|
Fighting all of a sudden Hello all! My girls Emma and Ava will be 4 in July. They have literally never been apart from each other as they came from the same litter. They have two very distinct personalities but generally get along fine and love each other. Over the last two weeks they have started fighting - not their normal play fighting, but real fighting where we have to separate them. They take turns being the aggressor and there is nothing (that we can tell) that triggered this behavior - it's not food related or anything like that. The only thing I can tell is that we're having our backyard torn up so they can't run around in the back like the used to. I think we should let them solve their own issues while my wife wants to keep them apart and get a doggie trainer to work with them. Thoughts? Thanks in advance! |
Firstly, are both girls spayed, if not I would do that ASAP. If they are fighting I wouldn't let them "work it out", serious fighting = serious injury, you wouldn't want that. I also would not keep them totally separated either. Keep them together only when they can be supervised, if serious fighting starts then separate them, show them fighting is unacceptable. If they have have gotten along for 4 years, love each other, now fighting, separating them for several hours, keeping them apart is a teaching tool. I would try that first for several weeks before calling in a dog behaviorist. Just my opinion. I had a pack of 3 girls, all 3 years apart, there was never a fight between them. |
You need to look into sibling syndrome. If it is sibling syndrome there is nothing you can do but rehome one of them or keep them separate for the rest of their lives. If you let them work it out you may end up with one of them extremely injured. It is only ok to let them work it out when they are not actually hurting each other. I would make sure they are spayed and try with a trainer. |
if they cannot go into the backyard ...maybe substitute with lots and lots of walks to tire them out and plenty of playtime ... individually if needed ... If their yard is being changed their territory changes, new smells, workers, noises ... this can be stressful and sometimes you will see re-directed aggression ... I would take them into the yard daily on a leash to mark every bit of the "building site" individually. If the sisters are not spayed ... that would explain the aggression as well and less hormone will most likely make for a much more harmonic household. Are they obedience trained? If not ... go back to square one puppy training starting with crates and good obedience training until both have excellent recall and commands and recognize you as the pack leader ... If they recognize you as the undisputed leader ... they should not be fighting for alpha position which helps a lot and gives them the security they crave as well ... |
Quote:
|
| All times are GMT -8. The time now is 04:45 PM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2025, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2003 - 2018 YorkieTalk.com
Privacy Policy - Terms of Use