# Can you train dogs that fight to get along?



## tuffycuddles (Sep 25, 2008)

I have four huskies. May is faily agressive and believes that she is in charge(of the other dogs she was my first dog). and Dewie is very timid and i got her as an adult.My other two i got as pups and they understand how life works with May and they live with it. Anyhow Dewie and May have gotten into several fights now,(that drew blood and once needed stitches) and Currently i have just resorted to always keeping them separate. but it'd be nice if i could figure out a way to get past this problem. I have heard that huskies hold grudges and that once two dogs fight you can never trust them to not fight again. But i'm sure there is a way to train dogs to at least tollerate eachother. They have tollerated eachother before. I'm just not sure how to do it. I wish i could get a dog trainer or behaviourist or something ,but i live in a remote community(the closest Bank,theatre,vet,wal-mart etc. is 4 hours away.) So until i move that isn't an option(hopefully i will be moving in the next year or so). But any sugestions and i'll gladly answer any further questions to help you help me aswell. Oh it's usually May that gets bit becuase she gets agressive with Dewie who then gets scared and bites May.


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## wvasko (Dec 15, 2007)

Some dogs yes, other dogs no


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## MusherChic (Nov 6, 2010)

What I did with my two (Ellie the GSD and Maggie the lab) that don't get along is I would take them on walks together and bring lots of treats and a few toys. I would make the walks a lot of fun by playing with them and giving them a treat here and there. That way they knew that good stuff happened while the other was around. 
Now they still don't get along super well but they will tolerate each other. Before they couldn't even be in the same room with out picking a fight. 

Other than that I don't know what to tell you. Some dogs, like people, just don't get along well with others and there's not much you can do about it.


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## xxxxdogdragoness (Jul 22, 2010)

This is an interesting thread, Izze doesn't get on with my moms dobie mix & im at a loss why. If I had to guess, it might have something to do with the signals Yumi is sending out, they have never gotten along, even when Izze (they have known each other since Yumi was a pup). Whwn Izze is laying, minding her own business, Yumi will come up & stand over her & stare at her, whwn I visit, I do not let her do this. I am still at a loss of their problems with one another lol. Yumi's instability might also be a factor.


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## Marsh Muppet (Nov 29, 2008)

There are a number of ifs, maybes, and buts that muddle the picture, but you might have a good chance of succeeding in getting the dogs to act civilized under supervision. I wouldn't give very great odds that they can be given free run of the house and yard when you are not home, though. Even dogs who get along famously have been known to bloody one another when left to their own devices.

The more dogs involved, the harder it can be to manage the situation. It's easier when the dogs have been brought up with the no-fighting rule from the earliest age.


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## Miss Bugs (Jul 4, 2011)

depends on the dogs involved. I have 5 dogs who all hate eachother, but are all good together now..I still have the odd issue with Misty, but for the most part they are all very good together now. Happy and Rusty are also both formerly dog aggressive, and are both now regular daycare dogs that can play with almost anyone. HOWEVER, some dogs just dont mesh and never do. Rusty and my moms male for example can never ever be loose together, the only thing we have managed to accomplish is tolerance.. IE they dont try to kill eachother on sight, and can be in the same vicinity without fighting, however we have to be very carful, because one wronge move on either of their parts and it is war.


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## +two (Jul 12, 2011)

As others have said, it depends on the dog. One of my dogs, Ozzie, can be particular about who he likes. There was one foster dog in particular that he could not be around. They weren't even allowed to see each other! I tried a few things with them but to no avail. Another foster dog he fought with twice but was fine with before. What I did was introduce them on neutral territory, during a walk. Look at the 'how to introduce two dogs' thread for one suggestion on how to do this. Even if the dogs know each other, I've found it helpful to walk them together outside of the property. However, you really need two people. 

If everything goes okay on the walk, then stop off in the yard and give them each a little more freedom. Maybe place them on a 15" long line each. Let them sniff, smell, whatever. Watch them like a hawk, but don't follow them around. If you see one dog beginning to stare, focus intently, approach quickly, etc, then step in and body block. Turn the dog away without scolding. Let both dogs know that that behavior is not appropriate and won't be tolerated. It won't be happening anymore, period. 

Watch carefully for cues that they are uncomfortable and follow your gut instinct. Do lots of shorter sessions of exposure to each other. Work up to where you can invite them both into the same room. 

I would not recommend adding your other two dogs in the beginning phases of this. Make sure that the two 'trouble makers' are okay with each other first before trying to introduce another dog. Take it slow. 

I would also not recommend ever leaving them alone together. They may be trustworthy after a lot of hard work, luck and training but it is not worth it. 

Good luck and stay positive!


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## crazy5 (Dec 17, 2010)

Are they spayed and neutered, how long together before this behavior started, and have you seen what has triggered it?


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## amynrichie (Sep 3, 2008)

We have two males that *tolerate* each other after 1 1/2 years of living in the same house. We had to resort to full crate and rotate, or one upstairs, one downstairs, never out to potty together. It took six months and 3-4 pretty serious fights before we got smart enough to keep it up ALL the time, not just for a couple of weeks. Now, a year later, both dogs can be in the same room if being VERY closely supervised. I allow NO rough housing when both are in the same room, because that aggravates them. I have to watch them both closely for signs of irritation. I NEVER let them in the yard together unsupervised, but I will take them out together now. I don't let the kids potty them together because they don't know what to watch for.

One other thing that I know helped to tip the scales in our favor was putting the new dog ( a 5 yr old puppy mill stud dog rescue) on prozac. It really helped his redirected aggression issues.


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## tuffycuddles (Sep 25, 2008)

The two that fight are both spayed females and both 3 years old. However when i first got Dewie in Jan she wasn't spayed. (i got her spayed in May) They got into a bad fight in the first week?(i think) after meeting. and May ended up with 8 stiches. Not really sure what caused that fight. Then after alot of time they were able to tolerate eachother. I'd supervise them in the yard together. and Dewie would mostly just sit on or in her dog house and avoid May. then as time whent on she got braver and would hop down for very short periods of time and eventually they would even play together. but that took like 5-6 months. the few problems i have had with them since then have been when i'm telling Dewie "no" or if i tell her something and she doesn't listen, then May runs in as if to enforce what i'm saying. May does that with my other two but they were raised as pups with her and they just accept it. Dewie was a trapline sled dog from a Reserve-probably abused. she was kept on a chain in an unfenced yard where anyone/anydog could wander through. She is very timid and shy around men, GREAT with children and my other dogs, a major cuddle bug total sweet heart. And Then think of May as a bossy only child who only had me for 2 years then in her third year ended up with 3 siblings.

Right now we are back to the point where Dewie just hides on/in her dog house if May comes out. She hops down when May is all the way across the yard or preoccupied with something else. But she pays very close attention and hides again when May notices her.


also just something else that came to mind. Right after May pees Dewie always goes in the same spot right after May.?


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## crazy5 (Dec 17, 2010)

I feel that Dewie being spayed is going to a huge help for you, another thing I would start doing is to walk them together one on each side everyday. Do they both know any commands, sit, down stay, and how do they walk on a leash? Is there a man in the house living with younthat she is shy around? At this time I am working with the most dog aggressive dog I have seen in my 29yrs of working with dogs and recently I was able to take her into Petco for adoption day with the shelter I train at and she was excellent. It has taken two months to get her where she is at but she is there and she was a tied out in the back yard dog also.


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## xxxxdogdragoness (Jul 22, 2010)

Yeah females that are spayed are less... Moody lol, I have had all my females spayed before

I know that dogs are kind of like ppl, who "for some reason" don't like one another but wonder what goes thru their minds when they dont like someone.


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## petpeeve (Jun 10, 2010)

tuffycuddles said:


> the few problems i have had with them since then have been when i'm telling Dewie "no" or if i tell her something and she doesn't listen, then May runs in as if to enforce what i'm saying.


Perhaps you already know, but this could be part of the problem.

If you haven't thought of it, then you might want to examine and re-evaluate your own demeanor, ... facial expressions, tone of voice, volume, etc ... and make adjustments to your approach, as required.

Sometimes, some dogs will interpret your reprimanding another dog as an opportunity to unneccessarily assert themselves, or join in the fracas. So then, the key would be to remain calm and unemotional, .. and also to remember when using "no", that most times actions speak louder than words.


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