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bad puppy fight

1K views 9 replies 5 participants last post by  fostermom 
#1 ·
My daughter and I just got 2 Golden puppies. They are twelve weeks old and brothers. We had them together a lot this weekend and they were doing the typical puppy things, wrestling, fighting over toys etc. Yesterday they got into a major mean dogfight. It was difficult to separtate them. I had to hold Rocky's nose to get him to release from Jacks neck. You could not pry his jaws open.

Up until then they act like typical goldens, just sweetest things on the planet. Now my daughter is worried that they may have a dog with bad tendencies. Any comments or training advice.

Rocky was immediatly put into his crate for a long timeout, Jack seemed none the worse for the incedent. Here is a picture of how they were normally playing.
 

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#2 · (Edited)
I don't have any advice, you'll need a behaviorist.

But we have experienced this exact same thing. Our pup Gunner and our daughter's dog Kinser were litter mates. At that age, they would get into some horrible fights, like they wanted to kill each other. We had to tear them apart. Thankfully, they don't live together and seemed to outgrow it. They get along fine now. But they are both somewhat dog aggressive and I wonder if this started it.

I had read you shouldn't get litter mates as they will bond more with each other than with humans but this is more sibling rivalry!

Hope someone with some knowledge about this can help you!
 
#3 ·
http://www.caninedevelopment.com/Sibling.htm

1. i suggest that they have 2 separate crates
2. i suggest walking them separately
and letting them eat away from each other
that will help you bond with BOTH of them separately .
as for the fighting, i dont know. but i encourange games that will make them work together and have fun, another good way to avoid fights, LOTS OF TOYS, and if there is one they both like, get another one of the same type. toys, food, and attention are the 3 things that dogs will usually fight over.


Fighting:
If you need to break up a fight, squirt the dogs with water or make a loud noise to distract them. Never attempt to break up a dog fight by grabbing the dogs by their collar or getting in between them. Grabbing dogs whilst they are fighting can result in what is called "redirected aggression," where a dog bites you because he thinks you are part of the conflict.
Sometimes the problem can be resolved if, instead of protecting the underdog the owner supports the hierarchy ie the top dog. Firstly determine who is the more dominant, reinforce that position by feeding, greeting, playing or letting the top dog out first. Usually this will help, but not always. “The problem with that approach is that it’s often difficult to tell who should be the alpha dog, it is also difficult for owners to play favourites with their dogs.
Two Choices:
To my mind you have two choices with siblings from the same litter or two young pups from different breeds, Whilst I believe the first solution is the most practicable, which is to re-home one of them, I am also aware it is the hardest and most difficult for the owners. If not they will always be damaged by their almost total reliance on each other.
If you decide to choose this alternative, you can home one of the dogs with another family member or a trusted friend. You will see dramatic improvements to the personalities of both pups. These changes occur almost immediately. Be aware that the longer you delay the harder it will be to part with one of your pups. It is a difficult and agonising decision for someone to make, however in the long run it is in yours and ultimately both your dog’s best interest.
Your second choice is to create two individual dogs, with two separate identities and personalities, without the total reliance on each other that normally happens in these situations. To do this you will need to work twice as hard because all the things you did together you will now need to do totally apart.
Things you must do:
Everything must now be done independently to allow for the Siblings to have any chance of becoming separate entities instead of the reduced sum of the whole.

  • Walk them separately

  • Feed them separately

  • Train them separately

  • Crate them separately

  • Play with them separately
Literally everything you do should be separate. That includes Puppy and Training classes, take them to a trainer that understands the inherent difficulties of raising two puppies together. Take them on separate nights hopefully to the same trainer. They can play together but only at strict designated times and for a period of no more than 15 minutes each designated play time.
This regime will not be for life as the pups will, after a period of about 12 to 14 months have formed their own personalities and temperaments; at this age they will have become confident of their own individual abilities. Not as in most cases total inter-dependence to each other when siblings are raised, trained, and fed together.
Without the total reliance on their sibling for constant support they will grow and blossom into much rounder and less aggressive and fearful individuals. I cannot stress how important it is to separate the siblings until they are older. It will produce two individuals rather than an impaired two parts of the whole.
It is worth stating that it is not only siblings that have these problems. If you raise two young pups from different litters or even breeds, you can have similar problems. I always recommend my clients to wait till their puppy is 14 months old before purchasing another puppy this then allows you to concentrate all your efforts on that individual and hopefully it will take on some of the good traits of the older more experienced dog.
I think what truly annoys me are the breeders that sell siblings, and in some cases actually use emotional blackmail to push two pups, For instance " what a shame you can't take two as I may have problems as he's so small/white/little/runt etc and I'll probably have to have him put down in the end". I have no respect for a breeder that uses these tactics or that sell littermates to one owner. If they are experienced and not a first time breeder then they are well aware of the pitfalls of these actions, and that the dogs will suffer for the rest of their lives

http://www.doglistener.co.uk/choosing/siblings.shtml
 
#5 ·
oh sorry! i thought they lived 2gether, if not well, sometimes those kind of fights just happen for no real reason, if it happens again, the best method is not to pull them away, but to distract. (blow horn,bottle full of change, spray bottles, hose ect..) and PRAISE ALOT when they are just playing nicely and having fun. and when they fight, the fun must stop. put them both in a boring room alone for a while for time out.. they will get the picture

congrats on the 2 new puppies :)
 
#6 ·
What started the fight? Did they draw blood, or just make a ton of noise?
 
#7 ·
We do not know what started the fight. They may need and will get more time separated. Because my daughter was have a 2 day housewarming party the dogs spent a lot time together. Except for this one time they were just great together. No blood but Jack was yelping and Rocky was really clamped on.
 
#8 ·
There is a good chance they'll work it out, especially when they hear big no's from you. That is such a squabble age. Did their breeder have a comment?
 
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