new family member...

Question
hello labman,

i just finish reading your comments and i was satisfied.  Well here it is.  I have a 9 month old english bull terrier.  Like most bullies, he is very active and very hyper.  My 4 year old son and my wife are very happy with him, but we decided to get him a partner.  We found a beautiful bull terrier up for adoption so we took her.  She is a little more mellow and laid back.  She is great with my son and at home.  She gets along with my bullie, but when he tries to sniff her from behind, she snaps at him and tries to bite him.  He does not even try to get on top of her, she thinks he does.  I was wondering if there is a way to break that habit from here.  I don't want to breed them.  She is spayed and he is neutered.  I am confused why is she so aggressive.

Answer
Butt sniffing is an important, complex ritual having more to do with pack order than sex.  It is possible he was removed from his litter before he learned the proper doggy manners.  Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog.  Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones.  You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/  For more on being top dog, see http://www.dogbreedinfo.com./topdogrules.htm

Usually a male and female will settle in content to be the top in their gender. Of course, you must be the top dog.  And as such, it both makes others' ranks less important and allows you to limit wrangling.  Work on your rank, and it should slowly work out.