> How can I get the other 2 threads locked so that no one is confused?

Admin might be able to help but if you don't add anything new they fall to the bottom of the lists anyway.  Locking them doesn't mean they won't still be read though.  Many contributors will view posts to get a feel for your current situation before commenting as it usually saves duplicating advice.

thats fine just didn't want to end up posting on 3 threads about 1 issue lol

I don't need advice on how to manage dogs that fight as we have covered the fact that I misread the situations before and these are not dogs that are fighting at all. I merely would like some information in whether this display was a dominant one - I have no concerns over what happened it was a telling off and the eldest backed down straight away as we left them to it rather than intervening and grabbing collars (although we were ready to intervene had it not be just an argument)

To be fair I ony skimmed a couple of post as I didn't have time to do more as I'm busy, so sorry if I was going over stuff that has been covered but I was just trying to help.  The same still applies though we are getting snippets of information and you can not expect someone to say if something is one thing or another based on one particular behaviour/action in one particular situation.  If the confrontation which is what you are describing, growling leading to them getting physical (paws on the other dog) is caused by resource guarding, then it resource guarding that is the problem not dominance and resource guarding is caused by insecurity, fear of losing the thing that they most want or find valuable at that particular moment in time, again very far from dominance.

Given that you don't need advice on management and want answers that I don't think are appropriate to give over the net with limited and varied information I will leave others to give you advice!

> To be fair I ony skimmed a couple of post as I didn't have time to do more as I'm busy, so sorry if I was going over stuff that has been covered but I was just trying to help.

I do appreciate the help but I seem to keep going over the issue of them "fighting" which as I have said is not the case but my mis-interpretation of the situation. I started a new thread so that this would no longer be the case as i do appreciate that the initial posts will confuse people (I was confused myself before this behaviourist ;-) )

> If the confrontation which is what you are describing, growling leading to them getting physical (paws on the other dog) is caused by resource guarding, then it resource guarding that is the problem not dominance and resource guarding is caused by insecurity, fear of losing the thing that they most want or find valuable at that particular moment in time, again very far from dominance.
>

Thanks thats great (well not great that it is resource guarding but great that it isn't anything else)

> Given that you don't need advice on management and want answers that I don't think are appropriate to give over the net with limited and varied information I will leave others to give you advice!

The management side of things I rely on my behaviourist but as tonight was thr first time we had left them to it and the youngest was over the top of the eldest I wondered if perhaps we had another issue but it would appear not so thats a relief. I know I over-react to the situation and have been told so by our behaviourist as apparently it is normal for dogs to tell each other off and it would only be a concern if they actually did fight and we were told in this case blood would be drawn and we wouldn't be able to simply tell them to stop

> it is normal for dogs to tell each other off and it would only be a concern if they actually did fight and we were told in this case blood would be drawn and we wouldn't be able to simply tell them to stop>

I have obviously misundertood your posts and related your problems to those I had with mine when I had to re-home 1.  Blood was definitely drawn - Heidi has not any obvious scars, but mis-coloured regrowth of hair on her ears particularly, where she was badly bitten in a 'resource guarding' fight.  There were many times when blood was drawn.  My situation was more complicated than yours as I had 3 dogs and one much older, but, this made my choice of who to re-home easier as I would not risk my older girl becoming the focus of the aggression that may have been transferred to her if our other, younger, girl had been re-homed.

> If the confrontation which is what you are describing, growling leading to them getting physical (paws on the other dog) is caused by resource guarding, then it resource guarding that is the problem not dominance and resource guarding is caused by insecurity, fear of losing the thing that they most want or find valuable at that particular moment in time, again very far from dominance.>

Wholeheartedly agree - I was completely offended when reading about the successful re-homing of our little cocker that she was such a fearful little thing who had then been re-habilitated.  Trying to be objective now and after reading this - it sort of makes sense.  It is the fear that causes the aggression and definitely not dominance - very easy to confuse the two.

> I have obviously misundertood your posts

Heidi, it was not your mis-understanding but mine, you were giving me good advice on the situation *I* was describing, it was me at fault in my interpretation :-)