help weve had two jack russells since pups they are now 14 months old and one has started to attack the other weve had to send one to our daughters as it became so bad what can we do to stop it

I am assuming they are the same sex.

To be honest this is totally to be expected, and the best solution is to re-home one of them.  the alternative is to live for years with having to keep them apart using doors and gates, and the risk that someone will let them get together.

There are lost of topics if you search about having two dogs the same/close age together and why it isn't a good idea.

Terriers especially are generally reactive and often up for a scrap, so once they start fighting they will often keep at it until one or both are seriously hurt.

Hi Sue
You won't neccessarily need to re-home one of them.  My sister has two male Yorkshire Terrier brothers.  Neither has been castrated and they live in complete harmony.  They are now 6.
Your Russells are at the age where they are deciding between them who will be the top dog.  If neither is castrated you could help this by neutering which ever is the lower of the two (not always the one you think so might be worth doing some research to help you work it out or employ the aid of a behavioural specialist - if you neuter the wrong one it will get a lot worse!!).  You will then need to enforce the top ranking dog's status (again you can research how to do this but it generally involves feeding the top dog first, cuddles first, lead goes on first etc. very simple and easy to follow).
If you really love them both then it's worth doing this before re-homing.  If none of it works then yes you may have to accept that one might need to be re-homed but at least you can do so knowing that you tried first.
I know several people who have two brothers or two sisters together.  There are scraps and little fights to keep the status in place but no more really than to human brothers fighting and it's mostly just noise and who can sound the scariest.
Good luck.

I had two male dogs (a year apart in age) that I had to keep totally separate for 11 years as they did not get on. I neutered the lower ranking one but it made no difference whatsoever, the other one still went for him at every opportunity.

This may very well be hormonal & depending on the sex of the dogs, it may or may not be"fixable"

I have found very few bitches that start fighting intensively that can live together in harmony afterwards even if one is spayed, dogs can be a different kettle of fish altogether as there is chemical castration to investigate whether or not it is hormonal & to see if castrating one or both will resolve the situation

I agree it could go either way, castration isnt always the answer. I know from my own experience but to a greater extent with 2 much larger dogs. Re-homing was the only option (one was already castrated) with Family i will add. You might not want to admit it but its the best for both you and the dogs, you wont go grey with worry and they cant kill each other.

Louise

Sue,

I'd echo what brainless says. Your youngsters are identical in age, are they litter brothers or sisters? If so, that could be the root of your problem. If not, it is likely that they are just too close in age, size and weight to be able to sort themselves out and it will go on and on.

As brainless says, some terriers, particularly working strains of JRT and the like, can be highly quarrelsome and being terriers won't back off, especially if they think they are in with even a tiny chance of winning. There are obviously many exceptions, like Pattie's Yorkie boys, but they have probably had a bit of the vim and vinegar taken out down the years. Some JRT strains, because they are still bred to work, are as feisty as they come.

My hunch is that separating them for good may save you a lot of problems. The problem with neutering to sort out rank is that it is so easy to get it wrong, plus rank with dogs can be a very fluid affair, changing from situation to situation.

Sorry I cannot be more constructive. Best of luck.

Hi Sue,
It is best to muzzle the most dominant one of the 2 in the beginning, find out which one is the main starter of the aggression in the first place and muzzle that one, it will make them realise that they aren't so tough to start a fight in the first place. Finding what triggers the fights is the key where it be food or loves from you? Be vigilant when seeing the boys interact with one another- who is the one that has the stare going on, because a dog that stares with standing stock still is the one wanting to be respected if the other does not listen to those signals will launch into an attack ,of course them both being JR the other one will go back! Correcting the aggressive one for being bossy, you have to become more of a dominant force in the top dogs life, so even if they feel the need to have a go, they stop- listen to you saying... oui stop it and behave.

It is an ongoing thing I have had to do with my EBT with strange dogs he wants to have a pop at. Even now that he is 10, I think he is OK but realise I have to be one step ahead of him when he launches into his old naughty dominant state. Luckily he is fine with my pack at home.

Getting gates and separating them is a way to controlling the fighting by not letting them get at each other- but it will not make the issue  be resolved? For them to live in harmony is what you want to achieve. It like having 2 children fighting which you wouldn't put up with- they have to learn to be good with one another.
Best of luck..:-)

I think it is highly dangerous to muzzle one of them. The best thing is to seperate them and if you are adamant about keeping both then get in a good behaviourist. Someone here will tell you how to find one. If one dog is muzzled and they start to fight it could be badly injured and not able to protect itself.
I am no expert on dogs fighting as I have no problems with mine but I do know once started it is a real job to control.
Aileen

Merlot,

I completely agree about the muzzling. Please don't try this. Keep them separate and/or rehome one. If you are determined to keep both, then you will need an experienced behaviourist who understands terriers and who will garner enough detail about this situation to steer you correctly. Try the APBC or APDT.