Fighting-PLEASE HELP

Smstilli4

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We have 4 frenchies between myself and the guy I date. The oldest two are his and are now 11 months old. We got them at 8 weeks old, 2 weeks apart (both born in April 2021) and had no problems up until August of 2021 so they were 4 months old when they started fighting really bad. One does not want to fight and the other seems to bully over any and everything. They don't fight all the time and never fight outside. It just happens suddenly for no real reason. They will be fine then we notice make eye contact between them and that's it. It happens so quick even if standing or sitting right next to them. We have both been bitten trying to separate them. Of course they didn't bit us on purpose, we had to try to pry them part. We do not live together. I have 2 of my own that live with me. A male and female. Male is 5 months and female is 10 weeks. They get along fine with each other. We have had both older ones around my younger ones and there is no issue except between them so its just not safe. SOMEONE PLEASE HELP. We love our babies and want them all to get along. Has anyone dealt with an issue like this and if so what did you do?
 

Rusty’s Owner

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Sorry to hear they are not all getting along!

When they start fighting, what would they normally/usually fight over??
What seems to trigger them the most?
What do you normally see them do before a fight happens??

For example if they are picking a fight over a toy, and you see them looking at the other to pick a fight, I would suggest making a unpleasant noise so they kind of stop and look like what was that noise?
Or take away toy they fight over.
That is a suggestion.

Have you taken all them on a walk together or doing something they all like to do cause that can help make them enjoy being around each other more.

Your young frenchies that live with you, they have no issues or try to fight each other??

Is there 1 older Frenchie that won’t pick a fight with your 2 frenchies??
If it’s only 1 out of 4 causing the issues then I would suggest using a leash on the Frenchie causing the fighting if the other 3 get along. Or put the Frenchie that causes the fighting in another room so the other 3 can be together if they don’t fight.

Hope things get better soon!
 

Rusty’s Owner

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Also are they neutered?
Sometimes 2 intact makes pick a fight with each other because of being intact.
 

Cbrugs

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I have 3 dogs…an almost 9 year old male Frenchie (Jax), a 5 year old male English bulldog (Louie) and a 2 year old female English bulldog (Ella). Jax and Louie never had any issues until October 2020 when they got into their first real fight and Jax required stitches. They’ve gotten into a few tiffs since then but nothing major. Ella and Louie have gotten into some tiffs, usually over a toy or food. Jax and Ella have not gotten into any tiffs. We know the triggers and always keep our eyes out as so we can try to stop any fights from occurring. Unfortunately, I think there is always a possibility of some sort of fight when there are multiple dogs in the house. Knowing the triggers can help you avoid a fight from happening. I keep a couple spray bottles filled with vinegar handy and will spray if I see any of the sketchy eye contact between them being made.

Worst case, you’d have to keep the fighting digs separate and away from the others.
 

2bullymama

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Agree.. if you know the triggers or learn the boday language you can preemt the fight and when you can’t be with them to watch keep the instigator separate.

We used to have to keep our female separate as she always would want to fight, came out of blue no reason.
 

Smstilli4

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Thank you all for the replies and advice. We are keeping them separate for now. I have the the one who tries to avoid fights with me and my other two younger ones. If I'm being honest it makes me really sad because I feel like I'm letting Pudson down. I don't think its fair to have one all by himself while the other three get to play but we don't know what else to do. I just wish the two older ones got along. The fights can happen over anything and by the time you notice the "look" its too late. Its like we are on guard 24/7 when the two are together. If they both stayed in the same home we would have to keep one crated while the other is out, then switch and we don't want to crate them all the time. Pudson is a little to territorial for me to trust around the 5 month old and 11 week old like I do the other. Hoping to get them into some training that can help.
 

Smstilli4

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Sorry to hear they are not all getting along!

When they start fighting, what would they normally/usually fight over??
What seems to trigger them the most?
What do you normally see them do before a fight happens??

For example if they are picking a fight over a toy, and you see them looking at the other to pick a fight, I would suggest making a unpleasant noise so they kind of stop and look like what was that noise?
Or take away toy they fight over.
That is a suggestion.

Have you taken all them on a walk together or doing something they all like to do cause that can help make them enjoy being around each other more.

Your young frenchies that live with you, they have no issues or try to fight each other??

Is there 1 older Frenchie that won’t pick a fight with your 2 frenchies??
If it’s only 1 out of 4 causing the issues then I would suggest using a leash on the Frenchie causing the fighting if the other 3 get along. Or put the Frenchie that causes the fighting in another room so the other 3 can be together if they don’t fight.

Hope things get better soon!
Thank you.
There is no real reason for the fights that we can tell, like nothing triggers it besides one wanting to be dominant maybe?
There is 1 older Frenchie that gets along with the 2 younger ones, I have him staying at my house to keep the two older ones from getting anymore scars or having to stay in a crate all the time. Its so sad to see fights and they are hard break up when it happens. I never knew how strong small dogs could be until this started happening. I feel like its unfair to Pudson, the one who normally starts the fights, to be alone because I don t think he would do that with any other dog. Im not going to give him the chance to with the two little ones. I take them around him individually, holding most of the time just in case. Things are okay but I dont trust it for an extended period of time right now. Pudson isnt a bad dog, he just has a different personality and gets really excited, really fast. Kinda hard to expalin but he loves to kiss and play and everything like the others , he just doesnt like Brock for some reason.
 

Rusty’s Owner

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Thank you.
There is no real reason for the fights that we can tell, like nothing triggers it besides one wanting to be dominant maybe?
There is 1 older Frenchie that gets along with the 2 younger ones, I have him staying at my house to keep the two older ones from getting anymore scars or having to stay in a crate all the time. Its so sad to see fights and they are hard break up when it happens. I never knew how strong small dogs could be until this started happening. I feel like its unfair to Pudson, the one who normally starts the fights, to be alone because I don t think he would do that with any other dog. Im not going to give him the chance to with the two little ones. I take them around him individually, holding most of the time just in case. Things are okay but I dont trust it for an extended period of time right now. Pudson isnt a bad dog, he just has a different personality and gets really excited, really fast. Kinda hard to expalin but he loves to kiss and play and everything like the others , he just doesnt like Brock for some reason.


I know someone that had a issue with the 2 Frenchie she had that would fight because both Frenchies wanted to be “alpha” and would fight because of that.
That could be the cause of the fighting possibly? 1 of them was male and the other was a female. The male would pick the fights and always wanted to be center if attention also and both of them wanted to be alpha.

Hope everything improves!
 

2bullymama

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I agree, you need to bring in a trainer to help get them balanced. They are picking up on your ‘on guard’ stress/nerves. If you haven’t alrea, have you tired walking them all together? You would need a person for each dog and take them for walks to help them pack up. They will determine alpha in the pack behind each of you of course. Also, try to use ‘nothing in life is free’ and be sure to use all the same command and limitations to gain consistency and routine.
 

Mary Jane's Mom

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I agree, you need to bring in a trainer to help get them balanced. They are picking up on your ‘on guard’ stress/nerves. If you haven’t alrea, have you tired walking them all together? You would need a person for each dog and take them for walks to help them pack up. They will determine alpha in the pack behind each of you of course. Also, try to use ‘nothing in life is free’ and be sure to use all the same command and limitations to gain consistency and routine.
I like this advice. My Frenchy girl gets excited really quickly. Once, she broke her collar (major dept store brand 🙄), attacked a pit bull latching on to his cheek and had to be pulled off. She didn't get hurt but he had a bloody cheek. Since then, when she begins to get over excited, keeping her by my side on a leash for a time helps. Sometimes even a couple of days, esp around people or other dogs. During this time I re-enforce all commands. It helps me maintain control when she gets distracted by what I call a "prized sighting" - that provokes an automatic "🐂 charge" response .
 
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