# Male & Female Shar Pei fighting



## stan c (Jul 21, 2012)

Advice needed, we have two Shar pei's who have lived together for 5 months we already had the male and got the bitch for companionship both dog's Neutered.

They have been play fighting and getting on well with out a problem until last they started fighting for real the male came off far worst he has puncher wounds on his back and neck the bitch nothing.

I was lead to believe that it is unusual that a male & female dogs fight?

My questions are, 
Will this happen again ? 
What can we do to prevent it ? 
Should we re-home the bitch ? 
Thanks
Stan


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## smokeybear (Oct 19, 2011)

stan c said:


> Advice needed, we have two Shar pei's who have lived together for 5 months we already had the male and got the bitch for companionship both dog's Neutered.
> 
> They have been play fighting and getting on well with out a problem until last they started fighting for real the male came off far worst he has puncher wounds on his back and neck the bitch nothing.
> 
> ...


It may.

Interrupt play fighting and implement time outs.

Cannot comment on rehoming as via the ether we cannot determine the frequency, ferocity etc of the behaviour and we need more information.


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## ClaireandDaisy (Jul 4, 2010)

No - you should find a good behaviourist from this site The APBC | Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors and follow their advice once they have personally observed the dogs` behaviour.


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## stan c (Jul 21, 2012)

They are male 27 months female 24 months both are usually well behaved no problems.


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

stan c said:


> Advice needed, we have two Shar pei's who have lived together for 5 months we already had the male and got the bitch for companionship both dog's Neutered.
> 
> They have been play fighting and getting on well with out a problem until last they started fighting for real the male came off far worst he has puncher wounds on his back and neck the bitch nothing.
> 
> ...


Personally I have found in the main, that males and females tend to take more cheek and liberties from each other then two same sexes will, generally they seem to be more tolerant, and usually it wont go past a growl, or bit of face pulling. Although some bitches will sometimes push their luck a bit. Doesnt mean though that it will never happen in every case as you found out.

If they are usually fine with each other and have been for 5mths, then are you sure that there wasnt a trigger or something that had happened different to usual. I know you have mentioned they play fight but usually without incident, but dont make it clear if this stemmed from usual play fighting.

If dogs set off and actually fight with injury there is often a trigger. The main triggers are usually, food, treats, toys, attention, confined spaces, and times of hyper excitement like visitors coming and leads coming out for walks. 
With food, it can be anything from eyeing up anothers bowl even when empty, approaching it or trying to lick it, to pieces of food dropped in preparation human or dog when they both go for it at once. Same with chews or toys, a discarded chew or toy when they both go for it can set them off. Owners giving attention and over fussing one in sight of the other can sometimes set them off. Confined spaces, where one has to pass closely or tries to step over the other, or they try to get through dorways together especially if exciteable and hyper can cause it. Visitors coming, or even the door bell ringing can hype them up and in an excited state, they can jostle for position especially as mentioned in confined spaces which can start off snapping and snarling in competition. Dont know if any of these could have been the case, which may have sparked this fight. You certainly need to manage them in these situations now though and be aware that it can cause problems especially as they have had a fight causing injuries now.

To your questions
Will this happen again? No one on here can tell you, given the right triggers then quite possibly it could, depends also what sparked the last one. Certainly being aware of the most common triggers that can spark dogs off, and managing the situation and avoiding it should help. I wouldnt leave them alone together at the moment unsupervised until you have assessed the situation and have seen what happens over the next however how long.

What can you do to prevent it? As said be aware of triggers and manage it so it doesnt happen or reduces the likelyhood.

Should you rehome the bitch? Depends on if its going to keep happening and or/you cant sort out the problem. No one can say at this stage, especially without seeing the dogs and assessing them.

Depending on your level of experience and knowledge about dogs, if its limited then your best bet would likely be to get a professional assessment and hands on help with training and management if they think its needed.
I believe you have already had one good organisation mentioned that can help
another otherwise is CAPBT - COAPE Association of Pet Behaviourists and Trainers to find a behavioursist in your area.


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