I kind of want to throw her in with my mom's dogs and say "get used to it!" lol. That's one good thing with my mom's rescues. They sort of have to get used to other dogs since she has about 7 of her own. Dog fights do break out every now and then, but it's pretty rare.

I kind of think she's better off with a dog like Drake who won't fight back. I bet she'd get into a nasty fight with Siku if she ever tried that with her. I dunno about Elara. Elara likes to piss off dogs and then jump out of the way just in time to not get bit, only to jump right back in and poke the dog some more. She's such a little butt head. She thinks it's so much fun!

Something very interesting just happened. So, they have been closed up in their crates facing each other for an hour now. We decided to let them out and take them both outside at the same time, but on different leashes and one of us leading each. Chris and Koda went out first, then Drake and I. They did their business, and then Koda came up to him, sniffed, and wagged her tail. I couldn't believe it, no bared teeth, snarling, anything. He was tentative, but didn't seem fearful. He kind of ignored her and would walk around a little, she would follow and sniff him. I was so excited. Then we came back inside...the snarling and teeth showing started again. We scolded her and she was sitting on the floor with Chris. I got on the couch with some treats and Drake went to climb up on the couch. As soon as he put a leg on it, Koda bared her teeth and started to lunge at Drake. I was able to jump in between them before she attacked him, but she was going to attack him because he was going to get on the couch...HER couch that she had been laying on with my husband earlier this afternoon. What a bitch!! lol.

So Chris put her leash on and made her lay there while Drake jumped on the couch by me...after he had leashed her she didn't growl or try to lunge at him, but she stared him down the whole time. It's unbelievable how territorial she is!! And this isn't even her house, it was his first!! Advice on this?? I don't know if it sheds light on the situation at all...

When I have issues with multi dogs, i like to walk them for a couple miles together and then work with them. Its going to be a long road to get to what you want because of both dogs backgrounds but I wish you the best of luck again.

From what experiences you are having is making me have second thought about getting a second husky or dog my hubby doesnot want a second dog.

I guess we will be waiting for awhile now.

She sounds like she needs to be knocked down a few pegs, send her down to me! She'll be cured in a week!! Lol!!

If that were my new rescue dog and they were acting like that I wouldn't allow them on anything at all that they could potentially try and claim. I would keep a leash on them at all times. If they got on the couch I would get up and say off and pull them off the couch via the leash of they didn't respond. NILIF to the extreme. They don't get anything without seriously working for it. She may well be "alpha" over Drake... But alpha doesn't mean bully, and that's what she's being.

This def. sounds like she is trying to show Drake who is boss. It's like she is coming into you're home and claiming everything! I would do like Kevin suggested and walk them both together until both are good and tired (especially Koda)! She needs some serious rules laid down on her. She is so pretty, I guess looks can be deceiving lol.
Tethering her wouldn't hurt! My trainer got a heavy weight and put a short leash on it so it couldn't be moved.
Two of my males get into it every now and then (once actually this morning). You just have to stay calm and show them who is boss (YOU). Once they realize you are in charge and that what she is doing in unacceptable, she'll cut it out (at least for the most part until she starts testing).

You certainly do find the most interesting dogs!

I can't do a super long post or give at least an insightful one at this point - I'm on the phone and it sucks reading and replying.

Hopefully I'll get to use the comp again or I'll talk with you soon! Maybe we can brainstorm lol

Thank you ALL for helping me through my mini emotional breakdown. Whew, the night did NOT go as smoothly as I had hoped. Everyone is in bed (except me...I hate college) and now maybe I can get some things done!

Thank you all for your amazing advice (as always). I don't know what I would do without you guys...probably pull all of my hair out and get admitted into the hospital for crazies lol.

Anyway, we have decided that we will give her some time to settle in to our home before making a decision to keep her or give her back to the foster. She's on high stress, she just handles it differently than Drake did. Instead of cowering in the corner and hiding in his crate, she feels the need to be Queen Bitch and put everyone in their place...Well, I have news for her. I am Queen Bitch and she just has to realize who's in charge, lol. I am hoping that with time, getting settled in from another move, and some firm discipline that she will learn who's boss and chill the eff out lol.

Of course I will keep you all posted and you will be hearing from me as soon as the next crisis occurs!

That's a girl! Show that biotch who the real biotch is!
I'm sure everything will be just fine! Try and post a video up!! I'm so excited to see this pretty girl!

Quote :

She sounds like she needs to be knocked down a few pegs, send her down to me! She'll be cured in a week!! Lol!!

If that were my new rescue dog and they were acting like that I wouldn't allow them on anything at all that they could potentially try and claim. I would keep a leash on them at all times. If they got on the couch I would get up and say off and pull them off the couch via the leash of they didn't respond. NILIF to the extreme. They don't get anything without seriously working for it. She may well be "alpha" over Drake... But alpha doesn't mean bully, and that's what she's being.

I think what Kristina said is very well said and I think it's a great idea!



as an aside - I think I must be the only person who sees that Drake's lack of confidence could still end up causing big problems down the road. Even with some serious rules being laid down for Koda - they still are only rules laid down by PEOPLE. Without Drake having any confidence (or very little) he can't set any rules for her in regards to himself which still allows her to bully him as he's more inclined to ignore her and a confrontation where she is very quick to start one.

I know a good majority of the time the rules work out and everything is happy and rainbows in the end - but I also know a lot of the time the other dog that is getting bullied at least has a decent amount of confidence in some respect and will eventually let the other dog know its tired of its crap. It just doesn't sound like Drake will ever do this.

Rules laid down by people doesn't always translate to rules for the other dog. I'm not trying to be a downer as I really wish/hope/pray that this works out!

It's a shame they didn't get off to a better start. Some problems are to be expected when you bring in a new dog, and on the plus side there wasn't any blood, but really she needs to be a role model for Drake.

Koda has also been through a lot of change lately, and it's possible she'll settle down once she realizes that she has enough food and other resources and doesn't need to fight for them. She could be guarding resources simply because she hasn't had any lately, or it could be an ingrained habit. So I think you're right to give it a few days and see if things improve. But the last thing you need is a dog that is going to make things harder for Drake. Hopefully she will respond to some consistent rules and boundaries.

Hey Rachel! I got your facebook message, but I was at a birthday party last night until late and couldn't respond. Here I am now though


First off, this situation sounds EXACTLY like my Koda and Hailey. Seriously. Hailey THE sweetest dog to people and usually to other dogs. When we first met her, she came up to us, licked our faces and rolled on her back. However, the moment we got her in the house, we had issues. She wouldn't let Koda NEAR her. Anytime he walked by, she's snarl and growl. Anytime he tried to play it ended up in a fight. And crazy fights that needed to be broken up with tufts of hair flying everywhere, them getting up on their hind legs, etc. We like to let the dogs work disputes out themselves as much as possible. It's their world and their language and they need to learn how to live in it. With the way she was acting, I seriously feared they'd never get along for a little while.

However, you need to understand where YOUR Koda is coming from. She's now been shuffled to two homes in a matter of weeks, with new people, new dogs and new smells. She doesn't have anything to call her own and she's doing her best to settle into a new situation, unsure of how long this one will last. She's going to be defensive and she has a right to be.

My advice: similar to Kristina's. Step up the NILIF and keep a leash on her if she's displaying ANY aggression towards you or you're afraid of breaking up something between her and Drake. Take ALL toys or anything she can guard away. Just let the two of them exist in the house together for a while.

With Koda and Hailey, after about a week of fighting multiple times a day, they started maybe fighting once a day... then a couple times a week, then once a week, then once a month, until I can't remember the last time they seriously fought. And look at them now... they are seriously inseparable!! That cuddle buddy picture was taken about 6 months after we got Hailey! You would never guess she wouldn't let him NEAR her when she first came to us!

So breathe... she needs time to settle in and your stress level doesn't help her relax. Tell your husband that he needs to calm down too. Take them on walks together. Give them one-on-one time. You'll see a difference soon Just breathe, be calm, and be patient

ETA: I really should sticky this.

Tori, THANK YOU for sharing this. We've been freaking out a little. It's so good to know that she will chill out and they'll slowly work things out. This morning was a little better.

I think Drake forgot everything that happened yesterday and bounded into the living room with her, tail wagging, and started trying to play. She SEEMED like she was playing, although she is more vocal and was making a low growl. But no snarling and no snapping. I'm taking that as a good sign.

She also hasn't bared her teeth at him today, which is what seemed the most vicious and mean yesterday. We shall see!!

She seems very possessive and territorial, and she LOVES my husband (the feeling is mutual). He told me this morning that he's worried she'll become possessive of us and our affection and it will hinder Drake's progress of approaching us for petting. Do you think that this possessiveness will ease up? Do you think this is a legitimate concern or one that will work itself out as we teach her that isn't acceptable behavior? He just wants to make sure we have the best situation possible to help Drake along...he's the reason we decided to get a second husky in the first place so we want to make sure we're doing right by him!

No problem Remember that she came with NOTHING that smells like her. Imagine being thrown into an environment with new people that you don't understand and NOTHING that is yours... you'd be scared and defensive too. Don't hold that against her. She is reacting the only way she knows how to protect herself.

YOU need to teach her that she is protected. How do you do that? By giving her CLEAR and CONSISTENT boundaries. Feed her last, put her last on the pecking order. YOU decide who gets attention, not the dogs. She doesn't get to be possessive of you because YOU give attention, she doesn't get to seek it. Dogs won't get defensive or possessive if they have a clear leader to follow and get direction from.

Awesome! I'm going to have my husband read this as soon as he gets back from his run. It's very helpful!

We've already done as Kristina said and haven't been allowing her on the furniture anymore until she understands it's not "hers". I'll update everyone later today to let you know how they're doing.

Tori is like the Husky Whisperer! Great advise!!

rnelsen wrote:

Awesome! I'm going to have my husband read this as soon as he gets back from his run. It's very helpful!

We've already done as Kristina said and haven't been allowing her on the furniture anymore until she understands it's not "hers". I'll update everyone later today to let you know how they're doing.

Just takes time Rachel! I'm sure they will be buddies soon!

Hayden_69 wrote:

Tori is like the Husky Whisperer! Great advise!!

Haha! Hardly But thank you

Koda wrote:

Hayden_69 wrote:

Tori is like the Husky Whisperer! Great advise!!

Haha! Hardly But thank you

Tori the Husky Whisperer and Kristina the superhero whose powers are husky language!

You girls really do give great advice!!!

Rachel, I told ya that speaking with Tori would make you feel more at ease and confident in the situation

I don't have the experience to give advice but I wanted to say I'm rooting for your family! Luckily, I have had lesser issues with adding Aspen to our pack but the few spats we did have really can be scary if you don't know what it all means. This just makes me wonder how many dogs get returned to the shelters and rescues because we don't understand why they react the way they do. Thankfully we were smart enough to come to the forum for advice. Nothing makes you feel better than to talk to ones who have been through it. Tori, I think you should make this a sticky as well!

Rachel, I know it's tough right now - because you're managing the situation with the dogs, your own anxiety and that of your husbands. I'm here, like Tori, to let you know it will pass. It sucks when you're in the middle of it but it helps so much to know there's an end! Like Tori said, it tapers off. The NILIF helps A LOT. Not letting her up on the furniture helps, too. This forum was very helpful in receiving advice and support! You've received great advice from Tori and Kristina.

The fact that she's ok everywhere but home is a good sign, she's just establishing the pack order at home. Our Chili was ruthless the first couple weeks! The rescue advised us on our situation and told us to let them fight it out, but not let him be a brat. A water spray bottle helps when he was nearing the "brat" stage.

Be careful not to tell her "no" when she's growling, because it may train her to not growl and just attack. Growling isn't bad, it's her setting boundaries with Drake by warning him. Redirect her growling to remind her who's boss - we tell Chili "down" because it's a submissive position for him to be in. Or remove her from the situation, like Kristina suggested.

Good luck!

Before - paw to paw combat (this was day two):


After - a month later:

Sam, that's awesome that you got a pic of them going at it. I don't mean it's awesome that they would fight obviously, but that you got to capture it! They're so cute in their after pic. Awww

Ha! It's a screenshot from video that hubby's cousin was taking while hubby was just out of camera watching to make sure no blood was drawn.

The rescue said to let them fight it out and just stop them short of blood. If it got bad, they'd mostly break apart after a sharp, loud "HEY!" or some water bottle spraying. At worst, pulling them apart by their hind legs - but it sounds like Drake isn't a fighter. Frosti is also super dominant - so the establishing the pack order took longer than normal. She would growl back at Chili the way Koda is growling at Drake, talking back to him. In hindsight, I wish I had gotten THAT on video because Chili looked sooooo ferocious, but now we know it was all "talk" and can laugh at it now because he's such a teddy bear (but not at the time - phew, stressful!). He'll still "play growl" when they play, reminding her who's boss.

Walkies together helped A LOT. She didn't try to escape and he didn't try to fight her when they were on walks together. Coupling them together forced them to spend time together in a non-threatening position (side by side).

Wow, Sam, what a transformation!

hollywoodhuskies wrote:

The fact that she's ok everywhere but home is a good sign, she's just establishing the pack order at home. Our Chili was ruthless the first couple weeks! The rescue advised us on our situation and told us to let them fight it out, but not let him be a brat. A water spray bottle helps when he was nearing the "brat" stage.

Be careful not to tell her "no" when she's growling, because it may train her to not growl and just attack. Growling isn't bad, it's her setting boundaries with Drake by warning him. Redirect her growling to remind her who's boss - we tell Chili "down" because it's a submissive position for him to be in. Or remove her from the situation, like Kristina suggested.

PRECISELY. Excellent advice, Sam!