agression over toys

Question
we recently adopted a female/spayed terrier from the kill shelter.  She is very sweet natured.  We already had a 13 yo lab and a 10 month old spayed/female JRT, very calm compared to others.  The JRT is crazy about her toys and acts like she wants the new dog to play but the new dog becomes aggressive, attacts the JRT and a bitter fight ensues.  I even got bad bite once because the JRT was in my6 lap when she was attacked.  What am I going to do?

Answer
the first question I have is have any of your dog been through a dog training class. have you had any training on dog behavior. if the answer to any of these questions is No then you will need to consult an animal behavior expert. the best way to do this is to talk to your vet, ask your vet to give you the information to a respected animal trainer who specializes in aggression, and Make an appointment, if your vet does not have a good referal then you can go to the APDT (Association of Pet Dog Trainers) web site, www.apdt.com and look for a trainer in your area, get some references, and talk to them before you pay anything for their service. You really want the best for your dogs. So look for a CPDT (Certified Pet Dog Trainer) after the name of the trainer this is the very least that a dog trainer should have in certification. If not they better have some extremely reliable references. The issue you are haveing can be from your own treatment of the dogs, or some other Pack related issue. A certified Applied Animal Behavioist is your best choice, but also more expensive. As they usually have a Ph.D. in animal behavior. Dog Trainers may not have any formal education beyond High School, but have worked in Animal care for possibly many years. The industry is just starting to suggest some type of certification. (the last 10-15 years becoming more successful) Your only other choices are to educate yourself through reading(which could take years and more money), or return the problem dog.
The choice is really yours to make.

I hope you seek professional help with this issue.
Tim Reisinger