Stop the Fight

Question
Hi.  I have a Toy Yorkie (9 mos) and my roommate has a Japanese Spitz (5 yr).

They get a long well for the most part but lately their fights are becoming more frequent.  The Spitz is very territorial and jealous and I noticed that she snarls at the little Yorkie more frequently than before, perhaps asserting her dominance.  The little Yorkie, when I am not around, seems to recognize this dominance, because she would bow down low or lay on her back to appease the Spitz.  But when I am around or cuddling her she seem to find an ally and would snarl back at the Spits.  Sometimes, when we play tug-of-war, they would scuffle over the toy and start fighting.  One time, the little Yorkie's eye and ear bled.  I feel bad.  What can I do?  I try not to trigger jealousy by petting them both but even that doesn't work, they start snarling at each other.  And the more we tell them to stop fighting, or we pull them away from each other, the more aggressive they become.  I think they don't fight like that when we are around.  Please help.  I want them to get along like they used to before.  Thank you very much for your anticipated insight on this situation.

Answer
Are they both females? If so, you could have big problems. The little yorkie is growing up now, and while they are small and cute, Yorkies are ALL terrier, which means they are tenacious and can be dog aggressive. So, with maturity, she's probably becoming bolder and challenging the spitz. Snarling while you are cuddling her is probably "resource guarding" mom - treating you like a tasty bone that she doesn't want the other dog to have. Anytime she does that, stand up and walk out of the room without a word. If she is "guarding" you, that should help. Do you mean you don't think they fight like that when you are *not* around?
Even so, understand that male dogs fight for status, female dogs can fight to get rid of the other one, and fights between females can be the most dangerous. In a natural situation, one dog would probably leave the pack. But we don't give them that option, so they don't have a choice but to continue to fight.
I'd keep them separated as much as possible, and work very hard on training and leadership with BOTH dogs (http://k9deb.com/nilif.htm) and avoid anything they can war over. If they do get in a fight, get yourself some Direct Stop (available from cleanrun.com) which is a citronnella spray or a handful of ground black pepper (fairly harmless, and difficult to sneeze and bite at the same time.) But do the training, and try to avoid confrontations. Often the dog you think started it didn't. The other dog may have been saying very rude things with their body posture and facial expression, which you didn't see. Sandy Case MEd CPDT www.positivelycanine.com