Expert: Jill Connor, Ph.D. - 1/28/2008

Question
QUESTION: Why does this female dog attack and bite the male dogs ears and anywhere else she can get a hold of. Then later act like it never happened and lick his wounds.  The female is a red fox lab ( so the vet says) and the male is a purebred yellow lab.  The male is 5 and the female is 3and has been spayed. the male has not been neutered. Most encounters are in the kennel.  There's plenty space I need help quick  This behavior just started about 6 months ago. But happens quite frequently.  They do share the same dog house. I really appreciate some advice here. Thanks

ANSWER: It's obvious that these two dogs should NOT be forcibly sharing small spaces such as a dog house or narrow kennel run.  Whatever is driving her behavior, the male is obviously tolerating it because, even though she is spayed, the dog knows she's female.  Dogs will often accept enormous abuse from a bitch!  Her behavior is quite odd and it's impossible to diagnose cause without seeing the behavior and taking a full case history.  She may be referring aggression toward him.  In other words, something else might be setting off her anxiety (something in the environment, sound, visual stimuli, etc.) and she is referring her anxiety to the male.  She would benefit from a neurological evaluation to see if this is some sort of seizure related behavior.  Seizure disorders can develop at any time in a dog, but young adulthood is normally when they're first seen.  Seizures can cause all sorts of things, not just shaking; it could be a temporal lobe problem set off by light or sound.  Consult a qualified veterinarian and get her checked.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Can a spayed female give off odors that excite a male dog? Can a female that's been spayed have false pregnancy and become aggressive?  You're probably right about the same dog house but most of these attacks come outside the dog house.  The male does follow here around and try to mount her but I have actually seen her mount him. Do you know how stupid I feel asking these questions?  Thanks again for your help

Answer
DO NOT FEEL STUPID!  You might be an expert in something i don't know anything about!  Any male dog knows a female, even if they have been spayed.  Estrogen replacement occurs naturally in every female mammal, even humans.  Unfortunately, some dogs DO become aggressive after having been spayed or neutered.  This is quite rare but it does occur.  As for her mounting him and vice versa, there might be a rank situation occurring here where both dogs are temperamentally equal and are trying to obtain rank but honestly without hands on evaluation I can't answer yhour question.  Have the bitch seen and evaluated neurologically and if you can find a credentialed behaviorist in your area, pay him/her to do an in person evaluation.