# Interesting pack dynamics



## AcesWild (Nov 29, 2008)

Sounds really complicated...on one hand it's really kind of them to take fosters but on the other I feel like maybe they have too many dogs.


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## C's Mom (Dec 7, 2009)

That poor hound dog. Even if the houndog is unstable I don't think he deserves to be attacked like this - how on earth is this helpful to him? I think I'd be a little unstable too if I had 3 dogs ready to go off on me all the time and having to keep on the alert 24/7. Thank God the chi is separated from these dogs. 
If its true that these dogs never fight when not with a foster I would hope that the owner decides to stop fostering. What a stresful situation for a foster to be in - for all these dogs to be in. I'm no expert but if I were this owner I would be looking for ways to get these dog together.


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

I'm going to make a few suggestions to her. She loves her dogs and she is gone so much for work, I know it's hard for her to see things from non-biased point of view. For now, there is another very large family room downstairs and the hound will stay in there during the day so that we don't have to worry about a fight breaking out when nobody is there to break it up. I have already suggested in the past that a foster dog might be a large part of the problem. Hopefully after today she will see it.

I don't think the hound deserves to be attacked, but unfortunately he seems to bring it onto himself. He really does pester and bite at the other dogs. It's not like he's minding his own business and the dogs attack him. Again, I think that he just doesn't "get" it. Probably not socialize really well when he was a pup.

Yes, I was relieved when we did the original consult and she said the chi stayed upstairs. The chi is only about 3-4 lbs!


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## MurphyTeller (Sep 28, 2008)

How about some crates?


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

MurphyTeller said:


> How about some crates?


She doesn't want to crate them for that long of a period of time. I did suggest to Jay today when he called me that he put the hound in his crate for his own safety! I think having the hound separated from them will stop the issues, especially if she finds a new foster home for the foster dog.


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## C's Mom (Dec 7, 2009)

Happy to hear that the hound is going to be separated during the day.



fostermom said:


> I don't think the hound deserves to be attacked, but unfortunately he seems to bring it onto himself. He really does pester and bite at the other dogs. It's not like he's minding his own business and the dogs attack him. Again, I think that he just doesn't "get" it. Probably not socialize really well when he was a pup.


I knew of a dog very much like this. The owners loved him but found him a great new family where he would be the only dog in the house. 

I wish this owner much luck in finding some harmony within her dog pack.


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## sharlin (Feb 26, 2007)

Sounds more like the hound is the Omega in his regular pack environment and then tries to shed that role when a foster comes in. Although it's pretty non-Omega behaviour to be a pest to start with. But, once a pack goes after an Omega member it can be fairly violent.


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

She leaves the foster dogs loose with her pack while she is gone to work every day? That is really a dangerous situation. I would really encourage her to seperate her hound, and also keep any foster dogs seperated from the group while she is gone too. She is setting the dogs up for a terrible fight. I would never leave a foster dog loose with my dogs when I'm gone, I simply don't know them well enough to know for sure they will be ok unsupervised.


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

I do leave a foster alone with my dogs, but only after I have a grip on their personality and interactions. With the puppies, I obviously don't do that, not only for housetraining reasons, but for their safety.

The hound will be separated. She just emailed me to say he was okay, just several puncture wounds so he is on antibiotics. 

Yeah, I thought that the hound was the bottom of the pack, too. Maybe he hopes to move up one little slot while there's a foster there. 

Jay won't be able to walk well tomorrow. He pulled a muscle while rushing in to break it up. Poor guy!


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## Bender (Dec 30, 2008)

I would second keeping the hound separate, if she doesn't like the crate then an xpen or a bedroom would be a good idea. Same for any fosters until they're settled and so on. That's just me though. It may be the hound is unsettled and is supposed to be on the bottom rung but figures he's going to get one over on the 'new guy' by dominating him and that sets off a chain reaction. In any case I wouldn't leave the hound and foster dogs together with the main group alone for sure.

Lana


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

Bender said:


> I would second keeping the hound separate, if she doesn't like the crate then an xpen or a bedroom would be a good idea. Same for any fosters until they're settled and so on. That's just me though. It may be the hound is unsettled and is supposed to be on the bottom rung but figures he's going to get one over on the 'new guy' by dominating him and that sets off a chain reaction. In any case I wouldn't leave the hound and foster dogs together with the main group alone for sure.
> 
> Lana


I agree. She just emailed me and will be buying him a huge crate and that's where he will be when there is nobody there, for his safety. It's scary to think this could happen when nobody's there. What would happen to him? They tend to be really excited when they hear Jay come in, and I am sure that excitement doesn't help anything, but there is nothing we can do to stop them from being excited when we haven't even gotten downstairs to where they are.


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

I wonder if anything at all happens when no one is there. It's impossible to say but I wonder if the hound pesters when people are there as a way of getting some attention. Ill-conceived way to go about it, but seems to be all he knows.

I'm relieved that he will be separated. Maybe one of the most stable dogs can be eventually be put with him to help balance him and keep him company. It would seem in a space that large she could cross fence.


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

I think the hound is trying to get attention, you're right. 

He was kept separately yesterday and the foster was fed outside and everyone was much calmer. Jay said there wasn't even any barking when he came in. Usually the hound starts baying and all the other dogs get worked up and start barking, too.


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