# Play gets too aggressive



## kpence (Jun 25, 2009)

Help, I have two goldens, 2 yr old female (first dog) and our second one, is 1 yr old male, both have been spayed and neutered. They love to play but it seems that each time they are playing it seems to escalate into being way too rough and we end of having to separate them. When they are out in the yard I just let them "work it out" but it seems lately every night when the family is ready to hang out and relax, they start....and we are breaking up fights. I've tried separating them, one in the kitchen, one in the den, or both in the kitchen together but away from the family (that stops it) but then starts back up again when we all come back together. 
I tried yelling at them, separating them, etc but nothing is putting a stop to this. 
My female is typically the more aggressive one and I've even found a couple marks on my male's neck recently that are probably bite marks from the female. Thoughts, thanks for the help!


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## Braccarius (Sep 8, 2008)

*EDIT* I though this would see more responses then it has recieved. So I was rather short in my first response.

When my two are being over zealous or playing too roughly I take that as a queue that they have built up energy you can burn off. Taking them to a park or playing fetch or going for a walk is going to reduce the intensity they play at or eliminate it all together. The more tired they are the less they're going to be frenetic at night. Also, what concerns me a zing is you said it was a fight... are they actually fighting/snarking or are they just playing? 

A good thing to do if you can't get out and exercise enough to burn off excess energy during the day is wear them out mentally. Puzzle feeders that get the dog to interact help a lot. You can have a dog kicking around a kong wobbler for an hour trying to get treats and that'll eliminate some more inactivity (which causes boredom which causes play fights). Chews (bully sticks), Nylabones, Kongs are also going to be your friend. They can't bicker back and forth or play roughly when they are busy gnawing on things. 

Last but not least you can separate or put one in a crate and alternate. This will give you some calm one on one time with each dog on a different night and give you a chance to bond with them individually. A caveat however, if they do have excess energy (which is what I'm assuming) this could very easily make things worse for when they are both out of the crate. If I crate Miri when she gets out of the crate she is a ballistic missle flying all over the place.


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## Braccarius (Sep 8, 2008)

!!!!!!!!!bump!!!!!!!!!!!


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

I would say it also agree it depend on how much exercise they have had during the day. My guys play pretty rough and it seems to someone not used to it, they would be fighting not playing. 
When did the hard play start or has it always been like this? You are right to stop them when it seems to be getting out of hand and putting them in seperate places. Once they have settled down let them come back together and if it starts up again seperate again. Because if it is something new maybe they are trying to show who will be the dominate dog. Maybe if you keep breaking them up and seperating them they will finally get the idea that it means the playtime is over. 
Reddogs will probably have the best advice.


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## Oaklys Dad (Dec 28, 2005)

My boys play pretty rough but I try to get them to keep a toy between them.


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## kpence (Jun 25, 2009)

*Thanks!*

Actually they usually get plenty of excercise and that doesn't seem to make a difference. We go to the park, walk 2 miles in the neighborhood, etc. This is the first time we have had 2 dogs, so the rough play, etc is new to our family. But this is not something new, its been going on for a long time, I'm just getting tired of it. I really do think it starts out, one gets bored, wants to play, then it gets too rough from there. 
As far as the chew toys or kongs, goes....well my 1 yr old male isn't allowed anything except something called a "real bone" which they sell at the pet supply store. When he was 6 mts he had emergency abdominal surgery to remove a large piece of a solid plastic Kong type of chew toy that was thought to be "golden proof". I was watching him in the kitchen and saw it happen, just couldn't get to him quick enough before he swallowed it. Several wks later it became stuck in his intestines. Very scary for all of us!
I guess more than anything I would love someone to tell me whats too rough and suggestions on breaking the habit that they are doing each evening. 
Thanks!!


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

I have only one Golden but have to say there's something about the evening when we just want to hang out. Penny sits in front of us staring at us to do something or she starts biting my feet or throwing her toys at us. She does this year round, even in the summer when she's been out all day and active. Don't know what it is. But when 8:00 rolls around, you can just about set your watch by her. Better than when she was a pup: the nonsense started at 3 in the afternoon and didn't end until 9 p.m. I know what you mean about 'tired of it'.:smooch:


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

Have they been through obedience training? Our sire's owner has a command "Settle" when the dogs get rowdy. They immediately go lie down. We have always just said "Knock it off" when our boys got too rough and they stopped.


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## beauindie (Aug 20, 2009)

This evening play thing is really strange isn't it? Indie and Noah have developed a delightful little habit of sneaking off to our family room where they then proceed to take all the cushions off the sofas and make themselves a big soft play area! You can hear them growling(play) and sneezing away , indie gets this funny look on his face before they do it, he stares at Noah and it seems like he is calling him out to play!


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Maybe they are going through a stage of trying to work out a pack order and will sort of get over it? Not that that is helpful at the moment. . . Dogs practice something called "splitting" when play gets out of hand, in which a third dog walks straight between the maniacs. I do this with my dogs if my oldest Finn doesnt do it first- calmly walk between, and then give everyone the down command. If they then return to rough-housing, it is crate time for twenty minutes.


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## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

Years ago, after our obedience training ended, we would let our dogs play. This was a mixture of labs, rotties, and goldens, all relatively young. What we saw happening was that the play would escalate. My wimpy goldens stayed right out of it, but the labs and the rotties were over the top and headed for a dog fight... The key is to stop the play before it escalates which is something you can do. I have observed my matriarch who hates conflict, pick up a squeaky toy and get between 2 dogs that are playing too roughly. We believed that if we let our dogs continue on that course then we were allowing them to practice bad behavior. That being said, I have alot more than 2 goldens in my house. And, I, too experience quite a bit of commotion at night. Oddly, my husband says they only do it when I am around!


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## Tanyac (Jun 18, 2008)

I think the key element here is the age of the dogs. They are both very young still and likely to be having that last minute burst of energy before settling down. The younger of the two, being male especially, is probably also being put in his place by the older female.

In our house, the oldest is Obi (Male) 5 yrs, Izzie (female) 4 yrs, and Flo (Female) 4 months. Izzie is the boss, but Flo has learned to play gently most of the time with her, but Obi is fair game for anyone to rough house with. Poor boy, sometimes he's got the 2 girls both wrestling him at the same time .

Anyhow, I've been practicing "that's enough!" when it gets out of hand. If that doesn't work, I put the pup in one room and the others in another, just until she settles. 

I don't think you'll completley stop them playing (if that is what is happening) as they're both young. Hopefully they'll settle down as they get more mature.

Unfortunately, Golden Retrievers seem to be extremely rough when playing, although ours often will be seen in a doggy pile with all legs in the air...lol!

This picture was taken last when Lexi from Izzie's first litter came out for a walk... I wouldn't be too worried about growling and showing teeth, but only you know if it is real aggression, or just rough play.


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## Braccarius (Sep 8, 2008)

I have two that play very rough with each other. I have stepped in and redirected them both to various items quite a bit in an effort to tame their behaviour. Harley will grab Miri by the scruff or ear and fling her to the ground rather roughly.... but to be honest she's no better than he is. She'll grab tail fur and swing like tarzan or an ear and shake her head violently. 

They have never hurt each other yet, though sometimes I wonder how they've avoided killing each other. Lately, I've been letting it go. What normally happens is they end up rolling around on the ground with one chewing on the other... then they reverse. The only thing that worries me is a leg injury or an inadvertant sprain. If you're worried about whether or not its a legitimate fight or not, listen for snorting or sneezing. 

Also, I'll try to get a video of my two going at it and post it for you on this thread tonight.


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## NuttinButGoldens (Jan 10, 2009)

I go through this with my guys too.

I've kinda learned what to watch for, and I step in a little earlier than I used to.

It's really funny how it always seems to come out of nothing. There's rarely a toy in sight, and it always starts out as usual play.

I call it "The Spin Cycle" 



kpence said:


> Help, I have two goldens, 2 yr old female (first dog) and our second one, is 1 yr old male, both have been spayed and neutered. They love to play but it seems that each time they are playing it seems to escalate into being way too rough and we end of having to separate them. When they are out in the yard I just let them "work it out" but it seems lately every night when the family is ready to hang out and relax, they start....and we are breaking up fights. I've tried separating them, one in the kitchen, one in the den, or both in the kitchen together but away from the family (that stops it) but then starts back up again when we all come back together.
> I tried yelling at them, separating them, etc but nothing is putting a stop to this.
> My female is typically the more aggressive one and I've even found a couple marks on my male's neck recently that are probably bite marks from the female. Thoughts, thanks for the help!


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## jimla (Oct 9, 2008)

Tanyac said:


> Unfortunately, Golden Retrievers seem to be extremely rough when playing, although ours often will be seen in a doggy pile with all legs in the air...lol!


It took me a while to get used to the rough golden play. A neighbor observed our two playing and was amazed that they always play that way. Elliot and Roxy do the doggy pile thing too!



Braccarius said:


> They have never hurt each other yet, though sometimes I wonder how they've avoided killing each other. Lately, I've been letting it go. What normally happens is they end up rolling around on the ground with one chewing on the other... then they reverse. The only thing that worries me is a leg injury or an inadvertant sprain. If you're worried about whether or not its a legitimate fight or not, listen for snorting or sneezing.


As long as they take turns about who is on the bottom, I let them go at it. The snorting and sneezing is a good play indicator. When Roxy starts rowering and acting angry, I tell them "that's enough" and split them apart.


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