Aggression between our yorkies

[dkerman]

Snickers & Twix are our two yorkies - both males. Snickers, 7 and Twix, 1 1/2. Both were neutered at 7 months. Twix came home with us at 8 weeks of age. Tiny frail little thing weighed under a pound.

Snickers, the older is a very passive, laid back, loving and sweet guy. Was always pretty brave and curious. Twix is the total opposite, extremely bold, and sometimes downright mean!

Twix is constantly going after Snickers in some way, shape or form. As soon as he comes in from potty in the morning (he is up with me at 6am, Snickers sleeps until around 8), he hops back up on the bed and starts chewing at Snickers neck. Either side, doesn't matter. Really noticed it about 6 months ago, and then his neck had raw spots on it, and even some fresh blood. Very similar to skinned knees.

At first we thought Twix was just grabbing on to his collar - he would pull Snickers across the floor and Snix just sat there and let him do it. All though we are aware of it and I am constantly correcting Twix, Snix's neck has healed and it has not gotten to this point again. However, Twix simply will not leave him alone! He is always "right in his face" and trying to go after him. Snickers is now to the point of hiding under things and in corners (Twix usually corners him somewhere).

About once or twice a day the two of them play fight - and by observing, it almost seems as if all Twix is trying to do is to get Snickers to play. We have not observed any "mean" streak in Twix on a regular basis, he is just super hyper.

They are both the same size physically - however Snickers weighs 7 pounds, and Twix is just under 11 - he is solid and mainly muscle. (Vet put him on a diet 3 months ago and he has not gone down much at all - and we're strict with sticking to the diet).

About a week ago I really noticed even more change. Snickers got up in the night to get a drink, when he came back to bed he would not come up the steps - rather, he did his little "uuuhhhh" noise and sat in front of the step until I finally picked Twix up and told him it was okay to come up. As he did, Twix lunged out of my arms at Snickers and actually bit and held on to the back of his hair and would not let go(Snickers is a cotton - Twix is silky"ish"). I got the two apart, and as soon as I did, Twix lunged for him again. He has not bitten him again to our knowledge.

Snickers does not seem to be afraid of him all of the time, just when Twix wants to play.

The both have their own sleeping spot right next to mom, just in different areas - and mom pets them both at the same time.

I have tried to instill "pack leader" - they know mom eats first. They sit and wait for breakfast politely, and are fed at the same time with dishes going down together - same for treats and everything else. We have always tried to do most things together.

Clearly my heart goes out to Snickers. I have read so many articles on aggression, but none really cover this "bully" little brother but let's get along and play" situation.

Has anyone experienced something like this? Any suggestions? We have an appointment with a behavioral vet, but it is not until the end of September. Hoping to aid Snickers in a bit of relief before then.

Thank you in advance.

[KatysMom]

Originally Posted by dkerman

Snickers & Twix are our two yorkies - both males. Snickers, 7 and Twix, 1 1/2. Both were neutered at 7 months. Twix came home with us at 8 weeks of age. Tiny frail little thing weighed under a pound.

Snickers, the older is a very passive, laid back, loving and sweet guy. Was always pretty brave and curious. Twix is the total opposite, extremely bold, and sometimes downright mean!

Twix is constantly going after Snickers in some way, shape or form. As soon as he comes in from potty in the morning (he is up with me at 6am, Snickers sleeps until around 8), he hops back up on the bed and starts chewing at Snickers neck. Either side, doesn't matter. Really noticed it about 6 months ago, and then his neck had raw spots on it, and even some fresh blood. Very similar to skinned knees.

At first we thought Twix was just grabbing on to his collar - he would pull Snickers across the floor and Snix just sat there and let him do it. All though we are aware of it and I am constantly correcting Twix, Snix's neck has healed and it has not gotten to this point again. However, Twix simply will not leave him alone! He is always "right in his face" and trying to go after him. Snickers is now to the point of hiding under things and in corners (Twix usually corners him somewhere).

About once or twice a day the two of them play fight - and by observing, it almost seems as if all Twix is trying to do is to get Snickers to play. We have not observed any "mean" streak in Twix on a regular basis, he is just super hyper.

They are both the same size physically - however Snickers weighs 7 pounds, and Twix is just under 11 - he is solid and mainly muscle. (Vet put him on a diet 3 months ago and he has not gone down much at all - and we're strict with sticking to the diet).

About a week ago I really noticed even more change. Snickers got up in the night to get a drink, when he came back to bed he would not come up the steps - rather, he did his little "uuuhhhh" noise and sat in front of the step until I finally picked Twix up and told him it was okay to come up. As he did, Twix lunged out of my arms at Snickers and actually bit and held on to the back of his hair and would not let go(Snickers is a cotton - Twix is silky"ish"). I got the two apart, and as soon as I did, Twix lunged for him again. He has not bitten him again to our knowledge.

Snickers does not seem to be afraid of him all of the time, just when Twix wants to play.

The both have their own sleeping spot right next to mom, just in different areas - and mom pets them both at the same time.

I have tried to instill "pack leader" - they know mom eats first. They sit and wait for breakfast politely, and are fed at the same time with dishes going down together - same for treats and everything else. We have always tried to do most things together.

Clearly my heart goes out to Snickers. I have read so many articles on aggression, but none really cover this "bully" little brother but let's get along and play" situation.

Has anyone experienced something like this? Any suggestions? We have an appointment with a behavioral vet, but it is not until the end of September. Hoping to aid Snickers in a bit of relief before then.

Thank you in advance.

Welcome to YorkieTalk. I'm so sorry you and your pack are dealing with this and bless you for seeking out a behavioralist--a professional who can dig deep into the particulars of your situation. I assume you've been referred to the behavioralist by your vet, or at least that Twix's regular vet is aware of what's going on.

I'm not a vet; not a behavioralist, but a similar question came up recently on YorkieTalk. At that time, I pulled some references that may be of help. These references follow. Hope these are of some assistance. --KatysMom

An article in Psychology Today, "Aggression Between Dogs in the Same Household" by Stanley Coren, PhD, DSc, FRSC (22 April 2014) refers to a study by researchers at Tufts University Commings School of Veterinary Medicine. In that study, a majority of the aggressors were those most recently brought into the household, also a majority were female. (See paragraph 4 in the article.)

Most if not all points made by the author in the piece seem relevant to your situation. Of particular interest, "Aggression may not be their only problem, since 50 percent of the pairs of dogs involved in conflicts had at least one member with noticeable separation anxiety, and 30 percent had phobias, fearfulness, or other forms of anxiety."

Author believes aggression is "treatable using behavior techniques," and offers up several approaches/steps. (See the paragraphs toward the end of the article.)

Finally, the article provides a link to a second in the same journal by the same author (click here) that has subtitle, "Using punishment during training predicts aggression toward people."

VCA has an article online by Debra Horwitz, DVM, DACVB and Gary Landsberg, DVM, DACVB, DECAWBM, "Dog Behavior Problems -- Aggression -- Sibling Rivalry -- Diagnosis" (? n.d.).

[dkerman]

Thank you so very much, I shall start reading

[Lovetodream88]

Have they both been checked out health wise? Dogs don’t ever see humans as an alpha because they don’t see humans as dogs so that’s not really going to do anything. I definitely think if they check out ok health wise that a behavioralist is necessary but until then you need to separate them for their safety.