Confessions of a Dog Lover: I Have Crated My Dog for SO Long

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who's sent their heartfelt condolences and comforting comments on Ginger's passing. We are blessed to have online friends like you.

Senior Dog with Aural Hematoma in Giant Crate

I've had Whitey on crate rest for a long time. Ever since he and Puppy have had major fights, I've had him crated on mornings and afternoons to avoid the usual blood shed and aural hematomas. Noon time and night time is break time from crating.

I thought crating my senior dog was the right thing, but I was wrong. 

Tiny Dog Bites and Teeth Scrapes from Buchi

These dog fights were often initiated by Whitey. In fact, he's bitten me twice because Puppy would go around us and taunt him (which I think was Puppy just being a playful and curious... puppy). To add more to the drama, Whitey had the flaps of his ear drained about 4 or 5 times because he kept on attacking Puppy, and Puppy would simply overpower him-- sending him ear first on the concrete floor. That's when I decided that these two should avoid contact as often as possible. 

But I was wrong.

Big Dog Bite from Whitey

By doing so, I think I've made the situation worse. 

I think I forgot to trust my dogs' intelligence in working as a pack-- in working things out.

I think... I've underestimated my dogs' social skills.

Of course, I preferred being safe.

Whitey, my senior love dog.

I'd rather have Whitey placed on scheduled crating than to see my senior badly injured again: the aural hematomas, the wound gashes, and the bloody bite injuries. 

But I was still wrong to crate him like this for so long.

He should have been with the others while they played.

Lounging on a cool sunny day, destroying their toys.

He should have been with them running or trying to catch up.

I was scared that he might get injured again that I have ended up isolating him from the rest of the pack. 

Even though he's free the entire evening, and it's only mornings and afternoons that he is crated, I could still see how much it has affected his muscles, his energy, and his life. 

Sometimes, I feel the people I live with are far better dog caretakers than I am. 

Yesterday, one of them decided to leave Whitey free. With a hose in one hand, she prepared herself to quench Whitey's possible rampage against the rambunctious pup.

Thankfully, there hasn't been any incidents yet. And hopefully, it remains that way for the rest of our happy dog days!

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Dog Aggression: My Dogs Fought Again!

These past two weeks, I haven't been online much due to being busy with dog responsibilities and life in general. For starters, it's getting harder to carry three dogs to the third floor compared to what I'm used to which is two (Buchi who's 6kg and Chooey who's 3kg).

This is the stairs to the third floor.  Twice a day, we would go up there and Rin would wait for all of us to come  play with her.

Note: Please bear with this very long discussion/rant/where-the-hell-did-I-go-wrong experience. Apparently, I have to study one of my posts again entitled 8 Ways to Abate Dog Fighting.

The Stairs

Today, Whitey (weighing approximately 12 kg) decided to follow me while I was climbing up the flimsy wooden stairs towards the 2nd floor. We all know that some dogs can be acrobats in nature but Whitey was scared to death when he stopped on the 6th step. I didn't want to leave him there because it was already a long fall down. So with Buchi in one arm, I held Whitey's collar until we all got up to the 2nd floor.

The Prelude to the Fight

Two days ago, I left Whitey, Rin, Buchi and Chooey playing by themselves while I was cleaning their potty spots. A little while later, I heard growling and snarling from Buchi and he initiated what I call his "Death Sentence".  Buchi, whose aggressive issues I haven't fully addressed yet, began to growl at Whitey and bite him!

Whitey would rather stay away from Buchi than confront him.

Whitey, who did not want any part of this, tried running away but a persistent Buchi came attacking him. Eventually, the gentle giant (Whitey) let out his gladiator side and attacked Buchi- pinning him to the ground with his teeth firmly gripping Buchi's leg.

I hosed them both and Whitey took flight. But Buchi (one of the stupidest bully dog I have ever met) attacked Whitey again (even after he'd been whimpering in pain under Whitey's firm grip). Whitey was no longer playing games. He caught Buchi's neck between his jaws.

Note: It's not that I think Buchi is stupid, but he really outdid himself that day.

Hosing them again didn't work. I had to pull them apart and you'd imagine how hard that could have been with two dogs in a heated fight without having any assistance and in bare hands.

Buchi's Rehabilitation

I have been trying my best to address Buchi's aggression. And so far, a "Tsst" or me calling his name has had some positive outcome. I can stop him from peeing on every single pole he comes across, as well as his humping with those sounds. He also no longer growls at his "old enemies".

I trusted that all would go well with me introducing him and Whitey again. And it was, for more than a week, in fact. But this happened...

The Fight

I truly had no intention of bringing Whitey up the third floor, especially when Buchi was still recuperating from his limp leg. But he followed me up the flimsy wooden stairs which brought me no choice but to bring him up along with Chooey and Buchi. Rin was already in the third floor.

I have noticed Buchi's tension when Whitey's around. I should have checked and double-checked the signs he was showing. I even placed him on top of the table so as to avoid them from clashing since I didn't have anyone else there to help me if they fought again.

You could see that Whitey is all about the submission.

Feeling sorry for Buchi, I put him back down and watched them like a hawk- following Buchi's every move. It happened so quickly. Buchi lunged at Whitey again in an epic fight of David versus Goliath (where David gets eaten!).

This time, Whitey did not restrain himself at all. He fought back and attacked like a raging bull. I was able to pull them apart (with me raising Whitey's entire body from the ground like a mother carrying her pup and Buchi still struggling to bite the hand that was stopping him from attacking his mortal enemy). But Buchi  didn't give up so easily. While I had Whitey off the ground with one hand, Buchi took the opportunity to twist from my grip and bite Whitey again. In response, Whitey shifted his weight and once again PREYED on Buchi.

Without anyone on the third floor with me, I could only stop them from doing further damage but Buchi's skin was still on Whitey's jaws. Fortunately, my brother-in-law (bless his soul) heard the snarls and growls and came up to see me almost kneeling on the ground while trying to think of a way for Whitey to loosen his grip. I asked him to hose them and he did. The moment Whitey let go, I pulled them away from each other and my brother-in-law took Whitey back to the first floor. In the mean time, Buchi was trying to attack my hand for holding him.

And look who comes down with battle scars and teeth scrapes. This is the second time Buchi has ignored my presence in the fit of aggression.

Things I have learned today:

1. Stopping a dog fight takes a lot of physical energy. This said, I have great admiration for Cesar Millan who's done this with both big and small breeds.

2. Not all dogs respond to hosing. Whitey ran away the first time but he never did so again.

3. Buchi still has a very very long way to go. I will no longer risk having them together unless I am with someone who can assist me if I start correcting this behavior.

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4 Tips on Handling Dog Aggression

My dogs have been driving me crazy these past days because of the constant nightly growls, barks and even violent confrontations. The problem with dogs who aren't neutered is they tend to have hormonal imbalances like humans especially during mating season.

At the moment, my dog Shark is always barking and baring his teeth to my other dog named BD (BD is an acronym for Brother Dog. An odd name for a dog, but it does fit him well because previously I had to other dogs who I called Sister Dog and Mother Dog.)

Little Dog says, "Stop or I'll bop your head with my bone!"

Unlike in the past, dogs no longer need to compete for their food. In a pack of dogs, there's always the alpha dog. These dog usually gets the best pick and the best girls. Although, I currently don't own any bitches (that sounded inappropriate), I think my dogs are fighting for pack leadership which is why Shark, is always growling and barking at BD, since BD is currently the big kahuna.


So before all hell breaks lose and someone gets injured it is important to remind your dog that you're the boss. The next time your pet growls, barks or bares his teeth. Try to stop his action by saying a firm "No!". Shouting is different from saying it firmly. Therefore, make sure you don't look terrifying. When a pet lowers its body submissively, this is an indication that your "No" was effective.

Catch him in the act. Some dogs are smart enough to wait for you to turn around before they do it again. So make sure that when he becomes aggressive again, you need to scold him within a few seconds of the misbehavior.

Ground him. Surprisingly, some owners find it effective to ground the dogs by giving them time outs by putting them in one room. Dogs hate being alone so doing so might just be the thing to make your pooch learn that his acts are not acceptable.

Sound the Alarm. Dogs hate loud noises. As I've said in my previous article, the shaker is a very effective way of making them stop what they're currently doing. The shaker is made of an empty soda can filled with a couple of pennies or pebbles capable of making it sound like a low tone tambourine. When he starts to act aggressive to his fellow pet pals or anybody, you need to jingle the can for him to get distracted.

Let us maintain an aggression-free dog family. If all comes to worst, seek advice from a professional. Owners should be smart enough to know when home remedies are no longer enough.

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