This will likely be long, but we need help before we make the wrong decision regarding keeping this rescue.
We have a male Boxer, almost 18 months. His name is Five-0. I cannot say enough about him. He's my baby, such a sweet sweet boy. We had a trainer come in when we first got him who suggested Doggie Daycare so that he would be well-socialized. So, he has gone to Daycare and loves it and does very well. He's popular with the other dogs and with the workers.
We realized at some point that he really needed a companion and everything I've read does say that Boxers are "better in pairs." Knowing I could not manage another pup (when we got Five-0 I was unemployed and now I work full-time, so I know I do not have the time to give a pup in terms of potty training, socialization, etc), we looked into the local Boxer Rescue.
We've been trialing a female Boxer for about 6 weeks. She is about 8 or 9 months old. I suspect she's not purebed or she's been badly bred because though she has beautiful Fawn coloring her nose is too long and her eyes are very small. She plays like a Boxer, though, and does the U-shaped, excited wiggling. So, she definitely has Boxer traits. I'll call her K.
One thing to mention is that we were told that part of the reason she hadn't been adopted was because she was "very dominant." They were excited that we had a fairly young male, as they thought it was a perfect situation for a young, dominant female.
Anyway, things have been up and down since we brought her in. We've had 4 fights/attacks that have me very shaken.
The first one was my fault, for certain - I was feeding them together because there were no signs of problems and I foolishly pulled her away from Five-0s food to direct her back to her own and she attacked Five-0. The next fight was over water. Nobody got hurt (except me, I got bit trying to get out of the way - she got my leg) with either of those and they were over quickly. But, these were not "arguments" or vocalizations, these were fights. Scary and I was just thankful my children were not around for the most violent one.
I spoke to the VP and he suggested feeding them on opposite sides of a gate so that she learned that he's allowed to eat and he feels safe eating. That worked great and he actually eats so much better because he's not being pushed off his food and he focuses on finishing so that they can be back together.
I honestly thought that would be the end of it. But, this past week we had two additional incidents. The first was after K had pulled a baggie of food off the counter and had it under the table. Both dogs were under there nosing the foods. Hindsight and all, I should have taken them away from the food first and then cleaned up the mess. But, I went to pick up the baggie and, again, K attacked Five-0. And it was uggggly. He actually ran from her and she chased him, jumped on his back and bit him. I grabbed a jacket and whipped it onto the counter and made a huge racket and they stopped. I got K outside and Five was *terrified*. Ordinarily if she's outside and he's in he'll whine at the door until she's let it or he's let out. This day he stayed right by my feet and didn't go looking for her. :(
Then, just two days later we had another incident. Fortunately my husband was there to witness this because he thought I was overreacting prior to seeing it. We were all just in the kitchen (my husband and I and the dogs) and the garage door was cracked open. That is where their food is kept. K was in there, nosing around, trying to get at food that had dropped. I took her collar and directed her back into the kitchen - it wasn't even an admonishment, I was just going to close the door. Five-0 was about three feet away, and as soon as I directed K back into the kitchen, she attacked Five-0 again. My husband was able to stop it quickly, fortunately.
I'd love some thoughts on this. I'm worried about Five-0s well-being, of course. He's acting quite fearful of her now. I am worried that any time I correct her/take something away that she'll attack him. And, frankly, I don't understand the last two incidents, why she directed anger at Five-0????
I'd appreciate any thoughts on this. FWIW, K is very well-behaved. She came to us barely knowing "sit" and now she can sit, we're working on stay, she knows "wait" (before coming indoors, for example) and we've taught her "down." She allows me to take things from her (bones/toys/stuff she shouldn't be eating) without any sign of aggression.
I just don't know that this is the "right" fit. Is what she is doing true "aggression?" Is this something that can be dealt with through intense training or with a behaviorist?
Thanks for any thoughts. I have three young children, one of which has been attacked by a dog in the past, so an aggressive dog will not work in our home.
We have a male Boxer, almost 18 months. His name is Five-0. I cannot say enough about him. He's my baby, such a sweet sweet boy. We had a trainer come in when we first got him who suggested Doggie Daycare so that he would be well-socialized. So, he has gone to Daycare and loves it and does very well. He's popular with the other dogs and with the workers.
We realized at some point that he really needed a companion and everything I've read does say that Boxers are "better in pairs." Knowing I could not manage another pup (when we got Five-0 I was unemployed and now I work full-time, so I know I do not have the time to give a pup in terms of potty training, socialization, etc), we looked into the local Boxer Rescue.
We've been trialing a female Boxer for about 6 weeks. She is about 8 or 9 months old. I suspect she's not purebed or she's been badly bred because though she has beautiful Fawn coloring her nose is too long and her eyes are very small. She plays like a Boxer, though, and does the U-shaped, excited wiggling. So, she definitely has Boxer traits. I'll call her K.
One thing to mention is that we were told that part of the reason she hadn't been adopted was because she was "very dominant." They were excited that we had a fairly young male, as they thought it was a perfect situation for a young, dominant female.
Anyway, things have been up and down since we brought her in. We've had 4 fights/attacks that have me very shaken.
The first one was my fault, for certain - I was feeding them together because there were no signs of problems and I foolishly pulled her away from Five-0s food to direct her back to her own and she attacked Five-0. The next fight was over water. Nobody got hurt (except me, I got bit trying to get out of the way - she got my leg) with either of those and they were over quickly. But, these were not "arguments" or vocalizations, these were fights. Scary and I was just thankful my children were not around for the most violent one.
I spoke to the VP and he suggested feeding them on opposite sides of a gate so that she learned that he's allowed to eat and he feels safe eating. That worked great and he actually eats so much better because he's not being pushed off his food and he focuses on finishing so that they can be back together.
I honestly thought that would be the end of it. But, this past week we had two additional incidents. The first was after K had pulled a baggie of food off the counter and had it under the table. Both dogs were under there nosing the foods. Hindsight and all, I should have taken them away from the food first and then cleaned up the mess. But, I went to pick up the baggie and, again, K attacked Five-0. And it was uggggly. He actually ran from her and she chased him, jumped on his back and bit him. I grabbed a jacket and whipped it onto the counter and made a huge racket and they stopped. I got K outside and Five was *terrified*. Ordinarily if she's outside and he's in he'll whine at the door until she's let it or he's let out. This day he stayed right by my feet and didn't go looking for her. :(
Then, just two days later we had another incident. Fortunately my husband was there to witness this because he thought I was overreacting prior to seeing it. We were all just in the kitchen (my husband and I and the dogs) and the garage door was cracked open. That is where their food is kept. K was in there, nosing around, trying to get at food that had dropped. I took her collar and directed her back into the kitchen - it wasn't even an admonishment, I was just going to close the door. Five-0 was about three feet away, and as soon as I directed K back into the kitchen, she attacked Five-0 again. My husband was able to stop it quickly, fortunately.
I'd love some thoughts on this. I'm worried about Five-0s well-being, of course. He's acting quite fearful of her now. I am worried that any time I correct her/take something away that she'll attack him. And, frankly, I don't understand the last two incidents, why she directed anger at Five-0????
I'd appreciate any thoughts on this. FWIW, K is very well-behaved. She came to us barely knowing "sit" and now she can sit, we're working on stay, she knows "wait" (before coming indoors, for example) and we've taught her "down." She allows me to take things from her (bones/toys/stuff she shouldn't be eating) without any sign of aggression.
I just don't know that this is the "right" fit. Is what she is doing true "aggression?" Is this something that can be dealt with through intense training or with a behaviorist?
Thanks for any thoughts. I have three young children, one of which has been attacked by a dog in the past, so an aggressive dog will not work in our home.
