I let mine fight it out with new dogs once or twice AS long as its not a Im going to kill you fight. As much as one correcting the other and the other takes offense to it. The APBT we try to avoid letting fight PERIOD. It also depends on the size difference. There are just so many things I take into consideration.
Letting them fight it out?
- Thread starter SaraB
- Start date
When I first got into dogs, I worked for a trainer who is a huge proponent of "letting them work it out" in nearly every situation. I was never fully comfortable with a lot of what went on there, and have come to be disgusted by some of the things I let go on (under orders). I know of one dog that died from it, and another who has had multiple surgeries and is still not sound. Countless punctures and tears.
I do think there are some situations where it is fine and can help; with a few dogs that I know very well, and whose owners I know well, I'll let a bit more go on with Meg than I normally do. These are dogs she is going to see on a regular basis and to an extent, they need sort it out and be done. I'm not talking fights at all - but a bit of snark or correction. Dogs who I know will not take it too far, and who I know I can reach in and grab without risking myself if needed.
Any dog Meg doesn't need to interact with (neighborhood dogs/agility dogs/dogs we see out walking/etc) - I don't let even that happen. There is no need for them to "work it out" when just not letting them be together is a valid choice.
I do think there are some situations where it is fine and can help; with a few dogs that I know very well, and whose owners I know well, I'll let a bit more go on with Meg than I normally do. These are dogs she is going to see on a regular basis and to an extent, they need sort it out and be done. I'm not talking fights at all - but a bit of snark or correction. Dogs who I know will not take it too far, and who I know I can reach in and grab without risking myself if needed.
Any dog Meg doesn't need to interact with (neighborhood dogs/agility dogs/dogs we see out walking/etc) - I don't let even that happen. There is no need for them to "work it out" when just not letting them be together is a valid choice.
I agree... it's possible when they say "let them fight it out" that is what they are referring to. I don't think I've ever heard somebody say to let dogs fight it out and be meaning an actual knock down, drag out fight... I don't doubt there are people who DO mean that but that is probably not what the majority mean.
Blaze and Jake mostly just make scary faces and mean sounds. But I do *NOT* let them work it out. They are seperated right at the sight of a tail raising or mean look. They haven't worked it out yet, so they lost the chance to a long time ago. And I do NOT tolerate mean looks. It's an immediate removal.
Lizzie and Blaze I do let work it out. Again, they usually just bark at each other or make scary faces. None of my dogs *knock on wood* have ever gotten into a bloody fight. When Blaze was younger, he'd nip Lizzie and she'd go the heck after him (which was completely appropriate) and he learned fast not to do that any more.
Lizzie and Jake I do let sort it out, too. Lizzie is really very fair in corrections - something I love about her. Jake has fought back and I think he learned fast not to mess with Lizzie (she's top dog, for lack of a better word).
Lizzie and Blaze I do let work it out. Again, they usually just bark at each other or make scary faces. None of my dogs *knock on wood* have ever gotten into a bloody fight. When Blaze was younger, he'd nip Lizzie and she'd go the heck after him (which was completely appropriate) and he learned fast not to do that any more.
Lizzie and Jake I do let sort it out, too. Lizzie is really very fair in corrections - something I love about her. Jake has fought back and I think he learned fast not to mess with Lizzie (she's top dog, for lack of a better word).
That.
Most issues around this house are minor. I've only ever had two REAL fights and believe me, those were stopped in their tracks.
Mia will go off for 10+ seconds on another dog. All noise and posturing thus far, shoving the other into the ground, etc. She is very relentless. I stop her because I'm afraid it might escalate.
Good timing, we just had a squabble between Beau and Mia right now.
Mia sat on top of Beau then growled at him to leave. There was a bit of growling/air snapping then Beau left after a few seconds. That's the kind of thing I'd let them 'work out'.
Most issues around this house are minor. I've only ever had two REAL fights and believe me, those were stopped in their tracks.
Mia will go off for 10+ seconds on another dog. All noise and posturing thus far, shoving the other into the ground, etc. She is very relentless. I stop her because I'm afraid it might escalate.
Good timing, we just had a squabble between Beau and Mia right now.
Mia sat on top of Beau then growled at him to leave. There was a bit of growling/air snapping then Beau left after a few seconds. That's the kind of thing I'd let them 'work out'.This too. Walker I know I can call off if its just a snark fest turned fight. There are some dogs I know he cant and after he says his piece twice hes done. Right now him and Oakley keep getting into it but its nothing I cant yell them apart about if they were going for blood like Walker WILL do at first NO WAY IN HELL would I allow it.
When it comes to Casey I throw him off of the dog right away. He sucks at dog body language.
He will be playing nicley with Emme and then all of the sudden he full blown attacks her. We dont put up with that because its not acceptable behavour.
Emme usually gets so upset by Casey behavour and does nothing, but lately I noticed that Emme has been trying to defend herself after he does that. We watch them very closely, If Emme does defend herself and depending how crazy the fight is I probably will just leave its alone. Casey needs to know he cant do that to Emme. And I think Emme needs to learn how to stand up to herself against him.
When it comes to Emme and Teagan there has never been a fight, more of bickering and Teagan grabbing onto Emmes chops. Although we do let Teagan correct Emme and that happens alot. Teagan can kinnda be a bitch sometimes.
Casey knows that if he even touches Teagan than its game over for him. So he never goes after her. But for some reason he feels the need to go after Emme.
He will be playing nicley with Emme and then all of the sudden he full blown attacks her. We dont put up with that because its not acceptable behavour.
Emme usually gets so upset by Casey behavour and does nothing, but lately I noticed that Emme has been trying to defend herself after he does that. We watch them very closely, If Emme does defend herself and depending how crazy the fight is I probably will just leave its alone. Casey needs to know he cant do that to Emme. And I think Emme needs to learn how to stand up to herself against him.
When it comes to Emme and Teagan there has never been a fight, more of bickering and Teagan grabbing onto Emmes chops. Although we do let Teagan correct Emme and that happens alot. Teagan can kinnda be a bitch sometimes.
Casey knows that if he even touches Teagan than its game over for him. So he never goes after her. But for some reason he feels the need to go after Emme.
I would never let my dogs fight out a real fight. I do allow them to correct each other or resolve minor scuffles as long as everyone is responding appropriately.
I do intervene when someone isn't responding appropriately no matter how minor the incident seems. Also I will interrupt inappropriate play because I don't want anyone to get in the habit of it and I don't want it to escalate. For example, Maisy almost never corrects Squash no matter how rough his play gets, so I interrupt and put him in the penalty box as needed. Conversely, when she gets extremely overstimulated her play gets very rude and I interrupt and put her in the penalty box as needed.
I do intervene when someone isn't responding appropriately no matter how minor the incident seems. Also I will interrupt inappropriate play because I don't want anyone to get in the habit of it and I don't want it to escalate. For example, Maisy almost never corrects Squash no matter how rough his play gets, so I interrupt and put him in the penalty box as needed. Conversely, when she gets extremely overstimulated her play gets very rude and I interrupt and put her in the penalty box as needed.
I do not let my dogs fight it out at all. They are allowed to correct each other though. Sometimes Cricket will get up in Bamm's face and steal toys or bones from him. He tolerates it most of the time and bares his teeth, but still allows her to take the toy or bone from him without a fight. Once in a while though he'll get super annoyed and rush at her and growl or bark and bare teeth. Cricket backs away right away and both dogs are back to doing their own thing. 2 minutes later they're playing again usually. Cricket isn't much of a fighter. I've seen a few dogs snap at her and she tends to just back away.
I had two dogs that were getting in more and more squabbles. I admit, one day I got fed up and let it go. Neither one was injured so IMO, it was not a "real fight". However, it did actually get better. Not that there were no more scuffles, but the were less intense and less often. For these particular dogs, the more I managed them the worse they got. However, my female at the time, I knew I could always grab her and not risk injury (and she was the usual instigator and the one that needed to be stopped to get the scuffle to end).
Never.I do not allow fighting of any kind. I am the boss, I make the rules of the house and I enforce them too. I do not want them to get the idea that being reactive is ok. Freedom is earned, if I have a problem child that is starting it, that problem child gets leashed up and is my belt loop partner until the offender gets it through their head that it is Not acceptable behavior.
If it is ok to fight with your house mate, then it's ok to fight with a dog that comes in the yard, or down the street, or over for a visit.
If it is ok to fight with your house mate, then it's ok to fight with a dog that comes in the yard, or down the street, or over for a visit.
I agree with the majority here - it really depends on the dogs and the situation. I have two bitches right now who get into it every now and then over stupid things. Almost always happens when they are first let outside (soooooo exciting!). With them, the best thing to do is close the door and ignore them for a few minutes. They always stop as soon as it is obvious no one else cares and these "fights" are totally superficial - they are grabbing each other, making noise and appear to be fighting but they never have a mark on them. Bitches
I have also lived with dogs who had real same sex aggression. These dogs could not be allowed to fight it out, as these fights were not about "dominance" or space or food or anything that was resolvable. These fights happened because the other dog was a mature, same sex dog living in the same household. These dogs would not back off if the other dog gave up and the fights usually led to dog and sometimes human injury. Generally once you have serious fights between two same sex dogs, there really is no going back to what it was like prior to the fights. Many dogs in such situations must be kept separated from each other always. Even if they don't have to be kept separated, they can never really be trusted and any interactions between them must be closely supervised at all times.
I have also lived with dogs who had real same sex aggression. These dogs could not be allowed to fight it out, as these fights were not about "dominance" or space or food or anything that was resolvable. These fights happened because the other dog was a mature, same sex dog living in the same household. These dogs would not back off if the other dog gave up and the fights usually led to dog and sometimes human injury. Generally once you have serious fights between two same sex dogs, there really is no going back to what it was like prior to the fights. Many dogs in such situations must be kept separated from each other always. Even if they don't have to be kept separated, they can never really be trusted and any interactions between them must be closely supervised at all times.
Its funny, we have a 10 dog household and I don't ever see any disagreements. They might squabble while we are at work, but none ever have any wounds or anything, so maybe no. I have only seen Gunnar and Bodhi fight once over a dog treat while I was standing right there with them, but other than that all my dogs get along just fine (Even the unaltered males).
I will allow my dogs to correct another for rude behaviour, but if a fight ever occurs, I will stop it ASAP. That said, thankfully for all of the years we've had a multi dog household, we've never had a fight or even come close to one between any permanent dogs of ours. We did have a couple fights between rescues and our dogs, as the rescue dogs would up and grab the other dogs out of the blue unwarranted, but we've fortunately never had a problem between our own dogs.
