My Dogs Hate Each Other

[bangkaew]

not sure about the 2nd point but for the first; you intimidate* dog A in to accepting dog B in your presence and then you walk them together, spend a whole day with them both and with any luck they will forget their past.

* unfortunately in the dog world respect and fear, not of the leader, but of a leader's raised voice when directed at them... is often the same thing. Trust and respect are not the same. A dog may trust you and for many dogs that trust brings obedience and respect, but for more difficult dogs trust does not bring obedience... imo.

Point A - They will not misbehaviour when you are there, but they will when you are not. You are training them only not to be caught.

Some people just like to beat their dogs. That is the simple solution in their minds, and you seem reticent to accept that anything other that beating dogs will have an impact from the basis that you have a couple of dogs and obviously think that beating them is the only / best way to correct their behaviour. I worked with the RSPCA as a specialist in rehoming nut job dogs. I've had training in it, and quite a few years of seeing what I say actually working. Never had a dog fail, and never had one return due to the reasons they came to me in the first place.

Walking dogs together. A big yard is not sufficient. They need to go out and about further to see new sites and new places. Tethered to you, with you leading them, you are at the front of the pack, they start to co-operate together and fall into line. Together. This more than anything else works.

If you prefer to advocate beating animals then do it in the pub; on a public forum, people reading this might actually take justification for their animal cruelty from your words; and start or continue to beat animals just because the owner can not consistently get themselves and their family (of humans) to act and be the leaders of the house. A point to consider also is that when a human beats a dog the dog picks upon the emotions of that person as well; guilt (well guessing not from you) in the action will never be a deterrent; Anger- dogs flash anger quickly and forget it and is unlikely to deter. Most of the feelings an owner will have will actually not be a deterrent so it is futile. People beat dogs because it makes the person feel better. That is all. So stop telling people to beat dogs.

i said 'hit once in their lives'. I am not advocating 'beating'. I give the advice to the OP as I think it will work in this case. I have 2 dogs, 1 hit once and the other never. With an aggressive dog that wants to kill and has never been hit, hitting might shock it enough to make it submit. You can act pious all you like if that makes you feel good but I don't think many would think hitting a dog ONCE when it is wanting to kill is a cruel thing. I said make sure you hit hard because you only have one chance. If you don't do it right the first time, hitting stops either being affective or an option.

[Nienke]

I worked with the RSPCA as a specialist in rehoming nut job dogs. ....

Where to begin.

1) Are the males neutered? If not, why not? Most aggression is solved over night.Is the female neurtered? Again, if not why not? Get it done as well to decrease competition over her.

2) You are not the Alpha male in the house. At a guess, the one that is dominating the inside is due to it being the home. You need to correct that straight away (Cesar Milan video on pack leader behavior will do it).

3) How often do you walk them? Depending upon breed, a rough rule of thumb is under 10kg, walk 1km per day (in morning to tire them). Over 10kg; 2km + per day. Walking two fighting dogs together will often help them bond, especially if you get them on the same side,and both being submissive to you (not pulling).

4) Is it actually a real aggression problem; not just dominance? Does one particular dog always instigate it? What triggers the fighting - anything that is a common thread?

5) Meal times - what happens? Alpha males decides who eats and when. Feed them together, dominate their food space; take away their bowls when they are eating, when they try to eat or push you to eat, then take it away. Dominate them. Fighting will stop when they know you are the boss.

6) When they fight, are you encouraging them by panicking (you panic, they increase intensity of fighting because they both sense your panic and then are trying to defend you as well... because they are the protector.. as they are dominant over you.

cripes... the list goes on... without seeing it, it's hard to say exactly why but it's usually one or both trying to dominate when in reality you should be; OR, not enough exercise; OR, not neutered; Or you actually have a crazy dog in one of them. As thy are pointers, they really need 3-5km walk a day; these are hunting dogs after all.......

Looking at the position statement of the RSPCA concerning dominance, leadership, and training methods they seem to have a different view from what has been written here above and elsewhere on this thread.

http://kb.rspca.org.au/What-is-the-RSPCAs-view-on-dominance-dog-training_475.html

http://kb.rspca.org.au/What-is-reward-based-dog-training-and-why-does-the-RSPCA-support-it_473.html

http://kb.rspca.org.au/My-dog-is-being-aggressive-why_347.html

Concerning the Alpha roll: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha_roll

[Pseudolus]

I worked with the RSPCA as a specialist in rehoming nut job dogs. ....

Where to begin.

1) Are the males neutered? If not, why not? Most aggression is solved over night.Is the female neurtered? Again, if not why not? Get it done as well to decrease competition over her.

2) You are not the Alpha male in the house. At a guess, the one that is dominating the inside is due to it being the home. You need to correct that straight away (Cesar Milan video on pack leader behavior will do it).

3) How often do you walk them? Depending upon breed, a rough rule of thumb is under 10kg, walk 1km per day (in morning to tire them). Over 10kg; 2km + per day. Walking two fighting dogs together will often help them bond, especially if you get them on the same side,and both being submissive to you (not pulling).

4) Is it actually a real aggression problem; not just dominance? Does one particular dog always instigate it? What triggers the fighting - anything that is a common thread?

5) Meal times - what happens? Alpha males decides who eats and when. Feed them together, dominate their food space; take away their bowls when they are eating, when they try to eat or push you to eat, then take it away. Dominate them. Fighting will stop when they know you are the boss.

6) When they fight, are you encouraging them by panicking (you panic, they increase intensity of fighting because they both sense your panic and then are trying to defend you as well... because they are the protector.. as they are dominant over you.

cripes... the list goes on... without seeing it, it's hard to say exactly why but it's usually one or both trying to dominate when in reality you should be; OR, not enough exercise; OR, not neutered; Or you actually have a crazy dog in one of them. As thy are pointers, they really need 3-5km walk a day; these are hunting dogs after all.......

Looking at the position statement of the RSPCA concerning dominance, leadership, and training methods they seem to have a different view from what has been written here above and elsewhere on this thread.

http://kb.rspca.org....aining_475.html

http://kb.rspca.org....ort-it_473.html

http://kb.rspca.org....ve-why_347.html

Concerning the Alpha roll: http://en.wikipedia....wiki/Alpha_roll

Written and implemented 4 years after I left the UK. And where about in those does it talk about how to correct this circumstance? Also note that I worked with unhomeable dogs. The RSPCA can not encourage or enforce anything that someone might take to extremes and hurt a dog; I have not suggested this.

So your point is what?

Edited May 3, 2012 by Pseudolus