How to stop growling and fighting

D

davimi

New member
I have three dogs. A two year old German Shepherd, a two year old Golden Retriever, and a six year old mix(beagle and some kind of herding dog).
The German Shepherd is great. Off Golden is now growling and occasionally fighting with the mix. The mix likes to try to herd the Golden when they go outside. The golden doesn't get mad at that time, but in the house he will growl when the mix comes by. They will both growl at each other and then sometimes fight. I'm at a loss. I can't believe my golden has that in him. The mix is my son's dog and he can not taken him where he is living, so we have him. He gets along great with the Shepherd. They got into it once and the Shepherd put him in his place. They are buddies now. The Golden and they mix just can't work it out. What do I do??
 
davimi said:
I have three dogs. A two year old German Shepherd, a two year old Golden Retriever, and a six year old mix(beagle and some kind of herding dog).
The German Shepherd is great. Off Golden is now growling and occasionally fighting with the mix. The mix likes to try to herd the Golden when they go outside. The golden doesn't get mad at that time, but in the house he will growl when the mix comes by. They will both growl at each other and then sometimes fight. I'm at a loss. I can't believe my golden has that in him. The mix is my son's dog and he can not taken him where he is living, so we have him. He gets along great with the Shepherd. They got into it once and the Shepherd put him in his place. They are buddies now. The Golden and they mix just can't work it out. What do I do??
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Welcome to DR. Your sons dog the mix is he a new addition to the home?

Has any of the fights Resulted in a trip to the vet etc blood or punctures?
First I would start keeping them separated when not fully supervised and teaching them all alone time. This is where they can stay in another area of the home and not panic. Are they crate trained?

I would also look for any triggers besides proximity such as any food, treats, bones or furniture involved to rule out any type of resource guarding if we want to label the behaviors.

I would also introduce them slowly maybe on leash on walks with someone helping you and reinforce all good behaviors such as being aloof to each other.

I’ll wait for some input from you to get a better ideas of what could help out the situation. It takes time to get a full history report and implementing things to help.
 
Vinny said:
Welcome to DR. Your sons dog the mix is he a new addition to the home?

Has any of the fights Resulted in a trip to the vet etc blood or punctures?
First I would start keeping them separated when not fully supervised and teaching them all alone time. This is where they can stay in another area of the home and not panic. Are they crate trained?

I would also look for any triggers besides proximity such as any food, treats, bones or furniture involved to rule out any type of resource guarding if we want to label the behaviors.

I would also introduce them slowly maybe on leash on walks with someone helping you and reinforce all good behaviors such as being aloof to each other.

I’ll wait for some input from you to get a better ideas of what could help out the situation. It takes time to get a full history report and implementing things to help.
Click to expand...
They have not drawn blood when they fight. The mix began at our house when he was a puppy. He moved out a couple years ago when my son moved out. Then he can't back recently. He is a little"crazy". Sweet, but I think he has annoyed the Golden so much that the golden can't stand him. My son did try training when he lived at his own place. It helped some. When I have allowed them to get into it, the Golden usually ends up on top. I was hoping that would stop it. It doesn't.
 
davimi said:
They have not drawn blood when they fight. The mix began at our house when he was a puppy. He moved out a couple years ago when my son moved out. Then he can't back recently. He is a little"crazy". Sweet, but I think he has annoyed the Golden so much that the golden can't stand him. My son did try training when he lived at his own place. It helped some. When I have allowed them to get into it, the Golden usually ends up on top. I was hoping that would stop it. It doesn't.
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I would definitely suggest not letting them work it out if they are fighting. I would suggest keeping them separated when not supervised. Dealing with multi dogs can be difficult especially when we are observing aggression.
I suggest adding basic obedience for the dogs and doing it in separate sessions. When you can supervise you will have to micro manage them and using your body and basic obedience to help them cope. Separating them using your voice cues and body by stepping in between them. Reinforcing all good behaviors you observed.

Also look for any triggers like a hard stair or approach and you will have to micro manage from there reading body language.

Are these dogs usually left alone at all?
they crate trained? Using baby gates to block access helps a lot to manage the environment.

We do suggest getting a qualified trainer/behavior consultant in when aggression/bites or fights are involved. It’s best when a professional can get a full history report and observe the animals.

Hope this makes sense and helps a bit. Feel free to ask more questions and this will definitely start you in the right direction.
 
Vinny said:
I would definitely suggest not letting them work it out if they are fighting. I would suggest keeping them separated when not supervised. Dealing with multi dogs can be difficult especially when we are observing aggression.
I suggest adding basic obedience for the dogs and doing it in separate sessions. When you can supervise you will have to micro manage them and using your body and basic obedience to help them cope. Separating them using your voice cues and body by stepping in between them. Reinforcing all good behaviors you observed.

Also look for any triggers like a hard stair or approach and you will have to micro manage from there reading body language.

Are these dogs usually left alone at all?
they crate trained? Using baby gates to block access helps a lot to manage the environment.

We do suggest getting a qualified trainer/behavior consultant in when aggression/bites or fights are involved. It’s best when a professional can get a full history report and observe the animals.

Hope this makes sense and helps a bit. Feel free to ask more questions and this will definitely start you in the right direction.
Click to expand...
The dogs are left alone at times. There had never been a problem. None are crated. I have read so many varying solutions from not correcting them to correcting. Some say not to correct the growling because that is how a dog expresses himself. So, should I shut that down immediately?
 
davimi said:
The dogs are left alone at times. There had never been a problem. None are crated. I have read so many varying solutions from not correcting them to correcting. Some say not to correct the growling because that is how a dog expresses himself. So, should I shut that down immediately?
Click to expand...
That will depend with the growling. If a dog is growling at humans we always suggest not to punish or try to suppress that because it is a warning signal like you mentioned. We never want to punish a growl away because that can lead straight to a bite.
With dog to dog interactions we observe body language and interrupt before it escalates. This can be tricky Because one will have to be savvy in body language and behavior. I would interrupt and redirect if one dog is growling at the other. Try to figure out why the dog feels it needs to growl etc approach or hard stare to name a few.
The thing is when we are not around we can never control where a dog goes if we are not there.
How long is this new dog there exactly sometimes it takes a month to observe the dogs true temperament.
 
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