Possession/Aggression/Resource Guarding

[LORI OESTREICH]

Hello

 

I purchased your program today in hopes of finding training for my dog issue. My household has three dogs, all are unrelated.

 

1. Charlie (blue heeler/king Charles spaniel) and is 9 years old. He is a submissive dog. He doesn't like to play with other dogs, but tolerates them.

2. Indy (Australian Shepherd) and is 11 months. She is a dominant dog. She loves to play and has played well with other dogs including a male of the same breed.

3. Skye (Australian Shepherd) and is 5 months. She is not submissive or dominant but in between as of now. I would say she is a confident pup. Plays well with Indy, tries to play with Charlie but he doesn't want to.

 

All three love to fetch a tennis ball and enjoy running to get them. Recently, Indy has jumped on Charlie while low growling and has bit him. I pulled Indy off by her collar, tell her no, and give her a time out in another room for a few minutes to calm her.

 

Charlie usually will drop a toy if Indy wants it whether a ball or something else if she walks up on him. These several occurrences happened when Charlie was running with Indy behind him. I'm not certain Charlie understands social cues from other dogs since he wasn't socialized when little. Not sure if this makes the issue worse. I've noticed Indy lean against Charlie and cut him off before she jumps on him. Soon after, she's bitten him. On the other hand, Skye will tug toys away from Indy and they play taking the toy back and forth with no problem.

 

I've had issue with treats too, so I make sure Charlie and Skye eat theirs first while I hold onto Indy and then I give Indy her treat. 

 

Also, Indy is possessive with new toys and likes to butt in if I'm petting other dogs. I have blocked her now and keep paying attention to the dog I was petting or I'll walk away from both dogs. She also wants attention from others first when they come to visit.

 

I'm looking for answers to correct Indy's behavior. Indy has completed the AKC obedience training and Skye is taking the class now.

 

1. Should I not play ball with Charlie and Indy together?  Or seperate?

2. Will the program I purchased from you help with this issue?

3. Is there any advice for redirecting Indy?

4. Do you suspect it is resource guarding? If not, what is it?

 

Thank you in advance for your help.

 

Lori Oestreich

 

[LORI OESTREICH]

Additionally,  Charlie is a neutered male. The females are intact. Indy has not had her first heat yet. 

Indy will play ball with Charlie sometimes. She has slept next to him and has laid on her back allowing him to sniff her privates.

Prior to this behavior Indy has exhibited the following:

1. Jumps at Charlie with her head against his when he barks going down our driveway for a walk. I keep Indy closer to me on one side now and let Charlie walk out front. He quits barking once we reach the road.

2. About six months old Indy exhibited a startled reflex when she was woken up suddenly. She would also go after Charlie and lunge at him. I called her name in a relaxed manner. This has now stopped.

3. Indy is sensitive to noise. She doesn't like loud planes from a military site nor does she like thunderstorms.

Below is a picture of my dogs. Charlie (46 lbs), Skye (26 lbs), Indy (44 lbs).

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hi there,

Welcome to the forums! Thank you for providing such detailed information. Cases of intrahousehold interdog conflict can be complex, there are various dynamics at play. To better understand your situation, I would need a few more details. 

All three love to fetch a tennis ball and enjoy running to get them. Recently, Indy has jumped on Charlie while low growling and has bit him. I pulled Indy off by her collar, tell her no, and give her a time out in another room for a few minutes to calm her.

When Indy jumped on Charlie, did that occur as they were chasing a ball? Did Charlie attempt to get it and Indy blocked him?

These several occurrences happened when Charlie was running with Indy behind him. I'm not certain Charlie understands social cues from other dogs since he wasn't socialized when little. Not sure if this makes the issue worse. I've noticed Indy lean against Charlie and cut him off before she jumps on him

Did all these incidents always occur in presence of toys? Like Charlie is walking towards a toy and she tries to get there first and blocks him?

How is her bite inhibition? Does she break skin? Leave any marks? 

Does Charlie appear emotionally impacted by these incidents afterwards? 

Are these happenings rather new or have they been displayed for some time?

She also wants attention from others first when they come to visit.

Are these visitors people or other dogs?

The females are intact. Indy has not had her first heat yet. 

Are you planning on getting them spayed? 

 

 (Indy) Jumps at Charlie with her head against his when he barks going down our driveway for a walk. I keep Indy closer to me on one side now and let Charlie walk out front. He quits barking once we reach the road.

Have you identified any trigger for his barking?

2. About six months old Indy exhibited a startled reflex when she was woken up suddenly. She would also go after Charlie and lunge at him. I called her name in a relaxed manner. This has now stopped.

Did this happen only once or were they repeated episodes? Glad to hear this has stopped now. 

 Indy is sensitive to noise. She doesn't like loud planes from a military site nor does she like thunderstorms.

Do you live nearby a military site? How constant is this noise level? What does she do exactly when you say "she doesn't like it?"

Thanks!

 

[LORI OESTREICH]

Hi there,

Welcome to the forums! Thank you for providing such detailed information. Cases of intrahousehold interdog conflict can be complex, there are various dynamics at play. To better understand your situation, I would need a few more details.

My answers to your questions are underlined in this new thread.

All three love to fetch a tennis ball and enjoy running to get them. Recently, Indy has jumped on Charlie while low growling and has bit him. I pulled Indy off by her collar, tell her no, and give her a time out in another room for a few minutes to calm her.

When Indy jumped on Charlie, did that occur as they were chasing a ball? Did Charlie attempt to get it and Indy blocked him?

Charlie has the ball and is running with it each time. I play with them with lots of balls. None of them fetch really. Charlie will get a ball (he holds a different one in his mouth) and will push back the retrieved one with his nose. If he doesn't want to play he will pickup both balls. The girls will bring it back a few feet from me and drop it when I have another ball to throw.

Indy has always walked up to any dog with a toy and taken it. With the other aussies Indy's played with, they chase her. Charlie does not and let's her have the toy. I have taken away a toy from Indy, usually by trade because she runs away with it. Sometimes I give the toy back to the dog she took it from or take it away completely.

These several occurrences happened when Charlie was running with Indy behind him. I'm not certain Charlie understands social cues from other dogs since he wasn't socialized when little. Not sure if this makes the issue worse. I've noticed Indy lean against Charlie and cut him off before she jumps on him

Did all these incidents always occur in presence of toys? Like Charlie is walking towards a toy and she tries to get there first and blocks him?

Only when Charlie already has the ball. The times I've seen her cut him off, he already had the ball. I did make a secondary post explaining that Indy jumps on Charlie when we walk down the driveway for a walk. Charlie barks for excitement until we get to the road.

How is her bite inhibition? Does she break skin? Leave any marks?

The third time she bit him she drew blood in one spot. Looks like a tooth mark. The other times, she has not left any marks.

Does Charlie appear emotionally impacted by these incidents afterwards?

The last three times seem to have escalated with Indy's meanness. Charlie whines, bites back but hasn't gotten Indy. He whimpered the last two times but recovers fairly quickly. I have Indy in another room and look him over while petting him. I'm sure these occurrences make him more cautious around Indy.

Are these happenings rather new or have they been displayed for some time?

Indy jumping on Charlie and biting hard are new.

She also wants attention from others first when they come to visit.

Are these visitors people or other dogs?

I mean visitors.

The females are intact. Indy has not had her first heat yet. 

Are you planning on getting them spayed? 

No, I intended to breed my girls as long as everything was healthy with them.

 (Indy) Jumps at Charlie with her head against his when he barks going down our driveway for a walk. I keep Indy closer to me on one side now and let Charlie walk out front. He quits barking once we reach the road.

Have you identified any trigger for his barking?

Excitement. Even if we go everyday or more than once a day.

2. About six months old Indy exhibited a startled reflex when she was woken up suddenly. She would also go after Charlie and lunge at him. I called her name in a relaxed manner. This has now stopped.

Did this happen only once or were they repeated episodes? Glad to hear this has stopped now.

Repeated episodes. Roughly seven.

 Indy is sensitive to noise. She doesn't like loud planes from a military site nor does she like thunderstorms.

Do you live nearby a military site? How constant is this noise level? What does she do exactly when you say "she doesn't like it?"

Indy will run toward the house if we are outside when she hears the low flying military planes or thunder. Inside she will notice the noise for the plane, but thunder she wants a dark room. The military site practices for 2 weeks usually they fly over my house about 4 to 5 times. A sonic boom happens occasionally and that makes her jump. I try to have other noise like the tv or music when the planes are flying around. Thunderstorms though she shakes until they are gone. Luckily, we have seasonal weather so the storms are gone for now.

Thanks!

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Thank you for the extra details, they are very helpful! So let me start by answering the first questions you posted, and then I will go more in depth on some of the issues you are facing.

 1. Should I not play ball with Charlie and Indy together?  Or separate?

 

Playing ball appears to rev Indy up too much at this time, and this arousal appears to spill into aggression. Not playing ball when they are both together is a sensible choice considering that you don't want your dog to rehearse high arousal behaviors as such and you also want to protect Charlie from any potential physical and emotional harm. 

 

2. Will the program I purchased from you help with this issue?

 

With cases of intrahousehold conflict among dogs, a multi-faceted approach is needed. You will therefore have to tackle the issue from a variety of angles. Training, brain games, tackling any underlying anxiety-noise phobias, learning how to recognize early signs of stress and learning more about implementing general management and general behavior modification methods such as desensitization, operant and classical counterconditioning and the associated conditioned emotional responses, differential reinforcement etc. may provide several benefits. 

 

However, any time there are cases of aggression, with risks for bites, it's important pointing out the importance of working alongside with a professional (using force-free behavior modification) who can coach you through the behavior modification process directly in a step-by-step fashion so to ensure correct implementation and for safety. Every case is different and will therefore require an individualized approach. 

 

3. Is there any advice for redirecting Indy?

 

Redirection requires training very fluent responses to cues that must delivered at the earliest signs of potential conflict. It therefore takes a very observant eye and close supervision. I am glad to hear that Indy has obtained ACK obedience training, which can serve as a foundation, although the training she was taught will need to be generalized to distracting situations such as being in presence of your other dogs and then under high arousal situations. This needs to be implemented gradually and systematically. 

 

4. Do you suspect it is resource guarding? If not, what is it?

 

From your description, this sounds like potential arousal aggression with some elements of resource guarding. However, there may be some other factors at play (like Charlie not reading her signals well) and the fact that you are dealing with herding breeds which are known for attempting to control movements. 

 

Indy's age reflects the time when most owners start seeing challenging behaviors directed towards other dogs sharing the household. The most intense and severe cases are seen with two female dogs reaching adolescence and social maturity, although it can be seen in dogs of opposite sex as well.

 

I will be going more in depth on the subject matter in my next post or two. 

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Following is some general info in regards to the issue of dogs exhibiting conflict around resources and high arousal situations. You'll also find some examples of behavior modification.  Let's start with the ball issue.

So we have Indy (11 month old Aussie) which apparently is the main instigator (I haven't seen her behavior, but let's assume it's her starting the conflicts-sometimes it's not clear cut) and Charlie (9 year old Australian cattle dog/Cavalier King Charles mix) is the victim. 

Any time there is conflict going on among dogs sharing a household it's a good idea to start by excluding medical problems. This is because, if there are any medical issues at play, even the best behavior modification plan won't lead to progress because a dog who is feeling not well, is an unhappy dog and it can impact their relationship among the dogs. 

Being that Charlie is 9, there may be chances that he may be struggling being around two younger dogs, and at this age, play won't be as strong as a priority as in the case of a dog under the age of 3. There is a fine line between tolerating and dreading stuff at this age, so we need to be watchful on his interactions with other dogs and body language so to recognize early signs of tiring.  I am not talking about physical tiring necessarily, but emotional tiring as well, as some dogs are "introverts" compared to others and at 9, he may be struggling with some things.

For example, we need to be watchful that the younger dogs aren't missing any of his possible "leave me alone" signs and that he has a quiet place to retreat to. 

You mentioned: "Charlie usually will drop a toy if Indy wants it whether a ball or something else if she walks up on him."

Charlie, apparently seems to be aware of the fact that for Indy priority access to the ball is important and therefore it seems like he's wanting to be a mellow fellow, giving up a toy when he feels Indy wants it badly. This is something to be commended as not all dogs are willing to give up a resource in their possession like that.

You then also mentioned: "Recently, Indy has jumped on Charlie while low growling and has bit him. I pulled Indy off by her collar, tell her no, and give her a time out in another room for a few minutes to calm her. These several occurrences happened when Charlie was running with Indy behind him. "I've noticed Indy lean against Charlie and cut him off before she jumps on him. Soon after, she's bitten him."

Based on this, apparently Indy is expecting him to have "eyes on his back" and give up a ball even when he is running around with it and she is  behind. This form of biting sounds more like closely bordering bully behaviors, wanting the ball at all costs, although we must accept to some extent that she's an Aussie and these dogs like to control the movements of other dogs and whatever, and they can have a Type A personality. 

Your statement: "I'm not certain Charlie understands social cues from other dogs since he wasn't socialized when little. Not sure if this makes the issue worse."

This is certainly an aggravating factor, being that not recognizing social cues can cause him to be placed into situations that will create conflict. For sure, not being socialized can play a role, but at the age of 9, I think it's important to have him checked by a vet because, as dogs get older, they may miss some cues due to sensory decline or painful disorders (you can't give in to a growl that you may not hear, or it may be difficult to move out of the way if you have achy joints). 

Also, Indy is possessive with new toys. 

Management-wise, you would want to provide toys that evoke guarding behaviors privately. In other words, in an area away from your other dogs.  Dogs who tend to guard stuff rehearse the problematic behavior over and over, and practice makes perfect. Since growling/stiffening works to keep the other dogs away, dog who guard will feel the need to always do that, and the behavior tends to also escalate over time, especially if the other dogs don't move away. Management helps prevent her from rehearsing the problematic behavior, and also prevents her from being tense due to the presence of other dogs, protects your other dogs from feeling tense too, while also keeping them safe. 

 

So how are these issues tackled? As mentioned, behavioral cases require a multi-faceted approach. I will list three main ways this issue may be tackled. 

 

It goes without saying that safety is always paramount. Muzzle training is important with dogs with a bite history: 

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/train-your-dog-to-wear-a-muzzle/

 

And there needs to be a plan in place in case fights erupt. I like to keep a bottle of Spray Shield handy, but there are several other options such as banging two pot lids together, using an air horn, using a bottle of compressed air which makes a hissing sound. 

 

1) Management alone. Yes, management can be used as a stand-alone procedure and it's a quick fix. Many dog owners find that it's the cheapest and most simply approach, although it can be difficult to implement at times because it requires some effort (keeping the dogs separated when there is risk for potential conflict) and there are always risks for things to go wrong (a door may be accidentally left ajar, a child may let the dog out) so many dog owners elect to tackle the root cause. 

 

2) Management plus behavior modification. This works on the dog's underlying emotions and offers the possibility of working directly on the issue, although a certain level of management will always be needed. For instance, management will be a great extent needed throughout the behavior modification process. This is something that is more involved, requires time, and for correct implementation and safety it is recommended to work along with a professional using force-free behavior modification methods. Maintenance sessions may be needed. 

 

What would behavior modification entail? It would entail taking a step-by step approach often working through distance (desensitization) and changing the dogs' emotional response when in possession of toys (counterconditioning).

 

Here is a guide on these two powerful methods:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/desensitization/

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/counterconditioning/

 

Special attention is taken during the process to avoid the dogs from going over threshold: 

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/

 

The goal is to elicit what is known as a positive conditioned emotional response:

 https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/conditioned-emotional-response-cer/

 

For example, one would have the resource guarding dog lie on mat with a low value toy in her possession while on leash, while somebody has another dog on leash. Every time the dog with the toy sees the other dog enter the room, she is fed a treat. When the dog is taken out of the room, no more treats.  (The other dog is also fed treats randomly to keep things fun and reduce any possible tension). The open bar/closed bar method helps clarify this concept allowing the dogs to clearly make a connection: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/open-bar-closed-bar/

 

 This is practiced over and over aiming for the onset of a conditioned emotional response where the dog with the toy, rather than getting tense and dreading the other dog coming near, starts looking forward to it because the presence of the other dog comes to predict great things.  You may notice a happy tail wag or happy expression on the face when this happens. Gradually, the dog is walked closer, but always working at the dogs' pace, always carefully monitoring their body language for comfort. 

 

Once the dogs are more comfortable and most tension has left the body, we can start instituting some training, where the dogs learn to respect each others' space when in possession of a toy. Dogs can be taught to leave another dog alone when in possession of a toy and to go to lie on a mat rather than risk conflict. In other words, we implement differential reinforcement, where we train the dog/dogs to engage in an alternate behavior, something we would like the dog to do instead. 

 

3) Management and behavior modification involving environmental cues. 

In other words, on top of behavior modification,  the dog can be taught to automatically go find a person so to receive some type of reinforcement upon noticing a dog with a resource. Of course, this takes time to teach and is an advanced skill considering that the dog is expected to do so even without the direct presence/supervision of a person. In other words, the sight of a dog with a toy, becomes an environmental cue to go find a person. 

 

On top of this, all households owning multiple dogs may find it helpful to have all dogs fluent on a variety of cues. These should be trained individually and then dogs  should be able to respond despite the presence of other dogs. These need to be trained at a fluent level and should be given at the earliest signs of trouble, ideally *before* any conflict has had any chance to start. 

 

Helpful cues:

• Name discrimination. Paying attention to you when you call a specific dog by name. 
• Recalls https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/recall/
• Go to your mat, adding distractions and duration. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/train-dog-go-to-mat/
• Hand targets https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/preschool/targeting/
• Smacking sound https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/the-airplane-game/the-smacking-sound/
• "Let's go outside" cue. 

 Since you have some resource guarding with treats and arousal issues, it's important to work on this gradually, individually and find some structured solutions to prevent any fights. I like to train dogs to wait for their turns for treats, but this takes time to train to reach this level of impulse control and lowered arousal, so you will need to have a muzzle and leash on Indy and some in-person guidance for safety. 

As mentioned, it's important to give the above cues at the earliest signs of conflict/stress so it's therefore important learning basic body language and the earliest signs of potential conflict. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/dogs-dont-bite-blue/

As mentioned, when it comes to intrahousehold conflict, it's important to take a multi-faceted, holistic approach. So you may also want to ensure the following:

-Provide Predictable Routines 

Dogs feel more secure and safe when they know what to expect. This often entails providing them with routines. For example, you can teach your dogs that when you sit down to read a book or watch a show it's relaxation time for the dogs where each dog can chew on something in a crate or ex-pen nearby.  Of course, you'll need to pave the path to this by allowing the dogs to exercise/train/do brain games/offer structured play prior so to drain their energy. 

-Make Dogs Feel Safe

You need to be your dog's advocate and ambassador and therefore help your dogs feel safe in their environment. Most cases of interhousehold aggression are triggered by insecurity and stress. It helps dogs to know that you are there for them and will intervene when they need it. It's therefore good to intervene when we see a dog who needs to escalate to get his/her point across  as this can cause a tendency to intensify behaviors to make a point. 

-Teach the dogs to look up to you when they are not OK with something. 

For example, when a treat would fall between my Rottweilers Petra and Einstein, and Einstein would snatch it, Petra was trained to look up to me for her own treat rather than instinctively react and get into conflict. This took several reps to train, and safety precautions need to be in place when we train this with dogs who resource guard (muzzle, leash, distance from the other dog, fluent response to smacking sound to teach to look up at me, then faded gradually so that the presence of a treat on the floor eaten by Einstein became the cue to look up at me). In person guidance may be needed to ensure safety. 

-Implement Rules 

Dogs in possession of something should keep what they want and be left unbothered. They have a right to maintain it. The intruding dog should be redirected and sent elsewhere and reinforced for complying.  For example, if a dog has a toy, and the other dog tries to gain access to him, he or she should be promptly told to go to a mat for a treat. This accomplishes two things: the dog is provided with an alternate behavior to engage in and forms positive associations with the other dog (when other dog has a toy, I get a treat!). 

-Work on Impulse Control

The Jazz up and settle dog can help with dogs who get easily aroused, helping them find their "off button."

 

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/high-school/jazz-up-and-settle-down/

Impulse control exercises:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/impulse-control-frustration-tolerance/

-Tackle any underlying anxiety

Often, dogs who get into conflict suffer from insecurity and there may be various stressors in their lives. You mentioned that you have military planes practicing at times, if the sounds are pretty predictable, you can try working on the "hear that' method discussed here https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/fear-noises/, and keep on buffering sounds as you are already diligently doing. 

-Ensure enough exercise and mental stimulation

You have high energy breeds who were selectively bred for serious work. A 30 minute walk usually doesn't suffix for these dogs. They may not be tired or tired enough. Structured training, mental stimulation (brain games!), structured play (not the over-the-top high arousal type), exercise (check with your vet for how long/how much and specific recommendations for the young dogs due to their growth plates). 

I will be posted about the other issues mentioned soon, possibly tomorrow. 

Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks. If your puppy or dog shows signs of potential aggression (lunging, barking, growling, snapping, biting) for safety, please consult with a dog behavior professional who uses force-free behavior modification techniques (no shock, prongs, or physical corrections) for direct in-person guidance. Articles, videos and general info found in the forums or course (or any online source) are not meant to replace in-person training/instruction. By using this course and forum, you are waiving any liability claims or other type of claims related to any dogs' behavior against you or others.

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Before going into depth on the other issues, I wanted to touch a few other things. 

I pulled Indy off by her collar, tell her no, and give her a time out in another room for a few minutes to calm her.

I know how tempting it is to physically intervene when two dogs are getting into conflict/fights, however, caution is needed, because this can put us at risk for a redirected bite. In other words, the dogs are so aroused by the conflict, that any hands reaching for a collar or any body part getting in between is at risk of being bitten. This is not intentional, but an instinctive side effect associated with all the adrenaline rush of the event. 

It is therefore recommended to use a "hands off" approach to separate dogs fighting, and some options were discussed in the post above. 

Another important thing to consider, is that, when we use collar grabs to put dogs in a timeout or to remove them from a situation there is risk that the dog next time may play "hard to catch" swerving away at our hands attempting to reach the collar, not to mention, some dogs may even bite the hands. 

It's therefore helpful working on making collar grabs less aversive for the dog, and creating positive associations with them. Some exercises based on desensitization and counterconditioning are covered here (towards the bottom) https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/recall/ and here under rewarding collar grabs: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/exercises-to-teach-puppies-to-tolerate-touch/

 

The females are intact. Indy has not had her first heat yet. No, I intended to breed my girls as long as everything was healthy with them.

I wanted to point out some issues that may occur down the road. Please keep in mind that these scenarios might or might not occur, but it's good to keep them in mind. As the saying goes 'forewarned, is forearmed." 

Some of the most intense fighting we see in households with multiple dogs are between two female dogs. This has been even backed up by studies. These fights generally start taking place around adolescence/social maturity generally starting anywhere between 1 to 2 years old. 

Being intact can also cause hormonally-induced fights two and competition around the estrus cycle. Also, false pregnancies can cause a dog to become overly protective of certain toys as hormones make the dog believe they are "surrogate babies" and real pregnancies ae known to cause conflict too. 

Once again, this may not happen, but always good to monitor things just in case. 

 

 

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Jumps at Charlie with her head against his when he barks going down our driveway for a walk. I keep Indy closer to me on one side now and let Charlie walk out front. He quits barking once we reach the road.  Indy jumps on Charlie when we walk down the driveway for a walk. Charlie barks for excitement until we get to the road.

I don't recommend in general walking two dogs at once, at least not until they have proven themselves to have their emotions under control and being responsive to cues/walking on a loose leash. The reason for this, is that, when we walk two dogs together the following is likely to happen:

1) Dogs will feed off each others' emotions

2) It's difficult to give each dog the individual attention needed

3) It is difficult to train each dog

4) Leashes can get tangled (although there are solutions for this)

5) If an off-leash dog approaches, it is more difficult regaining control

So I would suggest to walk the dogs separately. I know this is inconvenient in many ways, but it paves the path towards better walks with the dogs being less emotionally charged. Even having a helper walk the other dog is better than walking the dogs together, however, I would suggest working on Charlie's excited barking individually because it will also make your other dogs' aroused. Most likely, Indy jumps on him in an attempt to control his behavior, or as a result of her arousal also building up. 

So I would suggest working on Charlie on solo walks, trying to tone down his excitement. This should start as early into the walk as possible such as asking him to sit for having the leash on, then sitting in front of the door being opened, (open sesame) https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/college/open-sesame/ and by engaging him in some attention heeling exercises starting practicing in the home and then in the yard, and then in front of the house and then on walks. Here is the guide on attention heeling: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/heeling-attention-heeling/

If he barks, take that as a sign that he is over threshold https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/, so as soon as you hear that, do a U-turn https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/emergency-u-turn/and head back home and then try again, using higher value treats and practicing more until you obtain a calmer state. Calm behaviors make the walk progress, aroused behaviors make you go back home. 

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Indy likes to butt in if I'm petting other dogs. I have blocked her now and keep paying attention to the dog I was petting or I'll walk away from both dogs. She also wants attention from others first when they come to visit.

This is not unusual in multi-dog households. By allowing her to butt in though she is learning pushy behaviors towards guests and other dogs, and fights may happen. If she gets attention from the person when she pushes in the middle her behavior will be reinforced by the attention, so it will strengthen and repeat, so we want to avoid her from rehearsing this. Not to mention, the risks for fights erupting when dogs are in such an aroused state. 

This can be tackled by creating rules and adding more structure into the interactions with you and people. For example, all dogs can be laying on their mats when you want to give attention/when visitors come, and then one can be called at a time, making them each wait for their turn to get attention. This can take time to train at a fluent level and therefore management should be used in the meanwhile (separate dogs for attention). 

Another option for the milder cases, is to train the dogs to each have their own space. For instance, one dog can be sitting on the left, and the other on the right for attention so there is no disorderly conduct. I think it's important to establish sitting for attention as an impulse control exercise and to reinforce calm behaviors. 

I personally, like to work on this by creating positive associations since these behaviors are competition-based so what I typically do is that, I have the dog who tends to push sit on one side, and watch me as I pet the other dog on the other side, and simultaneously feed treats to her to reinforce her calm, non-pushy behavior, and at the same time create positive associations with the dog getting attention versus holding hard feelings (yes, dogs can feel jealousy recent studies say). 

More about this is covered here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/dogs-fighting-over-owner/ however, since you mention competition over treats as well, you would have to use extra caution and use muzzles for safety (basket muzzles allow you to insert treats) and do some foundational work on learning to take turns getting treats (waiting for the treat by sitting calmly), working along with a professional for safety and correct implementation. 

I hope I have tackled everything! Please let me know if you have any questions. 

Happy Training!

Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks. If your puppy or dog shows signs of potential aggression (lunging, barking, growling, snapping, biting) for safety, please consult with a dog behavior professional who uses force-free behavior modification techniques (no shock, prongs, or physical corrections) for direct in-person guidance. Articles, videos and general info found in the forums or course (or any online source) are not meant to replace in-person training/instruction. By using this course and forum, you are waiving any liability claims or other type of claims related to any dogs' behavior against you or others.

 

[LORI OESTREICH]

Thank you for all the helpful information. I have implemented some of these suggestions already. If I have any further questions, I will check back through the forum.

Lori

[Adrienne Farricelli]

You're very welcome! Keep us posted,

Best,

Adrienne