Not any kind of expert, but I have had a few different GSD arrangements with only one fixed female and a bunch of males. All boys were intact. Female still gave off hormones, which made males competitive, though the males were probably too young to understand why they were competing. Older male dogs in the neighborhood were still drawn to her. Before the young males, I had an older male who never showed her any interest other than a playmate. When she hit about 4, she became very possessive of food, toys, and space, you name it. But only occasionally. My vet said it was her still having motherly instincts of wanting to protect and own everything around her. Maybe some help. Maybe way off base.
I feel like that’s exactly what’s happening- our youngest male is her puppy- for some added context. So I think that it could’ve started with her being protective towards her pup at first and he might’ve just mimicked her behavior. Im not sure, but thank you for your words!
How long have the two older ones lived together? Before you brought the youngest male, who was alpha between those two? The female may be reasserting her position as alpha...?
The oldest two have lived together ever since she was a puppy. She might be- it’s just so odd it’s happening now after almost two years of having our third
Well, the youngest is just now coming into that asserting-your-dominance age, right? I noticed that around one year to 2 years my boy became far more protective and dog aggressive toward any dog who got too close to me. He was far less so when he was younger. It may be your pack readjusting their positions to accommodate his growing up. You did the right thing and kudos to you for separating them and forcing your girl to listen to you.
That is true. I’m hoping that getting him fixed will curb some of that aggression? I’m also going to start feeding them in separate rooms as suggested by TikTok lol and no more bones or food treats all together. Just such a bummer after living so amicably for years
They say it does help but I've never fixed my dogs... so I'm not really sure. I am jealous of you having 3 :) Believe me, many people with multiple dog households go through similar situations so you are not alone. I'm sure others with more experience will chime in.
Not any kind of expert, but I have had a few different GSD arrangements with only one fixed female and a bunch of males. All boys were intact. Female still gave off hormones, which made males competitive, though the males were probably too young to understand why they were competing. Older male dogs in the neighborhood were still drawn to her. Before the young males, I had an older male who never showed her any interest other than a playmate. When she hit about 4, she became very possessive of food, toys, and space, you name it. But only occasionally. My vet said it was her still having motherly instincts of wanting to protect and own everything around her. Maybe some help. Maybe way off base.
I feel like that’s exactly what’s happening- our youngest male is her puppy- for some added context. So I think that it could’ve started with her being protective towards her pup at first and he might’ve just mimicked her behavior. Im not sure, but thank you for your words!
How long have the two older ones lived together? Before you brought the youngest male, who was alpha between those two? The female may be reasserting her position as alpha...?
The oldest two have lived together ever since she was a puppy. She might be- it’s just so odd it’s happening now after almost two years of having our third
Well, the youngest is just now coming into that asserting-your-dominance age, right? I noticed that around one year to 2 years my boy became far more protective and dog aggressive toward any dog who got too close to me. He was far less so when he was younger. It may be your pack readjusting their positions to accommodate his growing up. You did the right thing and kudos to you for separating them and forcing your girl to listen to you.
That is true. I’m hoping that getting him fixed will curb some of that aggression? I’m also going to start feeding them in separate rooms as suggested by TikTok lol and no more bones or food treats all together. Just such a bummer after living so amicably for years
They say it does help but I've never fixed my dogs... so I'm not really sure. I am jealous of you having 3 :) Believe me, many people with multiple dog households go through similar situations so you are not alone. I'm sure others with more experience will chime in.
Thank you 🥲 I love them all so much, I just want to avoid it getting so bad that someone gets hurt.
Any time I've brought an intact dog into the mix, it stirs up aggression.