It may be that one of your dogs hasn't always picked a fight and, until recently, has been very peaceful. However, the last couple of days she starts growling to the point where she attacks your other dog While it may be cause for concern, this is more common than you think, and it is a situation that has a couple of explanations with its roots in animal biology and psychology.
It is always wiser and safer to prevent a fight than to try to stop one that has already started. Continue reading this article on our site to answer the question: " Why does your dog attack your other dog?". We will help you understand your pet's behavior and give you possible solutions to avoid or, at least, reduce the attacks.
Why do two bitches fight?
Just like people, dogs can get bad with each other for no reason. Even so, when we talk about two female dogs that live in the same home, aggressive behavior may be revealing certain behavior problems that we may not have noticed before.
Below we explain some of the reasons that may explain why your dog attacks your other dog:
- Have you made a good introduction? Ideally, introduce two dogs on neutral ground and take several walks before bringing them together. same household, also using rewards and congratulations to reinforce a positive association. Suddenly putting a new dog in the house can make your current dog react aggressively from the first moment, due to territoriality, fear, etc.
- Is there a big age difference? Although this is not always the case, sometimes putting together a puppy with an elderly dog can be a bad idea. Older bitches need reassurance and often suffer from ailments, so aggressive responses towards the playful little bitch may appear.
- Do you treat your two dogs differently? Perhaps without meaning to, you have been scolding one more or have congratulated one and not the other. Dogs are fully capable of perceiving discrimination and, apart from generating a social conflict with you, it will make her associate negatively with the other dog, causing tense situations and even aggressiveness.
- Are both dogs well socialized? Socialization takes place during puppyhood, before fears and It is essential to avoid phobias or aggressive behaviors. Have you socialized both dogs from 3 to 12 weeks? If this is not the case, they may not know the canine language correctly and act with fear, miscommunication, etc.
- Can resource protection exist? Have you observed one of your dogs growling at the other when she approaches the water from her? To her bed? To the toys? If so, perhaps you are facing resource protection, something that should start working as soon as possible.
Genetics, predation, trauma or hormonal involvement (which worsens during and/or after heat) may be the cause of the aggressiveness between the two bitches. It is important to go to the veterinary to rule out physical and hormonal problems, but also to a ethologist or dog trainerto get the correct diagnosis before we start working on this issue.
Hormonal factors
Dogs have more sensitive periods that alternate with others of greater serenity. It is important to know when these periods start, because if the attacks increase and worsen they could lead to big fights where the damage can be severe. We are talking about heat in bitches It doesn't always happen, but some bitches change their character after the arrival of their first heat. Hormonal and physical changes affect your dog's mood and personality.
Although some males reduce their aggressiveness levels after neutering, an aggressive female should never be spayed. since that would favor the decrease in estrogen and the increase in testosterone, further favoring aggressiveness.
How to prevent your dog from attacking your other dog?
The aggressive behaviors are not easy to treat and require the supervision of a specialist, who can offer us guidelines to follow at home, help us to better read the language of our dogs and even carry out behavior modification sessions. It's never too late to work tolerance with your dog.
Here are some tips you can apply at home:
- Avoid punishing any of your dogs, as this encourages an aggressive response.
- Think about the situations that have provoked aggressiveness and avoid them.
- If you think an attack is about to take place, distract them with a few loud claps, moving a bag, etc. Always avoid being bitten.
- Don't scold when one of your bitches growls, you're telling them to go straight to attack instead of warning her
- Observe both dogs to see what things they find uncomfortable, pleasant, etc.
- Remove from the home the objects that could cause a dispute (toys, a bone, etc.)
- Never reinforce aggressive behavior or behavior that you don't know what it means.
- On the contrary reinforce behaviors that you like: being relaxed, lightly sniffing each other and even avoiding each other. You can get bits of dog treats, but you can also reinforce with the voice, "Great!".
- Work obedience on a daily basis with both of them to ensure that, little by little, they will respond better to your commands, which translates into more security. With one or two sessions of between 5 and 10 minutes you will have enough.
- Make sure that both dogs are he althy, without parasites, that they enjoy a good diet and an optimal quality of life.
Even though the seizures may get worse and won't stop, never consider getting rid of one of the dogs, consider going to a professional, such as an ethologist, an animal association or ask a family member for help.
