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rottie481

My dog attacked my other dog over food

rottie481
14 years ago

The other day I was packing my dogs food in baggies to prepare for our weekend vacation. While measuring out the food, Molly (beagle/jack russel mix)came over to investigate and tried to get some food out of the food bin which is located on the bottom cabinet in the kitchen. She has always been a 'food hog' and will do anything for food. She has always been defensive around food. While she was trying to get in the food bin, our other dog Charlie (chihuahua) walked next to Molly to also see the food. This was the first time Charlie came this close to Molly when food was present. Molly turned around and literally attacked him. I freaked out and picked her up yelling "no molly". As I picked her up, she did not release and kept Charlie in her mouth. She had him by the neck. At his point, Charlie was now lifted off the floor crying very very loudly. My husband ran over and grabbed Charlie and tried to get him away from her. It took a few seconds before she released. I put her in the bathroom for 'time out' as we evaluated Charlie. He was extremly scared and cried when we tried to touch his neck. We realized that there was one puncture wound and he was bleeding. It was a little bit of blood but he had a small hole in his neck.

This was the first time she had done this and I didn't know what to do. She lunged at him 2 other times before when food was not present but we seperated them and no one got hurt. This was the first actual 'dog fight'. It's very confusing because they are such BEST friends.

I am 16 weeks pregnant and I'm very afraid about this happening with the baby or another incident with Charlie.

Overall, Molly is a kind dog but does sometimes show aggressiion to other dogs but had nevered attacked - she only shows teeth.

I REALLY want to help her. I can't bear to get rid of her. I love her and Charlie so much. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks,

Becky :)

p.s. About the pregnancy thing... I always thought she would be good with kids a few young children/babies have been over and she's been fine. But now I am very worried.

Comments (19)

  • mazer415
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    First - congrats on being pregnant I hope all goes well for you. Next I am glad to hear the Chi did not get seriously injured and to follow up - agression, especially resource guarding (food) is not too hard to break a dog of.
    So - some questions. Which dog did you get first, how long have you had them and most important what is their day like. Do they get leash walked? If so how often? Do they have basic training?
    Before you get too worried - I think this can be handled, btu your beagle needs ot know it is not the boss, you and you husband are. From now on when anyone is working around around food, the beagle gets leashed up and tied down somewhere or gets muzzled. Now I have seen dogs get out of cloth muzzles so I suggest you get one which is not cloth. This way while you are training your dogs, there is not a possibility of anyone getting hurt. The muzzle should be introduced to your dog slowly, lt the dog sniff it, and put a treat on the inside of the muzzle so she has to put her snout in to get the treat a few sessions of this and she will be ready to wear the muzzle. I suggest you either contact your local humane society, ASPCA or POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT trainer.Next start with basic training at home. Sit, stay, down, leave it. No beagle on the couch unless invited. You are the first out the door, your dog should be put into a sit and stay position by the door, and should be sitting quietly before being allowed to follow you out the door. If it does not work the first time keep doing itm even if you feel silly. Walks should not consist of sniffing around, they should be a brisk walk and ESPECIALLY with a beagle terrier mix they should be at least 45 minutes a day and at least once a day. Ideally 30 minutes in the morning, 30 minutes in the afternoon and 30 minutes after dinner and again before bedtime. You beagle should NOT be allowed to go near the food bin in the kitchen or her dog dish or any food without being invited. She should be in a sit stay position, and when calm invited in for a bite or two, told to go back and sit or lay down outside of the kitchen and after a minute or so of being good then allowed back in again. If you are serious about training your dog, be firm, be repetitive and have a strict routine. You might also involve the beagle in flyball, frisbee, swimming or some other activity on your days off. Terriers and beagles are working dogs and need more stimulation than your chi. Tho dont under estimate your chi's ability to go out and take advantage of the good weather. My dogs best fried is a chi and a chi mix, the teacup (less than 10 pounds and the size of a big potato) can do a 5 mile hike without isse as long as the terrain is not too weedy or rocky. Taking the dogs out for leash walking helps in two ways, it lets your dogs know who is boss if done correctly and it helps wear them out. Walking or playing ball before going to training will help since it is easier to train a tired dog. YOu might also leash your terrier mix to you while you are going about your business in the house. This forces your dog to start following you and allows you to start picking up the role as a dominant in your house. Hope some of this helps Good luck

  • weed30 St. Louis
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    You are right to be concerned. I would find a good trainer NOW, to show you how to work with Molly and end this behavior. A trainer experienced with beagles and/or JRTs will really help...both breeds are challenging. Definitely find a trainer who practices positive reinforcement. As a beagle owner, I can tell you that harsh/negative treatment does NOT work, but treats work wonders.

  • Ninapearl
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    becky, i can't add anything to what has already been said but i will tell you it might be a good idea to have the bite mark checked by your vet.

    several weeks ago, my great dane rescue girl bit my other dane in the flank (another attack seemingly out of nowhere). i *thought* it was just a small hole and was doctoring it myself. several days later, it began to weep so i took her to the vet. by the time he shaved the fur around it and probed the wound, it turned out to be a much bigger hole than i thought and a much more serious bite than i ever imagined it to be.

    it seemed to be closing up on its own but it was not. not to scare you but it's a good idea to have it checked.

    best of luck with your pregnancy. is this your first baby?

  • ladybugfruit
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I second weed's suggestion! I had a very similar situation happen to me several years ago. Without going into too much detail, our beagle had food aggression issues and attacked my sharpei one day over her getting too close. It would get nasty, as it happened several times before we could completely get it under control and learn how to handle the situation, and like you, there was no way I wanted to get rid of either one. They were both my rescue babies and I loved them. We promptly got a behaviorist in to help us and it really did wonders in educating us on how to address the food aggression effectively and how to handle the girls and their aggression when it would pop up. Just like you, they would be the best of friends 95 percent of the time. We had a very smart and stubborn beagle and with that, she was a challenge to train, but while it took us some time and diligence, we did successfully get rid of the food aggression and the fighting between the two. Best of luck and please keep up posted.

    LBF

  • eccentric
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I answered you on the other board - I am the one that had the problem with the Dachshund being bitten in the neck - but just wanted to stress again re going to the vet - as ninapearl posted.

  • Lily316
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Good advice by all. You need to have the wound looked at tho. Congrats on the baby.

  • mudlady_gw
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Rather than take chances, all four of my Siberians are fed only while locked inside their crates. Meals or treats, no food until they are all crated.

  • lexie1397
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Another resource for good trainers are Certified Pet Dog Trainers (CPDT). This is a national program that tests and certifies dog trainers. As with any group there could be some bad apples, so do your research and get references, but the program is based on positive reinforcement and trainers are required to continue their education in order to maintain their certification.

    Here is a link that might be useful: CPDT info and Roster

  • joepyeweed
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Dogs bite.

    YOu are wise to get control of the situation before your baby is born. I agree with what everyone else has posted. I don't think your dogs are monsters that you will need to get rid of ... they are just being dogs and you need to be in control of them.

    Right now your dog thinks he can discipline his pack mates. Nope, you do the discipline and the feeding, not the dogs.

    I would suggest what mudlady does. Feed your dogs in crates until you can get the training that you need to learn how to control the dogs.

    Notice that I said, you need training... not the dogs.

  • Elizabeth O'Keefe
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Hi Becky, I realize I am commenting 8 years later, but this message board came up when I was googling how to handle food aggression. I had almost the EXACT same situation happen yesterday and I am still shook up over it. I have a dog trainer/behaviorist coming tomorrow to meet with my 2 year old pit/pointer mix who attacked my senior yellow lab. I signed up for 6 weeks of intense training. I adopted the 2 year old about 2 months ago and she goes to doggie daycare and is very friendly with other dogs, however, I can tell she is on the dominant side. So is my yellow lab, but he is older now. Anyway, I was very curious to see what ended up happening. It might be able to help me figure things out, as I too am trying to have kids in the future. :)

  • vjtrees
    6 years ago

    The comments here are very helpful thank you. We have a staffy x 8 years old and a 4 year old small mixed breed who looks corgi x dachshund. My daughter asked us to look after her ridgeback x ?bull mastiff new puppy 4 months ago and she is still with us. She is huge and only 6 months old. She is a delight as all puppies are but recently she has been attacking the small dog over food. She bites the small dog in a vice at the back of his neck and shakes him violently. It is difficult to get her off and the poor small dog looses control of his bowels. She has broken through the skin twice but he is very sore afterwards. The staffy is very well behaved. Any further help would be greatly appreciated as obviously this can't go on. Thanks in advance.

  • tiffduke
    6 years ago

    This situation is happening to me as well. Very sad and hoping training will help you and me as well.

  • eccentric
    6 years ago

    Please do not leave the dogs alone together. It very likely will end very badly.

    tiffduke, training will help only to a certain extent. We have been through this. You never know when it will happen - and not just over food.

    vjtrees - I realize that your posting was from October 2017. I hope for your Dacshund's sake that the Mastiff is now back with your daughter.

    Please be aware that punctures on the back of the neck need to be checked out by a vet and perhaps meds prescribed to avoid blood poisoning. Dogs, whether they be big or small will go for the back of the neck to ensure that the dog being attacked is trapped.

    Two of our Dachshund's were attacked in this manner. My heart froze when I saw our big dog holding our Dachshund by the back of the neck and shaking him. There was no reason for it and I should already have left the house - fortunately I had not. The Dachshund was a major Alpha - much to the displeasure of our big dog, who was not alpha. I should point out that our Alpha Dachshund took care of all of his siblings and was not "bossy" with them.

    Jump forward a few years and we had the same situation - our then Alpha Dachshund was attacked by his Dachshund sibling - who wanted to be an Alpha. They finally seemed to work things out when the little troublemaker attacked our Alpha again. Yet our Alpha did not want to hurt the Alpha-want-to-be. And the attacker knew it.

    Also, never try to remove the innocent dog without him/her realizing it is you. My husband learned this the hard way - our innocent pup thought he was being attacked attacked on all sides.

    I hope all is well. We no longer have a Dachshund and I miss them every day.















  • Ninapearl
    6 years ago

    There was no reason for it

    eccentric, there is always a reason for it but we very often don't know what that reason may be. stable dogs don't attack for no reason. it could have been something as simple as one dog's body language being interpreted as threatening or even a sideways glance from one dog may incite the other dog.

    it's vital that we know how to interpret our dog's body language. oftentimes, when we know what to look for, situations can be diffused before any damage is done. a stern "ahh!!!!!" is, many times, enough to get their attention on you and away from each other. it doesn't have to be loud, just said as if you mean business.

    i have 3 female danes. none of them are what i would consider "alpha". that roll is mine and mine alone. i have never, in all the time they have been together, seen even a hint of aggression from any of them. however, they are dogs so i do keep a small air horn on my kitchen counter. if i ever see something untoward, i can grab it and use it immediately. i have seen these little tools bring fighting dogs to dead stop.

  • mintcar123
    6 years ago

    The dogs should also be fed in separate areas to lessen the chances of another attack happening. But I agree with all the previous responders that state you should hire a certified dog trainer who uses positive reinforcement methods.

  • alexismackay982
    5 years ago

    my dogs used to fight over food the specialist said we had to get rid of one because he had a food agression

  • SaltiDawg
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    The "specialist" was ridiculous.

    Food Aggression, while sometimes difficult to control, is usually manageable. (Feed one dog in crate, feed one dog at a time with other dog outside or limited to another room, it goes on and on as to possible solutions.

    By definition, if a dog has only Food Aggression, it can get along with other dogs just fine and make a great pet - just don't put food out "for grabs."

    Incredible!

  • Amiah Cook
    3 years ago

    poppyweed said to feed your dogs in crates i say no srry but that makes them territorial and thats not what you want if you want the good around other dogs with food makes um worse