Black Lab) - she was spayed before the boys came along. We got the Boston first (Boudreaux) when he was 6 weeks - had a broken foot :(. Then a month later we got Trouble - Kerr Dog. From the beginning Trouble has been a bit on the aggressive side. We had to work with him for the first 3 months to get him to play with his new brother. They have yet to get into a fight while I've been home. It's when I'm not here that I get a phone call from my bf that they've been in a fight. I came home last night to find they'd gotten ahold of eachother pretty good. I want to get them fixed, but I really wish I could wait until they were 2 years. I've called my vet for advice but they didn't give me a straight forward answer. Any advice would help.

I would get them both fixed now, why wait until they are 2? The Boston is surely as big - bone structure-wise - as he's ever gonna get. What kind of training have you done with them? How does your bf react when they fight?

I don't have much experience in the fighting part of your question, but I would definately get them neutered now.....why wait? They will be much healthier in the long run if you go ahead and get it done now.....If money is an issue, maybe do one of them one month and the other the next.

While there is speculation that neutering them later in life makes them less susceptible to hormonal imbalance and certain cancers and joint problems, it is not significant enough that you should delay neutering your dogs now. And if that sentence confused you, I mean: neuter them now. 18-24 months is probably an optimal time to get them neutered in terms of growth hormones and such, but the only time I would really recommend such late neutering is with performance dogs who really really need their bodies at its optimum.

Question: How does your boyfriend treat your dogs? Is he sort of passive and lets the dogs run wild, or does he lay down the rules?

From your post, it sounds like you're the primary caretaker of the dogs and so they understand that you lay down the rules. However, once your presence is gone, the household is up for grabs. If there are toys and food around and you're not there to supervise, your dogs may very well fight. Remember: dominance is about controlling resources. It is a social construct to eliminate tension and aggression. Dominance is healthy, but it is not necessarily interlinked with every act of aggression. Dominance is used to prevent it. So if your dogs are fighting, find out *why* they are fighting. It may not be real dominance. Oftentimes, it has to do with a toy or food or a bed or some other type of resource. If both dogs want a resource and there is no higher authority to dole out who can/can't have it, a fight could ensue. For this reason, pick up all toys and treats in your house and keep them in a bin. Only give them out when you can supervise the dogs. It is also an excellent opportunity to begin "Nothing In Life Is Free" or NILIF: http://k9deb.com/nilif.htm

Choose your rules carefully and stick to your guns. At this age, the dogs are adolescents. Remember when you were an adolescent? Remember your parents going insane? That is going to be you for the next couple months, so choose your rules and stick to them. ;)

Also, until you can leave home completely confident that your dogs won't fight, crate or muzzle them. Better safe than sorry. I know many many folks whose dogs fought when they were away, and they came back to a dead or almost dying dog.

Dogs can be neutered safely at 6 months of age.

I suggest spending the money a get them neutered now instead of spending money on having them stitched up after another fight.

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Originally Posted by boomersooner

I don't have much experience in the fighting part of your question, but I would definately get them neutered now.....why wait? They will be much healthier in the long run if you go ahead and get it done now.....If money is an issue, maybe do one of them one month and the other the next.

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This sounds like a good idea to me too. They both should be in a better
frame of mind for training then also.:)

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Originally Posted by Giselle

... until you can leave home completely confident that your dogs won't fight, crate or muzzle them. Better safe than sorry ...

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The best advice given. And always get your pets neutered.