emerald514
New member
I have 3 dogs. 13 yr F Shihtzu (Smoosh)25lbs, 10 yr M ChcLab/GSP mix (Bronx) 70lbs and a 9 yr M Grmnshp 115lbs (Draven).
When I got Draven as a puppy him and Bronx were cuddly and close. Bronx and Smoosh were both fixed and I wasn't going to get Draven fixed to possibly breed him. When his balls dropped I went through 6-12 months of intermittent dog fights.
I learned so much about what I was doing wrong as an owner and changed a lot of what I did with them.
From about 2016 on no dog fights.
My dogs get bike rides to expell energy, they're paired up. Draven stops Bronx from rough housing with Smoosh.
Draven and Bronx don't wrestle or play together.
I feel like Draven doesnt know how to play, he doesn't wrestle with any dogs.
Sometimes they'll all lay together which is newer in the past 4 years.
They do kill gophers and rabbits pretty regularly so I think they feel like a pack.
Draven screams whenever they get separated and gets super depressed. Separation rarely happens, it's been Vet related.
They don't fight over toys, Bronx will give in however I take turns playing with each dog and rewarding the one waiting for their turn. I put toys up when I'm not there to make sure possessive behavior doesn't develop. Draven does not want to share yet will and does when I'm present.
Bronx is food motivated.
Draven is pray driven.
Smoosh she runs the show with her Napoleon complex.
Sorry I'm trying to give some background.
Fast forward to 2020, I move to NC with my dogs.
They have a yard, we still bike.
They get their own kennels for feeding and when I'm not home. They've had this arrangement their entire lives.
1x each year the boys have gotten into fights. So 3 fights. The first 1st I could split up within 10 mins or less cause I had a thick massive rug I could throw on them and hold them down till they calmed.
The second was at the Kennel. They get a huge share kennel and apparently Draven just attacked Bronx when they were putting them back together after they were separated to eat. I don't have a lot of detail to figure out what triggered that time.
The other night there was a fight about 20 minutes long. I had thrown the carpet out and couldn't figure out how to separate them. Vacuum did not work, water did not work, eventually I used a kennel to smash them against a wall.
In this fight it appeared Draven was trying to dominate Bronx and Bronx to me, looks like he's fighting out of fear with all his might. A vegetable had fallen on the floor, I stepped past it to set the plate down and behind me a fight kicked off so I couldn't see the warning signs to stop it from happening.
They have never fought over food, even though they can eat separately they always check out each others bowls and water, no growls, no locked eyes, so I'm so confused as to what happened and I didn't see it.
I'm pretty sure Bronx starts the fights, he's more slow minded. He's got no sense of space and bumbles around. The few times Draven had given warning growls I had to move Bronx because he doesn't even acknowledge them.
Anyway all this to get to my question. Am I a shitty owner for not re-homing one of the boys?
They fight so infrequently it seems extreme to give one of then up.
Yet since they're getting on in years I don't know if I'm being stupid keeping them together.
Draven doesn't fight with other dogs and has been to trainer monitored play dates, he's not labeled as an aggressive temperament.
I'm not sure if even very rare fights is a shitty thing to keep them around each other for. They both have scars from their fights. They immediately buddy up after fights too, to clean each other up.
I'm just afraid even if the fights are rare when they happen they're real and intense and will Draven eventually end up killing Bronx because Bronx is much older.
I can't imagine giving either one of them up they're real good dogs. They're trained, we play all the time. I'm so confused on what's the best move for the dogs. If I separate them after 9 years will they be depressed. I can't even fathom separating them but I need to do what's best for them. Yet I don't know what the best is in relation to fights since dogs are in the moment and seem to be over it once it passes.
I'd appreciate opinions.
When I got Draven as a puppy him and Bronx were cuddly and close. Bronx and Smoosh were both fixed and I wasn't going to get Draven fixed to possibly breed him. When his balls dropped I went through 6-12 months of intermittent dog fights.
I learned so much about what I was doing wrong as an owner and changed a lot of what I did with them.
From about 2016 on no dog fights.
My dogs get bike rides to expell energy, they're paired up. Draven stops Bronx from rough housing with Smoosh.
Draven and Bronx don't wrestle or play together.
I feel like Draven doesnt know how to play, he doesn't wrestle with any dogs.
Sometimes they'll all lay together which is newer in the past 4 years.
They do kill gophers and rabbits pretty regularly so I think they feel like a pack.
Draven screams whenever they get separated and gets super depressed. Separation rarely happens, it's been Vet related.
They don't fight over toys, Bronx will give in however I take turns playing with each dog and rewarding the one waiting for their turn. I put toys up when I'm not there to make sure possessive behavior doesn't develop. Draven does not want to share yet will and does when I'm present.
Bronx is food motivated.
Draven is pray driven.
Smoosh she runs the show with her Napoleon complex.
Sorry I'm trying to give some background.
Fast forward to 2020, I move to NC with my dogs.
They have a yard, we still bike.
They get their own kennels for feeding and when I'm not home. They've had this arrangement their entire lives.
1x each year the boys have gotten into fights. So 3 fights. The first 1st I could split up within 10 mins or less cause I had a thick massive rug I could throw on them and hold them down till they calmed.
The second was at the Kennel. They get a huge share kennel and apparently Draven just attacked Bronx when they were putting them back together after they were separated to eat. I don't have a lot of detail to figure out what triggered that time.
The other night there was a fight about 20 minutes long. I had thrown the carpet out and couldn't figure out how to separate them. Vacuum did not work, water did not work, eventually I used a kennel to smash them against a wall.
In this fight it appeared Draven was trying to dominate Bronx and Bronx to me, looks like he's fighting out of fear with all his might. A vegetable had fallen on the floor, I stepped past it to set the plate down and behind me a fight kicked off so I couldn't see the warning signs to stop it from happening.
They have never fought over food, even though they can eat separately they always check out each others bowls and water, no growls, no locked eyes, so I'm so confused as to what happened and I didn't see it.
I'm pretty sure Bronx starts the fights, he's more slow minded. He's got no sense of space and bumbles around. The few times Draven had given warning growls I had to move Bronx because he doesn't even acknowledge them.
Anyway all this to get to my question. Am I a shitty owner for not re-homing one of the boys?
They fight so infrequently it seems extreme to give one of then up.
Yet since they're getting on in years I don't know if I'm being stupid keeping them together.
Draven doesn't fight with other dogs and has been to trainer monitored play dates, he's not labeled as an aggressive temperament.
I'm not sure if even very rare fights is a shitty thing to keep them around each other for. They both have scars from their fights. They immediately buddy up after fights too, to clean each other up.
I'm just afraid even if the fights are rare when they happen they're real and intense and will Draven eventually end up killing Bronx because Bronx is much older.
I can't imagine giving either one of them up they're real good dogs. They're trained, we play all the time. I'm so confused on what's the best move for the dogs. If I separate them after 9 years will they be depressed. I can't even fathom separating them but I need to do what's best for them. Yet I don't know what the best is in relation to fights since dogs are in the moment and seem to be over it once it passes.
I'd appreciate opinions.