Expert: Jannie Balliett - 5/30/2010

Question
We have a 8 and half year old brindle boxer male. He is very loved and a very loving dog who is great with children, people and has heaps of patience with small dogs. My question is that on occasions when in the park he loves to go up to all dogs for a smell and play/run. However at times he seems to be very wary of bogs his size or bigger. He stands very still in a stance and on edge watching what they are doing. Then depending on how he feels he may try and be dominant over them which seems like he is showing them he is the Alpha male. This only ever happens with big dogs and never with small dogs. If there is a fight he will run and try to get involved. Recently at the local park that we walk to every day, there was over 10 different sorts of dogs all playing happily and so was he until one of the dogs set him off. The dog was a lot bigger and it seemed like a lot of noise but a fight broke out. I couldn't stop him and he did not listen to my command to stop. He is very obedient to a stage where he listens to most of my commands but not when he is in a fight. Please can you advise me of how I can tell he is about to fight and the reason why /how to stop him in this event?

Answer
It is a "meet and greet" when they approach and smell each other. If the other dog is showing and displaying signs of aggression or dissatisfaction, not being social, then yours will do the dominance stance which portrays that "if you mess with me, I will retaliate." It isn't being alpha- just reaction to the reaction of the other dog.

As far as running to a fight- he is a protector personality and wants to stop the fight. Some dogs have that personality-type and see the fight and know it is not socially acceptable and will try to stop it.

You more than likely will not be able to control him in a fight. They have a mind-set and do not hear anything else- but their attention is on the fight.

If you cannot control that, then I suggest keeping him on a leash or have a male around to break him up.

He should be physically pushed down on his side into a submissive position and held there for a fw minutes to calm down and understand you or the male helping you (a husband?) is the alpha and to be heard. And, that fighting is not acceptable behavior.

Mothers make their pups submissive when they do something wrong.