We have three dogs. Two just got in a fight this morning. We are thinking of putting one of these dog to sleep tomorrow. Should we do this?

Question

Hello

    I have just found your web-site and am very thankful. My day began with a fight between two of our three dogs and foolishly and incorrectly I tried to separate them (not knowing anything about it until ten minutes ago) and I now have two nasty punctures in my hand for my stupidity. I am very upset and would be so grateful for your help as we are planning to put one of our dogs to sleep tomorrow and maybe you would feel it is not necessary.

    The dog we are most concerned about is our eldest. He is almost five and has been a doting, adorable pet. He is a mongrel, terrier cross perhaps beagle or collie. Eighteen months ago we took in a small terrier from a rescue sanctuary as company for the first dog. We think the terrier is about three years old. Both of these dogs are neutered males and have not fought, although tug-o-war games would turn nasty and the dogs have never really played together. The first dog seemed to tolerate the second.

    Seven months ago we took in an eighteen month old Doberman, a neutered female. She had been a loving family pet and the family could not take her with them to the states. (I am writing from Ireland). She annoyed the other two dogs mostly because of her size and playfulness and they would warn her off although she didn't seem to get the hint. This led to a few fights which lasted only a matter of seconds. The Doberman came off worse with bleeding ears and cuts on her face. The first dog would also growl if I was petting him and the other dogs came near. He has also growled a few times lately when the other dogs have not been around. After seven months of hoping that things would get better as the Doberman got older we have decided it is only fair to her to find another home and we are starting to make enquiries.

    This morning I gave the Doberman her breakfast, gave the oldest dog his and then the second dog went over to the first dogs bowl. I don't know what happened from there but the two males were fighting. We managed to put the Doberman outside before she got involved. They fought for about five minutes and we could do nothing to separate them (although maybe I would have a better idea now). The oldest dog has the worst injuries, cuts on his head and muzzle and a half-closed, weepy eye. The second dog has some neck cuts and was extremely traumatized. We kept them apart for several hours and then when they met again the body language was very bad and the older dog was growling. We have kept them apart for the rest of today and will do so tonight.

    I am very confused. My gut feeling is that the older dog has the problem. He seems somewhat eccentric, difficult and unsociable with other dogs - I am also very worried about his occasionally growling at me. The second dog seemed to inflict the worst wounds though! The Doberman is no doubt annoying everyone but hopefully she will be gone soon. My husband and I are planning to start a family soon and the thought of a baby with a biscuit being in the middle of the two dogs is a very scary one. What do you advise? Should we wait and see if things settle down once the Doberman has gone or should we take more drastic measures. Do you think the oldest dog has a "nasty streak" and should be put down. We love all three of the dogs. Please advise us if you can.

    Thank you for reading this, I hope to hear from you soon.

    Paula

Accepted Answer

This is 100% a handler problem related to pet owners not understanding what they have allow to happen. It would be too bad if a dog had to loose its life because of owner mistakes. There are simple solutions to this problem that do not have to involve putting a dog to sleep.

You have created a dog pack but allowing three animals to live together – unconfined. A big mistake considering the personalities of these dogs. Dogs are allowed to have their own personalities. It's your job as the owner to recognize this and work around it. You have not done this. If you had you would not have holes in your hand right now.
Feeding these dogs like you do it total foolishness. It makes zero sense. You have finally found this out.
If you like these dogs and want to keep them then you should have three dog crates and use them. The two dogs that fought should not be allowed to be out of the crate at the same time. This is not rocket science. They cannot fight if they are crated.
The dogs should ALWAYS be fed in their crates. Fighting over food is going to happen if you try and do what you are doing with dogs that do not like one another – and that is the case with your pets. THEY DON”T LIKE ONE ANOTHER.
Maybe I look at things differently but I think the little dog deserved to get his butt kicked. If you come over to my plate when I am really hungry and try and take my steak – I am going to kick your butt. That’s what happened. Not sure what part of that you can’t figure out.
No dog trainer worth his salt would try and do what you are doing – let these dogs run loose in the house and then free feed them.
These dogs are not happy the way things are now. They probably feel like they are in a war zone – they never know when they are going to be attacked. How can this be a happy environment? The answer is that it is not!
And finally – your dogs are not trained. If they had been trained you would have been able tot tell the little dog “NO!” go lay down on his rug. You didn’t do this so I assume you can’t do this. No matter what dog you keep you should learn how to properly train a dog. After this ear full you are probably not interested but I have a very good Basic Dog Obedience video. Get that tape and a prong collar.
Keep reading my web site on the dominance and dog fight Q&A.

So the bottom line is that these are human problems not dog problems. If you decide that you do not want to invest in three dog crates then try and find a home for one or two of these dogs. They should be homes where there are not other dogs. Regards, Ed Frawley