I have some King Charles Spaniel problems please help.

[Stellabrad]

Hello everyone,

First off if this thread would be better somewhere else please let me know and i will change it over to a different/more beneficial destination. Anyway that being said my name is Brad and it going to be good chatting to everyone, I have 2 King Charles Spaniel's and they are beautiful one black, brown and white and the other ginger and white they are a couple of beautiful amazing dogs. I got Charlie the black, brown and white Spaniel about 5 years back and what an amazing dog he has been. Then about 3 months ago a women brought another Spaniel round to my house and it had just been found in the middle of the road so i adopted him all scruffy and thin, after weeks of treatment and love he was back on his feet and a happy dog again. But the new dog Lucky and my older dog Charlie are fighting constantly and not nicely i mean wanting to eat each other, its Lucky (The new ginger and white spaniel) that is starting all the fights and is getting really violent. I would like to address and fix this problem and keep both dogs if possible. Any suggestions, tips, advice and information would be greatly appreciated.

Example image below (trust me not my dogs)


Thanks guys

[MagiKelly]

Hi Brad

I am no expert in this so take anything I say with a pinch of salt. I have had two dogs in the past and do at the moment but any time I have it has been a female and male combination, which I believe to be less of an issue. My first thought would be are both dogs neutered? If not I think this may be part of the problem and perhaps one of the solutions. The only problem being that when a dog is older it can be a bit set in it's ways and neutering does not have the same calming effect you can get with a younger dog.

As you don't know the history of your new dog we don't know how long it has had a hard life for. It will probably take a good while before it is comfortable and confident enough to not be defensive / protective / aggressive about its new found comforts and love.

I watched lots of different dogs for friends when I have had my own dog and one thing I always make a point of is establishing early on that I am the one who is in charge. I've found when they both know I'm the one who will decide who eats when, what order we go out or in the door etc there is less room for them to squabble with each other as there is less room for them to be influencing each others actions.

[Stellabrad]

This is mind resting! at least they have a chance to get accompanied with each other. i have never though about neutering my dogs before due to the pain and the loss of a serious part of their body?? its something i will have to sit down and think about.

Thanks for the advice

See if anything else pops up

[MagiKelly]

I've only had one dog that was not neutered when it was young. It was a friendly enough dog but if there was a bitch in heat within a mile or so he would run off and not be seen for a week or so. It showed me how driven by hormones they can be. As I say though if it is an older dog the neutering may not have a big effect. As I have no plans to breed from any of my pets it is just something I would do as a matter of course for the health benefits and the advantages with temperament.

Other than that I would just keep working on making sure they feel secure and know that you will not tolerate them fighting or showing any aggression to each other. Steppimg in to give them a telling of at the least sign of antagonism to the other dog may help to calm things down over time.

[Blacktimberwolf]

HI Brad, welcome the forum.
Regarding your bruisers, It's always hazardous to give advice without seeing the whole picture but it sounds to me just a battle to be the top dog. Equality doesn't exist in the dog world & being of the same sex, there's gotta be one more dominant than the other. Generally in this situation it is best to let them sort it out themselves, if you break up a fight each time one starts, you're preventing a hierachy from establishing which is necessary for them to live in harmony together & because of the frustration, each fight will become more violent as the position of each dog remains unclear.
Hierachical dog fights can be very alarming, but they are highly codified & serious injury is rare unless both dogs are dominant, but it may be too late now to allow them to establish a hierachy doggy style..Castration won't help in this situation as it's not hormonal.
You could ease the situation by giving the more dominant of the two (it should be obvious) priority over the other, such as feeding, putting on lead, greeting/stroking etc. first, .in this kind of scenario, it is common for owners to privilege the dog they've had the longest, since they feel they are letting it down otherwise but unless it is the more dominant, such behaviour will only worsen the situation. If the newcomer is the top dog, then giving him the privileges of his rang will considerably lessen the tension & if he growls at or tries to intimidate your older dog, let him, he is merely affirming his dominance.......don't let it break out into a fight though in your presence. Once the hierachy is clear & it may be that your older dog is the less dominant, he will be much happier.

[Stellabrad]

Thanks for the reply's guys it looks like there is a chance for them to get along. Unfortunately the new Spaniel to the family is the more violent/dominant dog so i will have to let them fight it out a couple of times first off she who wins, see if they create an understanding if not then i will try the feeding, greeting, putting on the lead etc. Hopefully i will get there in the end. I will get back to you tomorrow because i can guarantee the fight will go down pretty soon.

Thanks guys

[Blacktimberwolf]

I'm pretty certain once they've sorted out who is who, they will be the best of buddies. If a fight does break out, make sure you're not in the same room as them,( your presence may give the underdog extra motivation if he feels you're backing him up ) count to twenty & if they're still at it, put an end to the fight but don't tell them off. The fact that your older spaniel, Charlie, has accepted another adult male into your 'pack' shows that he is a pretty laid back fella & probably won't mind submitting to Lucky.
Incidently, do the dogs fight when they're alone or only in your presence.?

[Stellabrad]

When i'm not at home i keep the separate and when i am home they fight either in my presence more i would say, and food time is the worst. They din't fight last night i might put them in the kitchen together and let them sort it out on the 20 second time line. This makes sense let them sort out who is boss.

Thanks guys i will get back to you shortly

[Blacktimberwolf]

when i am home they fight either in my presence more i would say,

Yeah, thought so. I'm not sure separating them when you're not there is a good idea though, it's doubtful they'll rip each other apart but you know them better than me. Do they play together at all. ?

and food time is the worst.

In these circumstances, squabbles will usually start only at key moments & feeding time is a major key factor. Feeding the chief first, i.e. putting his bowl on the ground first & then feed the other one on the opposite side of the kitchen(?) will help the situation. Don't let the top dog go near the other until he has finished eating & then they will most likely go & lick each other's bowl perfectly calmly.
Which of the dogs eats the fastest, my money's on Charlie ?

[Stellabrad]

Hello everyone,

First off if this thread would be better somewhere else please let me know and i will change it over to a different/more beneficial destination. Anyway that being said my name is Brad and it going to be good chatting to everyone, I have 2 King Charles Spaniel's and they are beautiful one black, brown and white and the other ginger and white they are a couple of beautiful amazing dogs. I got Charlie the black, brown and white Spaniel about 5 years back and what an amazing dog he has been. Then about 3 months ago a women brought another Spaniel round to my house and it had just been found in the middle of the road so i adopted him all scruffy and thin, after weeks of treatment and love he was back on his feet playing with his dog toys, a happy dog again. But the new dog Lucky and my older dog Charlie are fighting constantly and not nicely i mean wanting to eat each other, its Lucky (The new ginger and white spaniel) that is starting all the fights and is getting really violent. I would like to address and fix this problem and keep both dogs if possible. Any suggestions, tips, advice and information would be greatly appreciated.

Example image below (trust me not my dogs)


Thanks guys

They finally and a fight/3 fights last night it lasted about 1 minute a pop and it turns out i think Charlie has taken the poison as the alpha dog. We will see how the next week or two goes... I will start feeding charlie first and lucky at the other side of the kitchen, hopefully it will all start to come together!!!

Thanks guys you will get an update shortly!!