should we interfere?

Question

When dogs are establishing a pack order should we interfere in that?

all of their dogs are neutered and spay.

Yes they are domestic, and they know their owner is alpha BUT amoungst their selves there seems to be a couple of them trying to rule.

well its actually the small female growling at the large female, the smaller one is a border collie mix and the larger one is a german shepard, the shepard doesnt growl back.

Answer 1

Yes, your dogs will establish a pecking order. Don't let people here tell you since your the alpha they shouldn't. The pecking order of a pack goes all the way to the lowest in status. I have seven dogs and I can tell you who is in charge after the humans in my home. Just keep an eye on them and don't allow fights that can cause injury. Spayed/neutered pets don't usually take it as far as intact dogs, they no longer have a sex drive to egg them on. Every dog needs to know their status and they will determine it themselves.

Answer 2

Do not interfere, as long as they do not cause severe harm to each other. Just because they are neutered does not mean they consider each other equals. They still do have to establish a "pecking order."
Wolf packs have an Alpha male and female, but also have an order in the pack. The peon at the bottom of the order is usually given the job of babysitting the new pups when the rest of the pack hunts. They are also the last to eat.
Since domestic dogs are relatives of the wolf, they have the same instincts to have an order. Let them establish their own pack.

Answer 3

It depends on how they are establishing the order. It is very important that all humans are alpha. After that, a natural order will form. If the dogs are fighting, then yes, interference is necessary. If they are just playing then interference is not necessary. How do you know the difference? If you have never seen a dog fight: believe me, you will know. The growling is no longer playful and you can see that they are "out for blood".
The process of establishing order should happen fairly quickly (within a couple of hours). While it may be challenged occasionally, a well-balanced household will not have many challenges because it is known that the humans are alpha, and that they cannot be challenged.

Answer 4

It really depends on the size of your dogs. You and any humans in the household are the Alpha dogs after that they should be equal. Now if you have a Rottie (or other large dog) and it is being aggressive towards a smaller dog like a Chihuahua then you should definitely interfere. Little dogs should be higher up in the pack than larger dogs to prevent the larger dogs from seriously injuring the smaller dogs. Because if your large dogs gets mad and tries to display dominance and hurts or kills your little dog you will feel pretty bad and will most likely punish the larger dog for showing dominance, which you had allowed previously. That will send mixed signals to your dog. If they are all about the same size you should watch whether you have more than one dominant dog. Because my German Shepard is dominant and my moms shepard cross is dominant also, so we cant allow them out together because neither of them will back down and they will tear each other up if we let them. My dad has been caught in the middle of their fights and has been bitten and scratched up pretty bad and so have the dogs, so just make sure that your pack isnt going to kill each other. My pack is my husband and me first, my shepard 2nd, my male cat 3rd, my calico 4th and my golden retriever 5th (shes a weenie, the cats scare her to death). Hopefully your pack will establish itself nicely and you wont have to interfere. good luck

Answer 5

As long as the dogs understand that you are the Alpha in the house, they will naturally determine the Beta and so on.

Since they're fixed, they should all pretty much consider themselves equal, but one will take the lead as the Beta.

Answer 6

If the dogs pose a threat or danger to themselves or anyone else, yes, interfere. It's for their safety as well as the safety of others. (Unless of course we're not talking about domestic dogs.)

Answer 7

If the dogs aren't hurting each other or you. Then no, don't interfere, ( assuming the dogs live together) However, if they are nipping/biting then I would seperate them.
Otherwise I wouldn't see the harm in it.

Answer 8

It depends on how serious they are. If it's mostly a case of "pushy pushy" I leave them to it, but if they're going to hurt each other or if one is being a bully I put a stop to it. My house, my rules.

Answer 9

you should be the alpha dog they should all be equals