Fighting

Question
I have 2 male boxers and 1 female boxer. One male is about 2 1/2 and the other just over a year. The feamle is 3+ yrs and has breed twice with the oldest male. The youngest male is actually the off spring of the the first litter. The males just started fighting recently and is becoming a issue due to the youngest getting hurt. The last time they got into it the feamle was also involved in biting the youngest. We have been told that nueturing may help but not for sure. We would like to keep the oldest male natural so we can keep breeding, but not at the health of the youngest. Please with any suggestions.

Answer
Hi Josh,

Unfortunately, the odds are not in your favor for restoring peace to the household.  Neutering may or may not help in this situation, though it most likely will help with future interactions with other males.  If the fighting is bad enough that one or both dogs need medical attention, this is probably more than just scuffling for 'position', and is probably more involved with breeding rights.  There have been cases where this sort of situation is resolved, but it takes a lot of dedication and behavior modification.

My first recommendations are to have a veterinary workup just to be sure there is no underlying physical cause, and then contact a behaviorist who can evaluate the situation and help you manage or modify your dogs' behavior.  There are behaviorist directories on these sites: http://www.dacvb.org/about_us/diplomates_copy_1/
http://www.iaabc.org/consultant_locator_dogs.htm
http://www.animalbehavior.org/Applied/CAAB_directory.html

In the interim, you can start implementing the Nothing In Life Is Free program.  The NILIF program is a way to be fair, firm, and consistent in enforcing guidelines for appropriate behavior, and in establishing your role as the person who sets those guidelines.  (If you are the leader, the dogs don't have to fight for that position.)
http://www.goof.com/~pmurphy/NILIF.html

There are also a few books you might find helpful:

--"Feeling Outnumbered" by Patricia McConnell and Karen London, which has excellent information and a program for managing multiple-dog households.  

--"Aggression in Dogs" by Brenda Aloff, which of course is more specific to aggression issues, including behavior modification and management.

--"Fight!" by Jean Donaldson, again more specific to aggression and especially dog-dog aggression.

--"Fighting" by Ian Dunbar, also about dog-dog aggression.

(Books are available at www.dogwise.com and other online booksellers.)

You do need to prepare for the possibility that you may not be able to resolve the issues, however.  The options then would be to either place one of the males, or keep the males separated.  There are many households that run multiple "packs", but it is not easy and you need to be extremely vigilant and make sure everyone knows where both dogs are at all times.   Hopefully it won't come to that, but it's best to have a contingency plan.  

Good luck!

~Jennifer