Honestly, it sounds like you are on the right track. As far as the Dane, continued training is not for disciple per se - but will help build his confidence and make him more secure in your leadership. Putting them both on a program of NILIF (Nothing in Life is Free) would be helpful. Management will also be important. I have two dogs in my house that get along 99.9% of the time with the occasional spat. As a result I keep them seperated by baby gates when I am not home and watch them carefully when they are together. I have also learned doggie signals - if one is looking at the other one out of the corner of their eye, it is a sign that she is about to aggress. Closing the mouth is another signal of that. Shifting their center of gravity forward can be another sign. The placement of the jaw commissure (the place where the mouth meets to form the upper and lower mouth) - back could mean fear (sort of frown like) and forward could mean assertiveness.

There is some validity in allowing them to work out their sturcture in the household, but my fear is that most people do not read dog body language well enough before it develops into major escalation. I know when I first got my Penny Lane and she and Leo got into their first fight - I hired a behaviorist to help me, even though I have taught dog obedience classes. Since then I have read a great deal about body language, attended seminars, watched video and I am still caught unawares on occasion and am continuing to learn. If you cannot find Trish King's book you can easily find Patricia McConnells. "Feeling Outnumbered...". She is one of the leading authorities of dog behavior and was Trish King's mentor.

Again - it sounds like you are on the right track, the fact that you can break up interaction with a word is terrific. I have also found that sometimes we humans are the trigger to dog-dog aggression. Dog's read our body language so much better than we do and if we are tense or fearful - they feed off that.

Good Luck and PM me if you want to discuss further.

Clara