I have a few kennels and just bought some very nice insulated dog houses for my hounds. I have been trying to house a 6 month old pup with a 3 year old male. The Older male is not taking this too well (growling and snapping at the pup).
Two questions, the first is will the older male get over it? Second what about housing a male and a female together except when the female is in heat? Just need some advice.
I have had females together a lot with no problems. I only kept one male, but I have realized that when one female goes into heat the rest usually do, and it is usually during hunting season, and I am stuck hunting one dog for 3 weeks.
Kenneling males together??
Moderators: Pike Ridge Beagles, Aaron Bartlett
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HatterasBob
- Posts: 664
- Joined: Tue Feb 25, 2003 12:47 pm
- Location: Maryland
Duke, this is overkill to your question, but I thought maybe folks might enjoy reading it again. It's an article I wrote for one of the early issues of TAB. Long before I got into beagling, I did a lot of study on canine psychology and wolf pack dynamics. When we started keeping "packs" of beagles, I noticed the breed has retained many of the older instincts - probably piggy-backing the well-preserved instinct to hunt for game. I've spent hours upon hours just watching and observing their interactions, and have avoided some potential mishaps by assuming and respecting that the dogs still follow their own rules of pack hierarchy:
HARMONY IN THE KENNEL
Part of enjoying a happy kennel and avoiding unnecessary fights can be the proper selection of roommates. Understanding the dynamics of pack hierarchy and male dominance related behaviors go a long way in achieving peace in your canine kingdom. Let’s review the very basics of pack hierarchy, commonly referred to as the “pecking order”.
We have the Alphas (dominants), Subdominant pack, and the Omegas (below subdominant – often submissive). Because our Beagles are pack animals, we won’t see many of the problems encountered by owners of other breeds like the terriers, some spaniels and generally those that are solitary hunting types. You may never have the “alpha experience” as not all kennels contain a true Alpha male. Pack animals (like our beagles) are very adept at sorting through and establishing their own ranking system. However, in spite of our best intentions, we sometimes create situations that can invite if not actually provoke discord I the kennel. The key to choosing kennel mates, assuming you kennel them in small groups, is to avoid pairing up those hounds that share a very close rank within the hierarchy. These will be predominantly your males. This is one reason given by many beaglers for their preference of keeping females, but if you find yourself with a high number of males, or just prefer males, where you choose to kennel or how you choose to transport your males can make or break the level of peace you have from day to day, and either discourage or encourage fighting.
An important thing to remember is that over 80% of dominance related incidents involve males. Occasionally you will get a female that won’t kennel well with others, but not as a rule. The source of fighting in males can be attributed to several reasons. Those I will discuss in this article are two distinct forms of aggression: dominance aggression, and inter-male aggression. Dominance aggression involves the need to rule or exert power over all packmates. Inter-male aggression is simply that, an intolerance of one or more particular males in the kennel. Please note that aggression is not necessarily synonymous with “viciousness”. In humans, the equivalent would be known as “assertion”, or boldly getting one’s way. There are forms of aggression that are based on uncontrolled viciousness, predatory aggression (attacks or chases anything that moves and is a motion triggered response) and idiopathic aggression (unknown cause) but this is rare among Beagles. The emerging aggression sometimes evident with physically pubescent males only plays a small part of discord in the kennel. It’s more of a nuisance than anything and generally passes as the hormone levels smooth out and he finds his place in the heirarchy.
In most cases, aggression is a trait that finds its roots in the development of the neonatal canine.The brain of the male puppy becomes masculinized just before birth by a last minute, rush transfer of testosterone from the mother. How masculinized he becomes at this time will determine how dominant he will be the rest of his life. This is also the reason neutering will have little to no effect on changing the level of dominance in the dog. The benefit of neutering is discussed later on. Female puppies do not undergo a similar femininization. This action is restricted to males. In fact, the testosterone is actually converted to an estrogen-like hormone before it is actually utilized in the brain. This seems confusing, but you can easily distinguish the male pup that has a high level of masculinizing from the rest. He will be the bully, standing over his littermates, nipping on their scruffs, mounting and hip thrusting as early as five weeks of age. He will be the first to the best teat and the first to the food bowl. His level of dominance will also determine his ability to secure his resources and opportunity to breed later on. These are the pups that need extra reminding that you are the alpha during training. If you don’t enforce this early on, you will always be faced with a battle of wills.
At what I call physical puberty, that which has been forced to occur between six and nine months due to our breeding down through domestication, you may notice a slight increase in sexually aggressive behaviors from the renewed rush of testosterone. This may manifest itself in excessive mounting, wandering, posturing or displays of boldness, but true inter-male aggression will not occur until much later on. This is where castration can help in decreasing the unwanted sexual behaviors, i.e. wandering, mounting, etc. Even so, you may notice that some of these behaviors linger for months even though circulating testosterone leaves within hours of castration. It will not undo the actual dominance factor that was set just before birth.
Inter-male aggression will generally occur between the ages of 2-1/2 and 3 years of age (coincidently, this is the age at which wolves go through actual puberty). I refer to this as a dog’s psychological puberty. If your idea of fun is constantly running for the water hose or jabbing a garden rake between two fighting dogs, kennel or transport a couple of 2-1/2 year old males together. They won’t disappoint you! This is also the age you will see a young male try to “take on” your pack’s alpha male and generally get his tail whipped by the “old man”. I rarely interrupt these incidents in my own pack unless it begins to look hopeless for one of them. A torn ear and a bruised ego will not evoke enough sympathy from me to interrupt what they will eventually resolve on their own.
I have found it easier to kennel hounds that have little in common with one another. That way no one feels challenged for his/her position of rank within the hierarchy. Inasmuch as it requires close monitoring, kenneling a male with a female works best for me than any other arrangement. She will only have to “move out” for six weeks out of the year. Unless I know the hounds well, I will do about anything to avoid kenneling or transporting males together. I’ve even gone as far as to put our Alpha male in the cab of the truck with me, because experience tells me what will happen if I attempt to transport him with other males, especially those not belonging to our regular pack. Sometime in a kenneling situation, this can’t be avoided due to space restrictions, so one must determine which two males pose the least threat to each other. I have identified the alpha male in my pack and he kennels alone and gets fed first. Occasionally, when we have canine guests and need the room, I will put a female in with him. He will tolerate a very young puppy for a while, but if they aggravate him with too much play, he may “down” them and beller in their face. He won’t harm them, but it isn’t the best-case roommate scenario for a rambunctious puppy. This male transports alone or with females only. Sometimes a pup under one year of age and a another subdominant adult male in the kennel will coexist peacefully, as well as a grown submissive and a grown subdominant male. The idea is to keep the social status as far apart as possible between males. The reason I don’t leave male puppies in with the alpha very long is that eventually the pup will go thru physical and then psychological puberty and can pay a dear price for it from an alpha male. At one time I had 15 hounds spread out between 9 kennels. The only discord I had at that time was an occasional altercation at feeding time in one kennel that held a 10-month-old male and a 2-1/2 year old male. I moved the youngest one out when he approached the age of 2. I also keep 2 dog houses per ground kennel. Although the hounds nearly always sleep together, there are times when one may get a bit stingy about arranging and sharing new bedding and it provides the other hound an option to get out of the rain.
Even though we won’t normally have the trouble of kenneling our Beagles as we would other breeds, I don’t want to downplay the need for recognizing and managing male aggression. An incident was brought up on the Beagles Unlimited Bulletin Board where a fellow put 4 male hounds in a box and went to a field trial. When he arrived and opened the box, he found 1 dead Field Champion and 3 hounds covered in blood. The question in his mind was if it could have been a case of mutiny or plain old murder by one of them. Did the other three hounds actually gang up on the one or were they innocent bystanders? Was this a result of uncontrolled predatory or idiopathic aggression? My response to the situation was as follows:
“In the case of the 4 males in the box, I don't believe it was more than the two hounds involved. So sad, because had the two been out in the open instead of a confined box, the subdominant hound would have had the opportunity to retreat, cower, flee or otherwise concede to the aggressor - the natural way most conflicts are resolved. The very fact that he had to remain in the aggressor's personal space was probably interpreted as not backing down. Dog's have no concept of available square feet or cubic inches. The 2 other hounds were indeed probably bystanders, probably urinating in fear in the corners of that dog box. A good physical exam would have more than likely revealed which hound was the aggressor. Wolves are known for ganging up to kill prey. They don't normally gang up in acts of dominance. The Alpha male is capable of removing “unwanteds” all on his own…or he will be removed. Mutiny among wolves has been known to happen, but not often.”
We may never know the reason this happened to the fellow that lost a Field Champion in the dog box, but a few simple precautions taken with a better understanding of the dynamics of male interaction can certainly avert such a tragedy. If you feel you have more fighting and discord in your kennel than you want, re-evaluate your hounds, keeping your eyed trained on the males in particular. Compare their ages, social status and level of dominance. If you have a common yard or fenced area that you can let them mingle together for a while, watch the body language and interactions that take place. In the canine world, body language is everything. The slightest posture or change in head, ear, or tail position speaks volumes. Try rearranging your kennel using some of the methods in this article and hopefully you and your hounds will enjoy a more peaceful and harmonious existence.
HARMONY IN THE KENNEL
Part of enjoying a happy kennel and avoiding unnecessary fights can be the proper selection of roommates. Understanding the dynamics of pack hierarchy and male dominance related behaviors go a long way in achieving peace in your canine kingdom. Let’s review the very basics of pack hierarchy, commonly referred to as the “pecking order”.
We have the Alphas (dominants), Subdominant pack, and the Omegas (below subdominant – often submissive). Because our Beagles are pack animals, we won’t see many of the problems encountered by owners of other breeds like the terriers, some spaniels and generally those that are solitary hunting types. You may never have the “alpha experience” as not all kennels contain a true Alpha male. Pack animals (like our beagles) are very adept at sorting through and establishing their own ranking system. However, in spite of our best intentions, we sometimes create situations that can invite if not actually provoke discord I the kennel. The key to choosing kennel mates, assuming you kennel them in small groups, is to avoid pairing up those hounds that share a very close rank within the hierarchy. These will be predominantly your males. This is one reason given by many beaglers for their preference of keeping females, but if you find yourself with a high number of males, or just prefer males, where you choose to kennel or how you choose to transport your males can make or break the level of peace you have from day to day, and either discourage or encourage fighting.
An important thing to remember is that over 80% of dominance related incidents involve males. Occasionally you will get a female that won’t kennel well with others, but not as a rule. The source of fighting in males can be attributed to several reasons. Those I will discuss in this article are two distinct forms of aggression: dominance aggression, and inter-male aggression. Dominance aggression involves the need to rule or exert power over all packmates. Inter-male aggression is simply that, an intolerance of one or more particular males in the kennel. Please note that aggression is not necessarily synonymous with “viciousness”. In humans, the equivalent would be known as “assertion”, or boldly getting one’s way. There are forms of aggression that are based on uncontrolled viciousness, predatory aggression (attacks or chases anything that moves and is a motion triggered response) and idiopathic aggression (unknown cause) but this is rare among Beagles. The emerging aggression sometimes evident with physically pubescent males only plays a small part of discord in the kennel. It’s more of a nuisance than anything and generally passes as the hormone levels smooth out and he finds his place in the heirarchy.
In most cases, aggression is a trait that finds its roots in the development of the neonatal canine.The brain of the male puppy becomes masculinized just before birth by a last minute, rush transfer of testosterone from the mother. How masculinized he becomes at this time will determine how dominant he will be the rest of his life. This is also the reason neutering will have little to no effect on changing the level of dominance in the dog. The benefit of neutering is discussed later on. Female puppies do not undergo a similar femininization. This action is restricted to males. In fact, the testosterone is actually converted to an estrogen-like hormone before it is actually utilized in the brain. This seems confusing, but you can easily distinguish the male pup that has a high level of masculinizing from the rest. He will be the bully, standing over his littermates, nipping on their scruffs, mounting and hip thrusting as early as five weeks of age. He will be the first to the best teat and the first to the food bowl. His level of dominance will also determine his ability to secure his resources and opportunity to breed later on. These are the pups that need extra reminding that you are the alpha during training. If you don’t enforce this early on, you will always be faced with a battle of wills.
At what I call physical puberty, that which has been forced to occur between six and nine months due to our breeding down through domestication, you may notice a slight increase in sexually aggressive behaviors from the renewed rush of testosterone. This may manifest itself in excessive mounting, wandering, posturing or displays of boldness, but true inter-male aggression will not occur until much later on. This is where castration can help in decreasing the unwanted sexual behaviors, i.e. wandering, mounting, etc. Even so, you may notice that some of these behaviors linger for months even though circulating testosterone leaves within hours of castration. It will not undo the actual dominance factor that was set just before birth.
Inter-male aggression will generally occur between the ages of 2-1/2 and 3 years of age (coincidently, this is the age at which wolves go through actual puberty). I refer to this as a dog’s psychological puberty. If your idea of fun is constantly running for the water hose or jabbing a garden rake between two fighting dogs, kennel or transport a couple of 2-1/2 year old males together. They won’t disappoint you! This is also the age you will see a young male try to “take on” your pack’s alpha male and generally get his tail whipped by the “old man”. I rarely interrupt these incidents in my own pack unless it begins to look hopeless for one of them. A torn ear and a bruised ego will not evoke enough sympathy from me to interrupt what they will eventually resolve on their own.
I have found it easier to kennel hounds that have little in common with one another. That way no one feels challenged for his/her position of rank within the hierarchy. Inasmuch as it requires close monitoring, kenneling a male with a female works best for me than any other arrangement. She will only have to “move out” for six weeks out of the year. Unless I know the hounds well, I will do about anything to avoid kenneling or transporting males together. I’ve even gone as far as to put our Alpha male in the cab of the truck with me, because experience tells me what will happen if I attempt to transport him with other males, especially those not belonging to our regular pack. Sometime in a kenneling situation, this can’t be avoided due to space restrictions, so one must determine which two males pose the least threat to each other. I have identified the alpha male in my pack and he kennels alone and gets fed first. Occasionally, when we have canine guests and need the room, I will put a female in with him. He will tolerate a very young puppy for a while, but if they aggravate him with too much play, he may “down” them and beller in their face. He won’t harm them, but it isn’t the best-case roommate scenario for a rambunctious puppy. This male transports alone or with females only. Sometimes a pup under one year of age and a another subdominant adult male in the kennel will coexist peacefully, as well as a grown submissive and a grown subdominant male. The idea is to keep the social status as far apart as possible between males. The reason I don’t leave male puppies in with the alpha very long is that eventually the pup will go thru physical and then psychological puberty and can pay a dear price for it from an alpha male. At one time I had 15 hounds spread out between 9 kennels. The only discord I had at that time was an occasional altercation at feeding time in one kennel that held a 10-month-old male and a 2-1/2 year old male. I moved the youngest one out when he approached the age of 2. I also keep 2 dog houses per ground kennel. Although the hounds nearly always sleep together, there are times when one may get a bit stingy about arranging and sharing new bedding and it provides the other hound an option to get out of the rain.
Even though we won’t normally have the trouble of kenneling our Beagles as we would other breeds, I don’t want to downplay the need for recognizing and managing male aggression. An incident was brought up on the Beagles Unlimited Bulletin Board where a fellow put 4 male hounds in a box and went to a field trial. When he arrived and opened the box, he found 1 dead Field Champion and 3 hounds covered in blood. The question in his mind was if it could have been a case of mutiny or plain old murder by one of them. Did the other three hounds actually gang up on the one or were they innocent bystanders? Was this a result of uncontrolled predatory or idiopathic aggression? My response to the situation was as follows:
“In the case of the 4 males in the box, I don't believe it was more than the two hounds involved. So sad, because had the two been out in the open instead of a confined box, the subdominant hound would have had the opportunity to retreat, cower, flee or otherwise concede to the aggressor - the natural way most conflicts are resolved. The very fact that he had to remain in the aggressor's personal space was probably interpreted as not backing down. Dog's have no concept of available square feet or cubic inches. The 2 other hounds were indeed probably bystanders, probably urinating in fear in the corners of that dog box. A good physical exam would have more than likely revealed which hound was the aggressor. Wolves are known for ganging up to kill prey. They don't normally gang up in acts of dominance. The Alpha male is capable of removing “unwanteds” all on his own…or he will be removed. Mutiny among wolves has been known to happen, but not often.”
We may never know the reason this happened to the fellow that lost a Field Champion in the dog box, but a few simple precautions taken with a better understanding of the dynamics of male interaction can certainly avert such a tragedy. If you feel you have more fighting and discord in your kennel than you want, re-evaluate your hounds, keeping your eyed trained on the males in particular. Compare their ages, social status and level of dominance. If you have a common yard or fenced area that you can let them mingle together for a while, watch the body language and interactions that take place. In the canine world, body language is everything. The slightest posture or change in head, ear, or tail position speaks volumes. Try rearranging your kennel using some of the methods in this article and hopefully you and your hounds will enjoy a more peaceful and harmonious existence.
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Briarhoppers
- Posts: 886
- Joined: Thu Aug 12, 2004 3:06 pm
- Location: Middle, TN
- Contact:
Bev-
In regards to multiple hounds gaining up on one - I usually have 5 hounds in a common 50x50 pen. I've notice that when a scrap happens typically between my alpha male and who ever he is aggrivated at, other hounds will run right over and stick their nose right in the middle of the scrap. At first I thought they were instinctively "ganging" up on the losing hound, but upon closer observation learned that they are doing anything, but sticking their noses right in the middle of the action. Weird, but I guess that explains how those other two hounds in your story were covered in blood.
-Pete
In regards to multiple hounds gaining up on one - I usually have 5 hounds in a common 50x50 pen. I've notice that when a scrap happens typically between my alpha male and who ever he is aggrivated at, other hounds will run right over and stick their nose right in the middle of the scrap. At first I thought they were instinctively "ganging" up on the losing hound, but upon closer observation learned that they are doing anything, but sticking their noses right in the middle of the action. Weird, but I guess that explains how those other two hounds in your story were covered in blood.
-Pete
Briarhoppers, I have a Beta male (second in command) that will position himself between the Alpha and the dog the Alpha just whipped. I mean he will stand fur-to-fur up against the Alpha, keeping himself inbetween, and the Alpha allows it. He acts like the Alpha's personal body guard, LOL, but only after the real fighting is done. Maybe he thinks his presence will discourage a second attempt at the Alpha. Dogs are loony-protective at times.
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Beagleman973
- Posts: 184
- Joined: Tue Jan 14, 2003 11:28 am
- Location: Southern Illinois
I have a male...definitely not the alpha male of my pack....that will try to position himself between any dogs fighting and try to break up the fight. He will bark at them...run around in circles...etc. I can kennel him with any dog and he always gets along with them. But I have two males...that always get along when hunting....but can't be kenneled with other males. They are father and son and just alike.
I have kenneled them with females not in heat temporarily while expanding my kennels with absolutely no problems. But kennel them with any male...except the old male that gets along with all dogs....and there will be a fight.
Incidentally...I have had some pretty good fights among certain females too....it's not just a male problem....tho males certainly are harder to kennel then males.
I have kenneled them with females not in heat temporarily while expanding my kennels with absolutely no problems. But kennel them with any male...except the old male that gets along with all dogs....and there will be a fight.
Incidentally...I have had some pretty good fights among certain females too....it's not just a male problem....tho males certainly are harder to kennel then males.
If you can't run with the BIG DOGS stay on the porch!
Likewise Beagleman, I've had some females that plain hated each other's guts. You couldn't even put them on a double lead together. Most hounds are just happy to go hunting when the lead comes out, but you could count on a fight between these two bitches before you got to the truck. I guess they were part of that 20%.
The body language between two females with dominance issues is somewhat unique. They will sidle up to each other ends swapped (facing opposite directions) and barely look over their shoulders at the other, tails stiff at 12 o'clock, and kinda "flip-wagging" just the end of their tails, LOL! Usually it just comes down to who can growl the loudest, but bitches will fight, too.
The body language between two females with dominance issues is somewhat unique. They will sidle up to each other ends swapped (facing opposite directions) and barely look over their shoulders at the other, tails stiff at 12 o'clock, and kinda "flip-wagging" just the end of their tails, LOL! Usually it just comes down to who can growl the loudest, but bitches will fight, too.
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tnbeagleman
- Posts: 677
- Joined: Sat Jul 27, 2002 7:26 pm
- Location: Tazewell Tennessee
- Contact:
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alswamper
I have more problems out of my females than any male I have.
I have two pens with two males each in them with one having a female, except when in heat.
The other pen has 4 females and it's about 10x30, maybe closer to 40.
When my dogs fight, I go in there and they get what is coming. A kick or stick over the head usually stops it.
I don't put up with fighting, never have, never will and they know. Usually, when it starts I can scream at them and it stops, immediately!
Any dog that starts several fights gets culled at my house, plain and simple. Ain't got time for it and don't want it bred. Yes, there is always the alpha dog but aggressiveness is not a trait I want in the kennel. I have one alpha male that is laid back and won't cause a stir for nothing, yet, he is the alpha. That is what I like in a dog when in the kennel.
I have two pens with two males each in them with one having a female, except when in heat.
The other pen has 4 females and it's about 10x30, maybe closer to 40.
When my dogs fight, I go in there and they get what is coming. A kick or stick over the head usually stops it.
I don't put up with fighting, never have, never will and they know. Usually, when it starts I can scream at them and it stops, immediately!
Any dog that starts several fights gets culled at my house, plain and simple. Ain't got time for it and don't want it bred. Yes, there is always the alpha dog but aggressiveness is not a trait I want in the kennel. I have one alpha male that is laid back and won't cause a stir for nothing, yet, he is the alpha. That is what I like in a dog when in the kennel.
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blackdirt beagles
never had a problem with the males here but the females sure cant rough it up once in awhile. my males are always real laid back in the kennel but the females really take claim to their kennels and i cant put 2 females together but a male and a female are fine as long as you watch the female for heat.
but i do keep more females (2 - 1) than males so this may be why it seems that way. but it sure seems the females are more apt to be agressive to me.
but i do keep more females (2 - 1) than males so this may be why it seems that way. but it sure seems the females are more apt to be agressive to me.
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cris axtell/coal hill ken
- Posts: 1275
- Joined: Fri Feb 28, 2003 9:58 pm
- Location: greenville pa NW
i have found that if you don't let them settle a domanance issue then and there it will continue to be an issue
COAL HILL KENNELS. LP GR CH Coal Hill's Brush Buster. 2014 PA state champion LP GR CH Coal Hill's Mama Cass. 2010 PA state champion LP R CH GR BCH Coal Hill's Princess Willow HOG DOG POWER!!!!
Thanks for all the information. From what I have seen if I put males with females and just separate them when the females go into season I should have little problem.
Bev the information was very interesting. I do have a true alpha male, I may just build another kennel for him alone as he is also my best hound.
Bev i look forward to meeting you next month in Cincinnati.
Bev the information was very interesting. I do have a true alpha male, I may just build another kennel for him alone as he is also my best hound.
Bev i look forward to meeting you next month in Cincinnati.
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Guest
I once had a Crain bred male that i baught as a 6 week old pup. My wife kept it in the house until it was about 4 months old. Whe i took it to the kennel it started off trying to establish dominance and soon became the Alpha. This was a great rabbit dog he was not only dominant but very jealous of other dogs to us. Anytime i would pet another hounds he would go off and attack nothing was safe from his wrath. One day he caused a fight right in the lap of my daught who was petting our house dog she was 2 at the time. He left there the next day. This dog would fight to the death anything that stood toe to toe with him. We could not take the chance of one of our children being caught in the middle of the wrath he inflicted on other dogs so he had to go. I know he was on the extreme side of dominance but in some instances this is something they cannot and will not get over and they don't understand neutral ground.
VABEAGLER
VABEAGLER
VABEAGLER, your hound may have been dominant, but may not have been a true Alpha. There are verying degrees of dominancy in the canine hierarchy. In any event, the behaviors you describe definitely sound like Possessive Agression/Sibling Agression. There are 7 main forms of agression in dogs and that is one of them. Behaviors exactly as you described - competition for attention and sometimes physical things, objects. You were probably wise to remove the dog from your home, because not everyone has the time nor inclination to fool with the behavior modification program that's necessary to control it.
Sometimes bitches will develop a temporary form of possessive agression over objects - treating them like they are her "puppies". This often occurs after a false pregnancy, weaning, or some other hormone fluctuation. I know a guy who reached under the bed to retrieve a house shoe only to get dog bit (no not Ralph, lol). His female dog had "adopted" his house shoe, rotfl.
Sometimes bitches will develop a temporary form of possessive agression over objects - treating them like they are her "puppies". This often occurs after a false pregnancy, weaning, or some other hormone fluctuation. I know a guy who reached under the bed to retrieve a house shoe only to get dog bit (no not Ralph, lol). His female dog had "adopted" his house shoe, rotfl.
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Guest
Yes Bev when you small kids you have to do what is right for them. This dog was a big baby and don't think he would ever hurt anybody he just could not be trusted to not start a fight with another dog. God forbid one of the kids get caught in the middle. I believe you analysis on him is right about the posessiveness but mark my word he was alpha. Even the dogs his elder would be submissive to him anytime he looked at them.
What is strange is he never bucked me i mean we never struggled between us for who was boss. He handled like a dream and always listened. He was a different dog in the field easy going could hunt him with anything until i killed a rabbit or put them on leash then watch out.
Only one i ever had or saw that acted this way.
VABEAGLER
What is strange is he never bucked me i mean we never struggled between us for who was boss. He handled like a dream and always listened. He was a different dog in the field easy going could hunt him with anything until i killed a rabbit or put them on leash then watch out.
Only one i ever had or saw that acted this way.
VABEAGLER