Multi dog question - Page 2

Sounds like you are keeping your female intact, so the odds of a bitch fight with another intact female living in your home is increased 
by at least 60 percent, that is if you are going to let them lounge around on your couch and be wishy-washy about being firm and letting them know that you are the alpha dog.

 "Will they just establish a pack order later on or will it be a constant battle between the two"
Yes, they will establish a pack order on their own, in the way of a bitch fight.... if you don't step up to the plate and become the "Alpha dog.

As for worrying whether or not you can keep track of/control of the male from getting at the female, ....
 you need to practice being the alpha dog, I would rather go through the trouble to keep a male from a female in heat than go through breaking
up a bitch fight.....

I am wondering.....do you plan to crate them at all, cause that is how I keep my males from getting at a female in heat, I either crate the female, or let her hang out with me & crate the male, it always goes pretty smooth for me.
     

 

WOW1 I have 2 males 1 year apart and one 6.5 year old spayed female. Once in a while the males will growl at each other but never a fight- I am a very strong pack leader and there are no alphas. My female is very submissive. I have just purchased a 8 month old wl female but have not gotten her yet as she will get xrayed and spayed.  My dogs live in the house and are free in the backyard.  This post is making me wonder about success in integrating the new female dog into the pack.  My sons 4 year old female comes and stays with us and we never have issues between the females.  .The last thing I would want is to upset my female and mess up the pack. I have always read about the female/female aggression but I guess I am rolling the dice.

Boys fight for bravado girls fight to kill.
I also got my hand bitten several time trying to grab for a collar. And my best friend at training class had a mixed border collie/lab that would fight because we think she was just crazy! My friend had a male Vislia, intact and later got a rescue dobie neutered. And Gabby would go crazy and attack the males for no good reason. They'd be sleeping and she's go after them. They finally had to put her down because she was so unpredictable and they were thinking about having kids.
As for the pack leader, i rule the house with an iron fist and i will crack skulls if they get crappy with me. But i have never had a dog to human aggression with any of my dogs. Just those 2 trouble some bitches trying to kill each other. Heck when i buried them of old age is seperated them in the back yard.

armauro, three dogs unsupervised in the yard together, is probably not a good idea...I would never do it, myself. Four dogs in the back yard, unsupervised, is a catastrophe waiting to happen. In fact, even four dogs supervised, running loose together is not a good idea. When a fight ensues, you'd never get them separated....that's too many together with only one handler.
JMO

Jonaro,

At the training center where my female GSD (1 YO) is being trained they actually let the dogs out into an area where they run and play freely.  This is a mix of males and females that are not in heat.  I see her outside running around with them upon occasion when I get there for my training.  Should I be more concerned about this?  It is a mix of GSD Rotts, Mals. and then like some labs and other smaller/non aggressive breeds.  I know there is usually 3-4 employees out there with them picking up poop etc but it makes me wonder what they are doing to keep fights from happening.  They have said that my girl pretty much runs the yard when they are out like that which makes me think she may have scuffled a couple times looking back but cant say for sure.I just assumed it was part of the socialization they do to make sure when you get your dog back that it is non aggressive towards other dogs.

 

 

When 2 females are young...(under 1 year old) most of the times they'll get along...But when they mature (around 1 to 1 1/2 years of age) all bets are OFF...The idea is that dogs are pack animals and in a pack ONLY 1 female the "Head Bitch" is allowed to breed...Soooo they'll fight to be the "Head Bitch"...So they can breed...

There's a good reason they call it a "Bitch Fight"...You DON'T want 2 females fighting...They will fight to the death if left alone...It's nature and natural...

If you decide to have 2 dogs (GSD's) in the same household then you're going to have to put up with something...2 Females will come into heat and will fight for the rights to breed...2 Males will fight to be able to breed...1 Male and 1 Female and they'll try to breed...Put up with it or don't...

The key in the scenario you described, troopscott, is 3 or 4 employees in the yard with the dogs. In most multi dog 'play yards', the GSD rules the roost, according to people who have told me about their dog in a situation like that. I think that once a dog is jumped by multiple dogs, if it wasn't already dog aggressive, it will be after that just as a matter of self preservation. Personally, I think those multiple dog yards are foolish and, yes, there had to be some quarreling at least, if not a fight, in order for your female to be seen as 'ruler of the pack'. There is too much risk that, to me, does not justify putting a bunch of dogs in a yard unleashed. If there was a fight, four people couldn't break it up unless they are using something like a fire hose.

My worse dog fight i wasn't even home for. I has set up to have a co-worker from the vet office come by and let the dogs out 1 at a time. But at the last moment someone in her family had a bad accident and she could not help me. So i asked my friend's wife because i always took care of their dog if they went out of town. (Well i didn't know at the time she was having a serious drug problem)
She said sure and i got loaded up on the plane to go the central america. While waiting in Atlanta for the connecting flight, i get a call from my dad that the dogs were all let out together. (4 of them) and Ivy and Maggie had a huge fight! Gladys and Luther was just egging it on.
at this point it's 8 pm, my vet is long since closed and i sent my dad and the injured dog to the emergencey clinic only to find they had moved! At this point he calls me back and says he can't find the overnight clinic. At that point i told him. Put Ivy in the bath tub. If she is alive in the morning take her to my vet. If she is dead please bury her next to her dead puppy.
Well she was alive in the morning and the vets did an awesome job of putting her back together. Because Maggie tore her right ear nearly off from the top of her skull to under her jaw. Plus she was packed with dirt, covered in bite marks and had lost a fair amount of blood.
I spent the next week of my vacation calling to see how she was doing. When i got back i came to the vet's office ot see i now owned "Frankindog" She had stitches, staples and tubes sticking out of her. Her right ear hung funny on her head and had a massive hemotoma which they did their best to fix. But she was happy and bright. She came out of the battle very well and after she healed up only her funny right ear showed any damage. They never had another fight after that. I guess Maggie finally made her point.
But i hope to never have two bitches at the same time again. From now on i want a pair.
Fry

Joanro-
In 1.5 years my 2 males and one female have been loose in the house and outside together.  Maybe I am lucky for a change- but never an issue- once and a while my older guy will growl at the 2 year old but usually if my wife is present as he is protecting her.  They are always running loose with me in the woods etc... working together as a pack hunting prey usually rabitts. My female is spayed and so will my new female.  Also my dogs are dog friendly and when in Connecticut we go to a dog park twice a day.
My older- 3 year old- will get aggressive with a dog if it shows aggression to him.
Also the three really get into playing with each other- two gang up on one then they switch off- one goes totally submissive and tolerates the playful biting.  I issue one command - stop- and they break. That simple. At home the dogs are totally calm in the yard and house. Playing is not tolerated.

Listen to Joanro on this...everyone has an exception story....but there is a reason it is an exception...you want advice that is more than likely to occur!