When Family Dogs Fight With Each Other

Lisa adopted Duke, a handsome Labrador Retriever mix in June. She brought home Luther, a friendly Rottweiler mix about 6 months later.  “The boys” as she called them, seemed to get along fine with each other for the first 3 months. Then one evening while Lisa was preparing dinner, a fight broke out between Duke and Luther in the kitchen. It was easy for her to break up the fight but a pretty scary scene nonetheless.  Three weeks later, the dogs fought again, this time in the back yard. That fight took longer for Lisa to break up and resulted in a trip to the vet for Duke to treat his wounds, and a trip to the doctor for Lisa to treat the accidental bite she got when she reached between the dogs to break up the fight.  Lisa noticed the fights were happening more frequently, and were getting more intense. She was faced with the heartbreaking choice of having to re-home one of her dogs, which to her was unthinkable.

Some of the most challenging cases for dog trainers are those involving aggression between dogs living together in the home. These cases are always difficult and there are many factors which will impact the chance of success, but some of the factors to consider are the sexes and breeds of the dogs involved, the total number of dogs in the home, the frequency of the fights and the severity of the fights.

Same-sex fights are the most common. Male dogs fight with each other more often than females, but fights between female dogs tend to be more intense.  Fights between dogs of the opposite sex are less common, but do occur. In every case however, aggression is self-reinforcing. Every time there is a fight it makes it more likely that there will be another.

Cases involving occasional fights can be easier to deal with than cases where the dogs will fight every time they are allowed to come in contact with one another. Two fights in 12 months is a completely different dynamic than 12 fights in two months.

Fortunately for Lisa, she was able to change the “household rules” in time to prevent any more fights between Duke and Luther. She realized that in each instance there was a specific trigger for the fights. The presence of food had sparked the first one and the excitement of running around together in the yard “fence fighting” with the neighbor’s dog had started the second one.

Avoiding known triggers is crucial.  Take complete control of your dogs’ daily routines.  Lots of obedience training and the use of dog crates, leashes and muzzles where appropriate, can help prevent future injuries.

Aggression among dogs is essentially is a means of preventing conflict. A growl or snap warns the approaching dog to back off, and if he does, conflict is avoided. When family dogs fight, something has usually gone wrong in the warning system.  Also, poor  management of the environment and the dogs by their owners can make things a lot worse.

The two main areas to manage in a home where fights have occurred are excitement and resources. There is a thin line between excitement and aggression.  The more “amped up” your dogs are, the more likely they are to cross the line.  “Resources” are the things for which dogs in the home can compete. Obvious resources include food, bones, toys and treats. Less obvious, but just as important to consider, are things like a place on the couch or bed, or the attention of the owner.

Fortunately for Lisa, she got the help of a good trainer and was able to put the above plan into action in time. With lots of hard work and diligent enforcement of boundaries and rules, Duke and Luther gradually regained trust for one another and are now living together safely and happily. Even so, she guards against a false sense of security.  “When I leave, I make sure they’re both in their crates,” said Lisa. “I realize that even though they’re getting along fine now, I can never leave them alone without supervision.”

Thanks to in-home dog trainers Canine Dimensions for contributing this article.