RE: Help with pack issues
Hi Deborah, Oh yes you have got a problem:-) Chessies are tough dogs and you and Henley are the visitors, this is not a long term arrangement so you must honour the house rules and fit in as best you can. I would not leave my male dog neutered or otherwise alone in the company of an established pack of three dogs. Either keep him crated or in a separate room when you and another person cannot be there to supervise them. If you leave them to work this out on their own fur will fly and injuries will happen. Just because the boys are neutered does not make them mellow pussycats. Boys raised together can tolerate and fix their pack order but a visiting adolescent male has to be "sorted" and this may not always be very nice! Don't let the dogs spoil your holiday with your sister, recognise that these two tolerate each other on a very limited basis and control the situation. If your sister is going to throw food treats on the way out of the house small wonder WW3 hasn't broken out but it's her house and her rules for her dogs. Keep Henley in your room at night or crated or make sure you're up and about when she leaves for work. On neutral ground like a park you and your sister could probably let them interact more freely but on Chessie's home turf he is to be King of the Hill. While it is essential to break up hostilities make sure you don't side with the loser as that will only make the leading dog feel he has to have this battle again. Remain calm and when trying the two dogs together leave their leashes attached to buckle collars so you and the other person can haul them apart if they get physical without risk of being bitten. Remember when dogs are angry with each other they are not remembering their human bite inhibition training and many an owner has got bitten by getting in the way. Berners are lovely dogs but very tenacious and not wilting flowers when a good punch up is happening, don't let those good looks fool you:-)) I live with twelve dogs and there are days when I'm worn out monitoring the in-pack dynamics. You should try a few Berner bitches all with PMS at the same time for some real fun!!:-)) Rose T.
Re: Help with pack issues
1) Feed separately. NO high value food or treat items in the mixed pack. Period. 2) If it is a lot of talk and noise, I step back. If it is a true dogfight, I break it up. 3) Not every male dog can tolerate other males or new males or young males in his space--there are no male dog visitors allowed at my house, no male fosters. We can meet other males just fine off the home turf. You may just need to keep them separated for the summer. A pain, but safer for all. Eileen Morgan The Mare's Nest http://www.enter.net/~edlehman --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.488 / Virus Database: 287 - Release Date: 6/5/2003
Re: Help with pack issues
In a message dated 7/10/2003 1:04:19 AM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > > Are Berners not as sensitive to pack issues so Henley isn't getting the > message? Or am I just spoiling him too much by keeping my nose in > things? Is the Chessie entitled to continue drawing blood to assert his > position, or is there a point when his human should take a > stand on how > far he can go? Deborah, I dont think Berners are any more or less sensitive than other breeds to pack issues. And I think letting the dogs work things out on their own is perfectly fine IF no one is getting hurt and the conflicts are over fairly quickly (5 seconds or so.) But here you may need to manage the situation and keep them seperate anytime one has food like feed in seperate rooms and keep one crated or in a closed room when you are not home just for everyone"s piece of mind (And keeping leashes attached and dragging in the house will help you to seperate them if another fight occurs) good luck!! Vilma Briggs (Kistner) Mt. Gilead, OH U-UD Mocha Java Slurp, UDX, HIC, TT Ch. Brighteye Expresso Bean, UD, NDD, TT U-CDX Our Little Buddy, UD, NA, TT Thirdtym's A Charm, CD Hob Nob Clouds In My Coffee (puppy "Perc") and foster Bernerboy: Brew/Bruin
Re: Help with pack issues
Reposted, I don't know if it's just my server, but sometimes AOL garbles everything! - Pat First of all this has nothing to do with you and you sister. This has to do with dominance issues between the dogs. This sounds like it could be related to food and treats and could possibly be easily remedied by following some basic maintenance rules at meal time AND/OR treat times. There is no reason why the dogs need rawhide chips, except that you may enjoy giving them, but understanding that it will breed this animosity, you need to decide how important it really is, as there is really no value to it nutritionally. OK, first of all, bloodshed is NEVER a good sign and while many people ascribe to the "let them fight it out" technique , I do not. If you are not sure, ask yourself, "If my dog lost the fight and were critically injured or killed, would I still be ok with it?" Your answer would probably be a resounding, NO, so please avoid this method. I wonder what you do differently at mealtimes that makes it "better" than when your sisiter feeds. Do you feed your ! boy in another room? Personally, I would suspect that my recommendation at this pint would be that you buy a crate, put it in another room, and feed Henly in there. Keep him in there until the other dogs have calmed down and are finished eating. Follow the same procedure if and when you give treats. Your sisters dogs are the pack and it may take months before your boy could find his place, and by then you will probably be ready to leave. In case for some reason this is not entirely food related and your sister's dog decides to become "protective" over something inanimate like the remote, you may need to keep your boy separate when you are not able to supervise. Just my two cents. Briana - Original Message - From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Rmlyc3Qgb2YgYWxsIHRoaXMgaGFzIG5vdGhpbmcgdG8 etc. Check any e-mail over the Web for free at MailBreeze (http://www.mailbreeze.com)
Re: Help with pack issues
First of all this has nothing to do with you and you sister. This has to do with dominance issues between the dogs. This sounds like it could be related to food and treats and could possibly be easily remedied by following some basic maintenance rules at meal time AND/OR treat times. There is no reason why the dogs need rawhide chips, except that you may enjoy giving them, but understanding that it will breed this animosity, you need to decide how important it really is, as there is really no value to it nutritionally. OK, first of all, bloodshed is NEVER a good sign and while many people ascribe to the "let them fight it out" technique , I do not. If you are not sure, ask yourself, "If my dog lost the fight and were critically injured or killed, would I still be ok with it?" Your answer would probably be a resounding, NO, so please avoid this method. I wonder what you do differently at mealtimes that makes it "better" than when your sisiter feeds. Do you feed your boy in another room? Personally, I would suspect that my recommendation at this pint would be that you buy a crate, put it in another room, and feed Henly in there. Keep him in there until the other dogs have calmed down and are finished eating. Follow the same procedure if and when you give treats. Your sisters dogs are the pack and it may take months before your boy could find his place, and by then you will probably be ready to leave. In case for some reason this is not entirely food related and your sister's dog decides to become "protective" over something inanimate like the remote, you may need to keep your boy separate when you are not able to supervise. Just my two cents. Briana
