# Dogfights?



## ZeusTheGSD (Jun 14, 2012)

Heya fellow gsd lovers!

I have been reading some rather terrifying articles considering this is my first dog and it's a GSD I'm not 100% aware on what are the chances of dog fights happening or how to even stop them for that matter.

Here's a short story I read:
View DMRBwo.jpg on ScreenSnapr

I'm just wondering, have you ever had your dogs in a serious dogfight and how did you break it up?

Do they happen often? or are these just horror stories of crazy dogs off leashes.


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## Gharrissc (May 19, 2012)

I've had two dog fights here. One was between my two fosters after they were getting along for weeks, the GSD jumped on my Standard Poodle foster and it was never the same between the after that. The fight actually happened at the park and my husband was with me.There were no serious injuries because we jumped in it right away. I grabbed the Shepherd around her stomach and my husband did the same with the Poodle. In the same week,my Cattle Dog got into a fight with the Standard Poodle. The GSD left and I think the last fight was because the pecking order changed in the house.This was again after the Cattle Dog and the Poodle got along very well for the two months that the Poodle was here. The fight between them wasn't serious,but we never left them alone unattended anymore.


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## ZeusTheGSD (Jun 14, 2012)

Gharrissc said:


> I've had two dog fights here. One was between my two fosters after they were getting along for weeks, the GSD jumped on my Standard Poodle foster and it was never the same between the after that. The fight actually happened at the park and my husband was with me.There were no serious injuries because we jumped in it right away. I grabbed the Shepherd around her stomach and my husband did the same with the Poodle. In the same week,my Cattle Dog got into a fight with the Standard Poodle. The GSD left and I think the last fight was because the pecking order changed in the house.This was again after the Cattle Dog and the Poodle got along very well for the two months that the Poodle was here. The fight between them wasn't serious,but we never left them alone unattended anymore.


Did you simply just grab them by the stomach and pull off? Did you ever have to release their jaws yourself or worry about pulling too hard if one of them had a deep teeth grip on the other?

Sorry about all the questions, I'm just looking for the right answers


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## peep_216 (May 18, 2012)

This is the perfect article, this guy knows what he is doing.

Leerburg | How to Break Up a Dog Fight Without Getting Hurt!


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## Nikitta (Nov 10, 2011)

Your always going to have a pecking order with more then one dog in a house. If you are just getting one, just make sure and socialize him/her as soon and often as you can. To avoid the dog from ever being in a fight is a tough one. Like you said, you will always run into some bonehead who isn't controlling their dog. Depending on your situation, I'd avoid dog parks and only have play dates with owners and dogs you and your puppy know.
When I had 3 GSDs and they got into a fight, I was the alpha dog in my house and when I pulled them off they knew better then to bite me. I just grabbed their collar. For a strange dog I'd go with the article someone mentioned above.


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## Gharrissc (May 19, 2012)

We did grab them by the waists and pulled them off. When we had the second fight, I had to dislodge the poodles mouth from my Cattle Dog's head because she was holding her right above eyes. It's recommended that you stick your hands in a dogs' mouth when they are fighting,but that was a bit more of an emergency. Some dogs will bite their owner from the whole adrenaline of the fight. This can happen even if your dog would never challenge you in any way. 




ZeusTheGSD said:


> Did you simply just grab them by the stomach and pull off? Did you ever have to release their jaws yourself or worry about pulling too hard if one of them had a deep teeth grip on the other?
> 
> Sorry about all the questions, I'm just looking for the right answers


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## Jo Ellen (Aug 30, 2011)

Dog fights terrify me. My golden was attacked when she was very young, I think the other dog was trying to kill her, not sure. I was all by myself, no help. I tried to break it up but couldn't. Eventually I just threw myself over her and figured if she goes, I go. We both got bit. Sometimes you just have to punt. 

I am extremely careful now. Only controlled environments with mature dogs that don't know each other. I stick with play dates with dogs I do know. Dog parks -- _no way_.

I'm useless in a dog fight, I panic. Maybe if I was exposed to them more often, I could be more effective ... but no thank you  

I'll have to read this Leerburg article, hope I never need it though. Preventing a dog fight seems easier than breaking one up, I'll stick with my current strategy  

In all my 11-1/2 years with a dog-reactive dog, I've only experienced one serious dog fight. There's been other altercations, but they were manageable.


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## JPF (Feb 5, 2011)

our dog was attacked by a loose dog once. A fight ensured while our dog was on lease. Luckily for myself when i stupidly grabbed the other dog to break it up the other dog immediately stopped fighting and was calm. 

From then on I carry pepper spray if there is any chance of off leash dogs. Its much easier than pulling the dogs off each other.


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## Nikitta (Nov 10, 2011)

I agree with Ghar. I'm sure the way I broke up the fight was not a good way, by grabbing their collars but i was so shocked it even started. It was a mother and daughter. Ultimately it was my fault to begin with. Zena, the mother, had been putting her mouth over Sirie, the daughter's nose. I just thought it was a show of who's the boss and like a dummy I didn't put a stop to it. What i didn't realize was she was biting her harder and harder every time until Sirie couldn't stand it any more and she started fighting with her mother. And when I pulled Zena off her, Dizan, my male, jumped poor Sirie. I was so mad. I spanked them both and shoved them in the back seat of the car. and said," I don't want to hear a peep out of either one of you!" I was so mad because Sirie had had an eye infection that took me almost 2 months to clear up by putting salve from the vet in her eyes 4 times a day. In 30 seconds, Zena had bit her above the eye and she had blood running. I told Sirie,"YOU get to ride in the front." I didn't hear a peep from the back seat all the way home. Sirie sat in front proud as a peacock. She knew SHE wasn't in trouble! I never let Zena ever doing that mouthing thing again. But like I said. I was to blame more then them by allowing it to go on in the first place.


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## marbury (Apr 3, 2012)

I was ringside at a UKC show for rhodesian ridgebacks, all the dogs in the ring were being shown by one family. One male got too close to another, the handler wasn't watching... big dog fight. They did exactly what the Leerburg article suggested: one handler grabbed his dog's rear legs, the other grabbed her dog's rear legs. When they pulled apart, however, the ear of one of the dogs ended up in his brother's mouth and no longer on his head. Yes, it ended the fight. But it also destroyed one of the dogs in the process. There was blood everywhere and the family, who had driven down from Texas for the show, had to high-tail it to the emergency vet and scratch for the rest of the show.

I used to dock dive with a woman who ran a fantastic facility in NC. I've found her dogfight procedures to be the most effective, although I have never had to break up a fight myself. She did boarding and training, and she ALWAYS had a fannypack-type belt with supplies. She carried bear spray and a charged airhorn. I watched her break up a bad bitchfight during a playgroup session; a blast from the airhorn a foot from their heads and those dogs were OUT. She said she'd only had to use the bear spray once, and it ended there.
I personally don't normally carry either of those items, but if you're in charge of a stressed pack maybe it's a good policy. I'd much rather deal with some irritated eyes and mucous membranes from the bear spray than end up with an earless dog like that poor ridgeback, or worse... with the airhorn/bear spray method you don't need multiple parties, too.


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## Jo Ellen (Aug 30, 2011)

One of the funniest, most awe inspiring things I've ever seen from my dog ...

She's a big dog, 80lbs. There's a Shiba Inu across the street, just a pebble compared to Daisy. Hate that dog, seriously. She gets out and attacks other animals in the neighborhood, kills cats ... vicious dog. She's come into our yard and picked fights with my dog a few times. Daisy doesn't take any crap from another dog...if one starts something, she's going to finish it. So the dog is attacking her, I'm all in a panic (useful me) and then suddenly Daisy made one swift move and had that dog pinned to the ground with her teeth around its neck. It was the most graceful and deliberate action I've ever seen from her, and effective, wow. That dog wasn't going anywhere. Daisy could have killed her right then, but she didn't, she just held her to the ground. When she let go, the little dog went crying home. Boo hoo.

I had a whole new respect for my golden after that. A lot of people think of goldens as nice to everyone, everything, wouldn't hurt a fly ... not true. Golden retrievers can fight, and they can fight well. Much the same as GSD's, I imagine.

How realistic is it for me to think I can go through my GSD's entire life span without a single serious dog fight?


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## marbury (Apr 3, 2012)

Jo Ellen said:


> How realistic is it for me to think I can go through my GSD's entire life span without a single serious dog fight?


Exceptionally realistic. Dog fights are an exception, not a rule.


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## Jo Ellen (Aug 30, 2011)

marbury said:


> Exceptionally realistic. Dog fights are an exception, not a rule.


Oh bless you :hug:


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## KatsMuse (Jun 5, 2012)

OMG!  That's awful!
Thank goodness she had the clear mind to call the Fiancé and had access to a gun...this situation could've have turned out very
differently and been more devastating. Being a former LEO, I have seen terrible dog fight/biting situations. I have never had one and hope I don't .

I live somewhat in the country and my next door neighbor has 2 dogs. He lets his intact, untrained, pit run loose all of the time. They are always around my property and the unfenced front part of my yard. Needless to say, gardening out front has been scary for me at times. 

Our AC here isn't very good here. 

Although I have a 6 ft fence enclosing the 2 acres of the back portion of property I still do not allow my dogs outside alone and we don't go out unarmed...ever. Have you ever watched how fast a pit - or any dog - can scale a fence!!!???:wild:

With 2 female GSDs (and my 2 grandchildren who play in the back, fenced-in section) I just won't/can't take the chance.


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

Another voice of levity here: I have had dogs (including gsds and a rottie cross) for 25 years and my dogs have never been involved in a serious dog fight. I have had many female-female pairs in my home, have lived in rural areas with packs of stray dogs (and coyotes) and have had some aggressive dog-dog encounters but never a serious, can't-separate-the-dogs, bad injuries type of fight. 

I think a big reason for this is that my dogs are trained that I will protect them from other dogs and not vise-versa. I also try to be alert to body language and intervene before anything starts. 

My first gsd was knocked down and bitten by another gsd once...when I was out of town and my housemate was walking her. I had chased off that same dog a million times before but my housemate wasn't able to keep her away from Massie. 

Chama's worst fight was with a muskrat! :blush: Now that one I really did have to pull her out by the tail b/c neither she nor the muskrat were going to stop. It was charging me and Basu (my gsd) was in the mix too. :help:

I think education, confidence and good leadership goes a long way when avoiding fights. And be sure it's not something you're anticipating b/c that goes straight down the leash to the dog.


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## marbury (Apr 3, 2012)

BowWowMeow said:


> Chama's worst fight was with a muskrat! :blush: Now that one I really did have to pull her out by the tail b/c neither she nor the muskrat were going to stop. It was charging me and Basu (my gsd) was in the mix too. :help:


Bahahaha! I wish you had video of that! My dogs love 'fighting' with my ferrets (AKA rolling around with them)... the ferrets always win. Cheeky little buggers!


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## Jo Ellen (Aug 30, 2011)

BowWowMeow said:


> I think education, confidence and good leadership goes a long way when avoiding fights.


Back to the ever-so-sweet Shiba Inu ... she came into my back yard one winter, when the ground was covered with ice. Daisy was still recovering from her 2nd CCL surgery so I had her on leash, thankfully. This dog started in on Daisy, owners nowhere in sight. I was ready to kick that dog to the moon, and that's exactly what I was trying to do. I had Daisy in a sit next to me, had the situation completely under control as far as not letting the devil dog get to Daisy, but it was a challenging situation ... I couldn't get the dog to leave and I couldn't go anywhere! So there I was kicking away, Daisy as calm as could be. Finally the owner got wind of what was going on .. haha, she had to walk across a large yard of ice to get her dog, in her business clothes, and then suffer the embarrassment of her dog not listening to her and BITING her. Daisy was quietly by my side the entire incident.

Confidence goes a long ways


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

I once stopped one from starting just as they went for each other by dumping a large tumbler of ice water on the dogs' faces, just as they came together. They hadn't fully engaged, the full water cup was in my hand, they were close, my aim was good, and the timing was perfect. It shocked them out of it. I was lucky.

If you are in a back yard and close your garden hose spigot, you can try turning your garden hose on their faces. I've only used it to stop a teeth-gnashing tussle from escalating into full-blown fight, not to separate them once it escalates, but if I were by myself and in the backyard, it would be the first thing I'd reach for, since I'm little.


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