Sudden aggression towards my other dog. Advice please.

[Meeko]

I have two English bulldogs. One male who is 6 years old and a female who is about 2 and 1/2. I have had them both since they were just little pups. Over the last month or so my younger female has started to become aggressive towards my older male unprovoked. I have never had issues with them before they are both great dogs and have always loved each other and gotten along fine. It’s not a constant thing and I do not have to keep them separated occasionally she just goes after him and I have to yell at them and break it up. I have noticed though the occurrences seem to be increasing and I am concerned. Any advice would be great! I plan on calling my vet in the morning!

 

[helsonwheels]

View attachment 114059I have two English bulldogs. One male who is 6 years old and a female who is about 2 and 1/2. I have had them both since they were just little pups. Over the last month or so my younger female has started to become aggressive towards my older male unprovoked. I have never had issues with them before they are both great dogs and have always loved each other and gotten along fine. It’s not a constant thing and I do not have to keep them separated occasionally she just goes after him and I have to yell at them and break it up. I have noticed though the occurrences seem to be increasing and I am concerned. Any advice would be great! I plan on calling my vet in the morning!

Hi there. We have a few members in here that has n had the same issue as yours. I’m sure they will answer you with great advice. Females are the worse ones to start anything. I too had that issue with Nyala my brindle. She’ll play non stop with Duke and for no reason she’ll grab Duke and rough him up n break some skin. I certainly don’t yell as they’ll get use to your yelling. Just like kids. You need to just get in there and grab your female by her collar with a very firm NO n drag yes drag her in the kennel. If you don’t have a kennel put her far enough from him without letting her leave the area you dragged her to for a good 10mins. I can say it corrected a good 80% of her behaviour. She does look where I am now before grabbing him. All I have to say is “Nyala” and she walks around him and backs off. Don’t know what goes through a dog’s head but if you’re there, you sure can get in there n correct it on the spot.

BTW love the photos!

 

[Dollys Owner]

Sorry to hear its happening. Agree with all above. Make sure you take steps to make sure they regard you as alpha, such as practicing "Nothing in life is free" Dog Training: Nothing in Life is Free : The Humane Society of the United States . Don't allow dogs on couch or bed. Some members have mentioned tactics like separating them with a baking sheet, spraying them with water, making a loud noise with a pot as soon as you see them start. Try not to pull them apart with your hands, as you may get accidentally bitten, walk between them. Particulary watch them when they are playing with toys, as one may want the other's toy.

 

[Cbrugs]

I had a similar incident with my two. I have a 5 year old Frenchie and a 1 1/2 year old EB, both males. Louie, the EB, is a knucklehead and will sometimes bug Jax. Normally Jax will fire off a warning shot but in this instance, he just attacked and there was a minor brawl, no injuries or blood drawn. In the heat of the moment, me and my son got in the middle and because Jax is small, I just grabbed him and picked him up. The fight started because Jax was laying on the floor chewing his toy and Louie kept going over and standing over him which is a dominance thing. So now, when we see that happen we will tell Louie NO and spray him with water/vinegar if he continues.

Sometimes you can look for warning signs that something is about to happen and you can intervene. But as stated, you must show them both that you are the alpha, not them.

 

[brutus77]

Is there a trigger that is setting the female off? If the aggressor is showing dominance over a toy or bed or couch, etc you must immediately stop the behavior with a strong NO and removal of offending item. The aggressor will get the message that this behavior will not be tolerated and it will stop. My Brutus has anxiety aggression and I can see it in his face when he is getting into what I lovingly call A-hole mode. lol, he gets a look on his face and I can usually derail his action by giving him a stern NO command or step in front of him so his line of sight is blocked. This usually helps before he can zone in for his target. It will be work, but I would suggest being with her as much as possible to be able to head off the behavior before it starts because once they are locked in, you are usually going to be breaking up a fight. When one of my boys is displaying behavior not acceptable, I usually leash them and keep them right next to me so I can correct the behavior as soon as it starts. Good luck and let us know what method you decided on and your progress.

 

[Meeko]

Thank you for all the advice! There doesn’t seem to be a trigger it seems to be totally random. Although I think she may be in heat now so maybe that has something to do with it since it is recent. I didn’t get her fixed since my male was... maybe I should.

 

[helsonwheels]

Thank you for all the advice! There doesn’t seem to be a trigger it seems to be totally random. Although I think she may be in heat now so maybe that has something to do with it since it is recent. I didn’t get her fixed since my male was... maybe I should.

You can get the tubes tied (like women) if you prefer she goes through the hormones and all. I personally would opt for that but every one is different. Duke has a vasectomy and I sure don’t regret. But that me.

 

[2BullyMama]

View attachment 114059I have two English bulldogs. One male who is 6 years old and a female who is about 2 and 1/2. I have had them both since they were just little pups. Over the last month or so my younger female has started to become aggressive towards my older male unprovoked. I have never had issues with them before they are both great dogs and have always loved each other and gotten along fine. It’s not a constant thing and I do not have to keep them separated occasionally she just goes after him and I have to yell at them and break it up. I have noticed though the occurrences seem to be increasing and I am concerned. Any advice would be great! I plan on calling my vet in the morning!

Could be she is trying to be the dominate one.... I had this with my first two bullies - our male (first in) was a laid back, loveable sweetheart, our female, a year younger, was a dominate beeochy bully. We had to get a trainer to come into to the home to help us identify and be able to read her body language. Once we learned her signs it was all good ... also, use and make sure everyone in the house uses it -- 'nothing in life is free'... it helps to keep the balance in her knowing you are the boss and not her.

 

[Bulldog2001]

Found this group this December 4, 2022 because searched out similar plight. Have 3 year plus months female EB (since 10 weeks). Just the sweetest ever all this time. She has been raised up with two other rescues ( she isn't rescued) who are small mix. Out of the blue suddenly my EB Double Rainbowlight Delight is attacking the other little black rescue female mix rascal type ( not a breed). Twice now the little black dogs ear has had small blood as a result. The little black female growls first if the EB gets in her space on the bed, and at the hallway dog gate seems to be where these eruptions of misguided energy emerge. I'm very distressed. So far my EB has been healthy though has shed non stop excessive since day 1 ( she's white EB ) other than slight itch over Summer. Vet started treating her with the monthly itch shot CADI that arrested all itching ( could that cause aggression?) Other than that so far she's been healthy. Though a budget English Bulldog my Vet pointed out I got lucky as far as her over all health with good nose, paw, hip placement etc. I was thrilled to learn that as knew nothing about EB before getting one because had lost a rescue that was a blind deaf dog who looked kind of like EB and next thing bought an EB puppy. As one can imagine who know this breed I've quickly come to understand this reputed " high maintenance" of this adorable lovable breed. I've been trying to stay several steps ahead. Now, also out of the blue 3 months ago my bedroom began to smell like " frito." And for the life of me cannot eradicate that odor. I've read all I can on search engines and she's on Stella Chewey raw dry kibble grain free beef diet ( she never smelled like fritos on Royal Carin Bulldog ( which I switched because thought that might of been cause of her sudden itch over Summer). The odor? HELP! She gets professional mobile dog groomer every 4 weeks. I wipe her ears, folds and toes daily ( and don't see any dirt or bacteria). I brush her. I HAVE to vacuum and mop daily due to her shedding, and all bedding washed weekly and still constant musty odor. What the heck, will she smell like frito, and the bedroom smell forever? I make no apology I'm obviously venting because near tears this day between perpetual shedding and thought may be living in fritoville indefinately and now with her attacking little Abbylight fearful will have to let one of them go before one kills one. Moonlight is the Shitz-zu mix and zen zones out of the whole ordeal. I've been rescuing and with several dogs since 17 in 1974 and only once in 1976 had to rehome a rescued Shepherd Jericho who nearly killed our mini -schnauzer Disney Rainbow in a food fight. The emergency surgery was a fortune for a then young couple. At that time my husband said that Shepherd had to go and said we would never have large dog again if we had small dogs. We never did. My EB now Double Rainbow Delight ( the blind deaf dog was Rainbowlight) isn't a big dog at 35 pounds and Vet said a small EB. So it's not the size but if they are going to kill each other in a fight I'm stuck in the middle of what to do? Admittedly , the EB has been babies more since being the puppy and now 3 years but since the fighting I've stopped any attention to any. Deep down I know cannot give up up on my little lovelights . It's just one of those dog day afternoons. I feel better already just writing it all down. View attachment 123699

Sorry to hear you are going thru this.

For the smell and itchy dog, that can definitely be yeast overgrowth. That’s common and is caused by allergies and carbs in the dog food, carbs feed the yeast letting allergies and yeast takeover and she will be itchy and have a bad smell in her ears and on her skin.

The Stella and chewy kibble is not raw, it’s got some coating on the kibble, but the best way to really get rid of yeast if a low carb food like raw diet , if raw diet isn’t a option, try a lower carb kibble. And yes “grain free foods” does NOT mean no carbs.

I would try a kibble that does NOT use synthetic vitamins and is whole food based and lower in carbs if you need to feed kibble.

Definitely keep her off Royal Canin, Hills, Science diet, Eukanuba, Iams, Purina and grocery store dog food.

The lower carb kibbles that do NOT use synthetic vitamins are:

-Carna 4- it has pre and probiotics in it, no synthetic vitamins, and is whole food based. This is also oven baked nuggets. You can get proteins like Goat, Venison, Fish, lamb, duck and chicken(I recommend staying away from chicken cause that’s a common allergy). But goat and venison is great for allergies and so is fish for the omega 3.

-Natures Logic- it does not use synthetic vitamins, it’s a low processed kibble and it does have probiotics in it. It’s a lower carb kibble, no peas or sweet potatoes or legumes, and no grains that can be problematic, it used millet which is good for allergies.
The proteins it comes in is pork, lamb, Sardine, Rabbit, beef.

Definitely rotate proteins too to prevent her from becoming allergic to what they eat everyday, so if you feed lamb everyday, she can become allergic to it.
Rotating proteins prevents that.

If your open to feeding raw, that’s the best for yeast issues. Where are you located? There is commercial raw diets that are already made available you can buy.

For the aggressive behaviour, you can get a spray bottle and put water in it and when the fight is ready to start or it’s just starting, spray with water(this is NOT harmful, it’s just water!) and say ‘NO’ but try to watch for the warning signs and why it happens, then you can redirect their mind to either a toy, or something else to hopefully avoid the fight.

Probiotics are great for the immune system and help fight yeast and allergies.

And yes the allergy stuff the vet gave can possibly cause this too.

 

[2BullyMama]

Found this group this December 4, 2022 because searched out similar plight. Have 3 year plus months female EB (since 10 weeks). Just the sweetest ever all this time. She has been raised up with two other rescues ( she isn't rescued) who are small mix. Out of the blue suddenly my EB Double Rainbowlight Delight is attacking the other little black rescue female mix rascal type ( not a breed). Twice now the little black dogs ear has had small blood as a result. The little black female growls first if the EB gets in her space on the bed, and at the hallway dog gate seems to be where these eruptions of misguided energy emerge. I'm very distressed. So far my EB has been healthy though has shed non stop excessive since day 1 ( she's white EB ) other than slight itch over Summer. Vet started treating her with the monthly itch shot CADI that arrested all itching ( could that cause aggression?) Other than that so far she's been healthy. Though a budget English Bulldog my Vet pointed out I got lucky as far as her over all health with good nose, paw, hip placement etc. I was thrilled to learn that as knew nothing about EB before getting one because had lost a rescue that was a blind deaf dog who looked kind of like EB and next thing bought an EB puppy. As one can imagine who know this breed I've quickly come to understand this reputed " high maintenance" of this adorable lovable breed. I've been trying to stay several steps ahead. Now, also out of the blue 3 months ago my bedroom began to smell like " frito." And for the life of me cannot eradicate that odor. I've read all I can on search engines and she's on Stella Chewey raw dry kibble grain free beef diet ( she never smelled like fritos on Royal Carin Bulldog ( which I switched because thought that might of been cause of her sudden itch over Summer). The odor? HELP! She gets professional mobile dog groomer every 4 weeks. I wipe her ears, folds and toes daily ( and don't see any dirt or bacteria). I brush her. I HAVE to vacuum and mop daily due to her shedding, and all bedding washed weekly and still constant musty odor. What the heck, will she smell like frito, and the bedroom smell forever? I make no apology I'm obviously venting because near tears this day between perpetual shedding and thought may be living in fritoville indefinately and now with her attacking little Abbylight fearful will have to let one of them go before one kills one. Moonlight is the Shitz-zu mix and zen zones out of the whole ordeal. I've been rescuing and with several dogs since 17 in 1974 and only once in 1976 had to rehome a rescued Shepherd Jericho who nearly killed our mini -schnauzer Disney Rainbow in a food fight. The emergency surgery was a fortune for a then young couple. At that time my husband said that Shepherd had to go and said we would never have large dog again if we had small dogs. We never did. My EB now Double Rainbow Delight ( the blind deaf dog was Rainbowlight) isn't a big dog at 35 pounds and Vet said a small EB. So it's not the size but if they are going to kill each other in a fight I'm stuck in the middle of what to do? Admittedly , the EB has been babies more since being the puppy and now 3 years but since the fighting I've stopped any attention to any. Deep down I know cannot give up up on my little lovelights . It's just one of those dog day afternoons. I feel better already just writing it all down. View attachment 123699

UGH... sorry to ear all this.... i would change her to a turkey or duck based food. It seems the beef probably is not agreeing with her and may be causing all the itching and irritableness. Frito smell is yeast... try not to bathe her too much once a month is striping her natural oils and could contribute to the itching. Apple cider vinegar in a spray bottle and sprat her paws to help control the yeats

@oscarmayer

 

[2BullyMama]

Thank you ever so much for this helpful information that shall be put into action. It helps just knowing others understand, have trailblazed and can help shine a light that shows a way to optimal empowering solutions alleviating my feelings yesterday and the illusion of feeling powerless. Much gratitude out of San Fernando Valley.

One other thing... try to avoid white potatoes and any food with processed sugar in it they both feed the yeast. as well as limit fruits, they are good for them, but too much adds to the yeast ....