Two aggressive dogs fighting. Need help

[bridget7]

I recently got a new female puppy she’s 3 months old. Presumably a boxer lab mix (not sure) she’s 30lbs, adorable, very loving, non aggressive toward humans. Gets along with other dogs and animals.

I have a male rescue dog I’ve had for almost three years (presumably a terrier/Maltese mix, presumably around 5 years old. He is also a great dog. Non aggressive toward humans, loving and gets along with other animals.

Both are amazing dogs and completely fine as individuals. They DO get along great with other animals AND even each other! They play it together, hang out etc. They Have never shown any aggression toward humans. Or other animals (besides each other when provoked over things) but otherwise they’re both amazing and loving.

The issue is, when there is food involved, my little dog gets extremely territorial and possessive and instigates fights and starts attacks and in turn they BOTH become extremely aggressive toward one another and end up viscously fighting.

For example, there’s been a handful of fights over me when I am giving one attention or food (like a dog bone) or toys and it’s always mainly the little dog who starts the aggressive behavior. Sometimes the puppy will be doing her own thing but the little dog will start with growling and showing teeth and in turn, she immediately reacts back and very BAD fights occur and don’t stop.

The fights have been so bad that there has been blood and I accidentally got bit as well as my friend when trying to break the dog fight. (Both ACCIDENTALLY by the little dog).

When they are in fight mode, they are both extremely aggressive and it’s scary and hard to break them apart. (Only saving grace right now is the fact the puppy barely has teeth yet.)

Several articles and tutorials later, I’m trying to reach out to anyone with experience or professional to talk with me.

I want to know if this is salvageable problem or a manageable relationship between the two dogs. I am in fear that the puppy will get much bigger and grow big k-9s and these fights will get much worse. And God forbid someone or my dog truly gets hurt or someone sues me if they’re trying to break them apart.

I want the best life for both of them. I rescued both of them and I’ll do whatever it takes but don’t want for them to live a life of fighting over dominance or territorial issues or even me living a life of having yo be on edge of when the next fight will occur.

I’ve been making every effort to keep them away when feeding and taking turns etc. show affection to both equally. And I have also considered rehoming the puppy if a professional tells me that with both their characteristics, the fighting may never stop or get worse down the line…… (she’s amazing and it’s more my little dog that is the instigator…..

I need someone to help me who knows how to deal with dominance, territorial (jealously) and food aggression issues.

Thank you.

 

[karlx]

@bridget7 I had this but the opposite- my new puppy would get extremely upset and aggro when I would feed my current dog treats.

Not sure if my solution would work for you but this is what I did;

You basically want to create the scenario (safely) where you know they will act badly and then not reward it.

Firstly, secure the dog that is aggressing and escalating things BEFORE anything can happen. For me a leash and harness was fine but in your case you may want a muzzle too just to be safe. Also in your case it seems like both dogs are reacting to each other. You can control and stop a fight much better if you and a friend have control of both animals.

For me I had someone hold my puppy at a short distance while I steadily fed my other dog treats. She would lunge and scream and back and bare her teeth and I just continued to feed treats to the other dog slowly (she loved it lol). As soon as the puppy got tired and settled I would praise her and let her have her turn with treats. She picked up really fast that being aggressive for food did not work and waiting her turn did.

My other dog was never aggressive back though so as before I would leash both and in this case maybe swap the dogs around each time. Start focus on the aggressor though.

Also a tip if fights get out of control- a tablespoon and a saucepan. Bang the spoon on there like hell and while they are shocked get them away from each other. I have only used it once but it worked really well at suprising them for a bit so I could get them seperated.

 

[paulx2016]

@bridget7 Food, toys and things that either dog consider valuable will likely be the cause of this problem.

Feed them in separate rooms to end the competition over food. There is no need to feed both animals together so don't. When both have finished their respective meals, lift the bowls and put them away. No food, no bowls = no fights.

When you are training one dog with treats and toys place the other dog in a play pen or out of sight. Ensure you are very fair - dogs know what fair is and if they sense the other dog is getting more food/attention/love/toys etc than he/she is, again you will have a problem between the dogs.

You do not need professional help for either of these dogs because they seem to be fine until you accidentally place something that they must or want to compete over.

If you are having a love up session with the dogs - be absolutely careful that both dogs get your praise, pats and attention. Look at both of them separately and address each separately. Always praise both dogs for calm behaviour in the presence of each other.

 

[bridget7]

@paulx2016 Thank you for your response. I do feed them separately. Always have them in separate rooms and wait until the others are finished to have them rejoin (I pick up bowls etc) I make sure I give them equal attention. Tonight was bad because there was a bone and that was my mistake not knowing it was around. I mainly concerned about my little dog provoking and instigating fights randomly even without any items around. It will literally be a situation where, my puppy just walks past him and he’ll start growing. Again, she can react….. They’re both so aggressive when fighting and I don’t know how to break it up. Neither submit and I think they both seek dominance.

 

[revrude]

@bridget7 Op these kinds of issues take a long time to resolve. This means your puppy is going to grow up in a household where valuable things are fought over, and must be protected. It’s much more manageable in small breeds but your new puppy will not stay 30lbs for long. I think that’s a very stressful way for you, and your dogs to live.

Resource guarding aggression can happen anywhere, with anything your dog sees as valuable, which can be the dumbest of things sometimes. My dog got attacked at the dog park because an Aussie shepherd saw a piece of snow as valuable. The Aussie had to see a vet after my dog defended herself.

Definitely find a good trainer to help you work on this asap, or consider rehoming your puppy