Reprinted from the NorCal Collie Rescue Newsletter Fall 2007 http://www.calcollierescue.org/newsletter.htm

Many of our NCR adopters already have one collie or other type of dog, and many of our rescue collies come from a background of living with other dogs.  We therefore often want to place NCR rescue collies into multiple-dog homes.  Bringing the new dog into an unfamiliar "pack" can have its problems, and even having a stable, multiple-dog household can involve continual ups and downs in the dogs' relationships, just as happens in human families.

Modern study of dog behavior is now dispelling the myths that surround dog-pack dynamics and managing multiple dogs in a household.  Important books like Jean Donaldson's Culture Clash, Suzanne Clothier's Bones Would Rain From The Sky:  Deepening Our Relationship With Dogs, and Patricia McConnell's numerous books, the most recent of which is For the Love of a Dog:  Understanding Emotion in You and Your Best Friend, are teaching us a kinder and more understanding view of our dogs and the world that they experience.

Here are two myths and more enlightened approaches to deal with dog-dog relationships:

The myth of "dog aggressive:"  Dogs are predators; they have teeth and growl.  They do not speak a sophisticated language like humans.  Instead they communicate using their body language and a few simple sounds. 

Many people label a dog that appears to start a "fight" with another dog as "dog aggressive." A dog is aggressive only when he or she intends to cause another dog serious bodily harm.  Some behaviorists reserve "aggression" for behavior that results in another dog needing stitches.  Directed aggression by one dog on another usually involves deep wounds that break completely through the skin and expose muscle, and typically such wounds are inflicted on the back of the neck or on the front legs as a dog tries to defend itself.  A truly aggressive dog makes no noise and does not "inhibit" his bite. Within seconds, serious wounds on the victim dog occur, as if sliced by razor blades.

What most people call a "dog fight" is not even close to aggression. A dog "fight" is typically a loud argument.  Dogs try to bluff each other with the showing of teeth and "air snapping" clacking their teeth in the other dog's face), and they try to wrestle each other to the ground by flailing the other with their front feet to trip the other dog.  They also try to intimidate each other with loud growling and barking.  Usually saliva is all that is shed.  Occasionally one dog will accidentally hit its head on the other dog's tooth, or one dog will accidentally have its ear in the mouth of dog that is air snapping, or one dog might bite its own tongue or lip.  In those cases, some skin is nicked and some blood might be shed.  But rest assured, no aggression is involved in such "social fights."

IMPORTANT:  Do not, I repeat, do NOT, try to break up a dog fight with your body parts.  Use a chair to slide between the fighting dogs, or use a noose to slip over the dog that appears to be winning or started the fight, and carefully slide them apart.  Do not escalate the fight by joining in with screaming.  The dogs will not hurt each other but they can easily hurt you, as human skin is thin and has no protection. 

The myth of "dominance:"  Patricia McConnell first suggested that we refer to the "concept formerly known as dominance," playing on the artist Prince.  So many myths surround the typical layperson's view of dog dominance that she has written books on it.  I'll highlight a few things here:

There are really only degrees of status in dog packs and no clear linear hierarchy.  Dogs have complicated personalities and differ just like people.  We might best think of the dominant dog as the most confident dog, or the dog that can get all the resources he or she wants from the other dogs.  Such high-status dogs rarely feel a need to fight because they are secure in their high status and respected by all the other dogs. Occasionally a new dog will challenge the higher status dog in a group, in which case that dog is obligated to fight to affirm rank.

Most dog fights are started by status-seeking dogs. These are the new dogs in the pack, such as the dog you have just adopted from NCR.  This new dog may be young and insecure.  Status may be gained by starting fights to see if he or she can win.  Once the status-seeking dog is convinced that the resident higher status dogs are indeed in control, he or she will turn to the weaker (younger, elderly, or insecure) dogs in the pack to beat up on.  These dogs are bullies, if anything. They are not "dominant."

You should be the highest status pack member. You do not bully, alpha roll, scream at or intimidate the dogs to "show who's boss," like a status-seeking dog would. Instead, you quietly control all the resources like a secure, benevolent dictator, and you alone divvy out the resources to the dogs. If the new status-seeking dog tries to get resources on his or her own, you will calmly prevent that from occurring.  Your punishing any dog for "fighting" will cause more problems, not fewer.  Instead, put the bullying dog in a time out in a crate or quiet room until emotions cool down.