[Whiteboxerlove]

Hi
New to forums but figured this would be the most affective way to solve this problem.

I have a 1year old female boxer and a 4 year old male miniature dachsund. The dachshund is my girlfriends dog. I have lived with the dachshund for 2 years and received the boxer when she was 4 months. both dogs have always been great with each for the most part otheruntil 2 days ago.Leo(dachshund) can't go anywhere near Myra(boxer) without Myra pinning him to the ground trying to bit his neck. Im extremely scard as Myra is now about 45 lbs and Leo is about.....8lbs. Myra has never before shown aggression towards Leo although Leo has always been pretty to her at times.....bones, jealousy,ect. Is this pack order stuff...and if so why all of a sudden. Note that I am definetly Alpha to both dogs. She also recently got a red irritation on her abdominal,could she just be irritable because of that.(taking her to the vet tomorrow for the rash). Another note neither dog is fixed as I plan to breed Myra. And Leowouldnt be Leo with out his ornaments :/

 

[LynneMarie]

Welcome to the forum..
While at the vet I would have her thyroid checked. Since they got along great before and it sounds like it is getting progressively worse it could be medical. Thyroid conditions are genetic so if it is that I would suggest you not breed her.

 

[Tess]

Boxer could be going into heat and the hormones could very well be causing her to be grouchy with the intact male.

I'd be keeping the two of them physically separated using baby gates or doors etc. until you track down what is going on.

 

[subado]

Ornaments? Seriously? Why is Myra breedworthy? What if these two get together?

I also wonder about the female going into heat and being a grump. She's also intact going into adolescence and I think you'll see more of this rather than less.

You do have a situation here, a 45 lb dog vs an 8 lb dog is no joke. I would not let the Boxer anywhere near the other dog and I might reconsider spaying her.

 

[LynneMarie]

When was her first heat cycle? If it ended 58-68 days ago she could be going through a false pregnancy and will be aggressive/protective.

As for ornaments they do make neuticles.

 

[Watry]

I'd be very careful with having both dogs not fixed...you could end up with doxie/boxer mixes, and mix breed pups can be hard to find homes for.

Medical problems and hormonal changes really can cause sudden behavioral changes, so I'd ask your vet about this. If your vet doesn't give it much thought, I would try to get in touch with a veterinary behaviorist because they would probably know about how health problems and hormonal changes can influence behavior.

It is very odd that they have been great together, but now they aren't anymore. I know many pairs of large and small dogs that get along very well, and so resolving the medical issue should help them get along better since they were getting along before. My black and tan dobie will become aggressive randomly when he has a UTI, which my family never expected to be the case. Medical problems can change behavior in very strange ways, that's for sure!

 

[bhaur]

Boxers are combatant dogs and this may well be the beginnings of dog aggression. She may have just decided "I HATE this dog". It happens.
If the aggression escalates I would recommend a crate and rotate routine.
It also could be hormonal. Have one or both of your dogs altered. It is NOT safe to have them both together intact, YES a dachshund could breed to your Boxer...
I could go on and on about how there are so many dogs without homes and how most dogs are not worth breeding yada yada yada but you should already know this.

 

[Megs87]

Dunno if the OP will be replying, but here's my late-night 2 cents..I definitely agree that Myra's aggression could very well be due to the fact that her and Leo are not altered or mating to each other, and the frustration that lies between them. It could not be the only reason; seeing as you say Leo has been aggressive towards Myra over bones and other things, it could be that because Leo wasn't being effectively trained not to 'resource guard' (defending bones, treats, etc. aggressively) that Myra is doing what she feels is necessary to tell him she can claim ownership of things as well.

What do you mean by saying that you're definitely alpha to your dogs? (Do you simply mean you set rules for your dogs, or that you intimidate them?) Just curious, not meaning to interrogate.

Also, is Myra close to being in heat during any of these altercations with Leo? I agree that being close to heat or a false pregnancy can cause aggression. I really hope you have kept them completely separate during her heat. One of them may need to be altered to help your situation between the 2 of them, but I would highly suggest getting them both altered. If you do not have proper papers on Myra, a breeding license and many other things (including more knowledge on dogs and breeding itself), you do not need to be breeding her. Have you ever seen how many Boxers are in shelters? (if you're in the US) Plus, I personally don't think it's a good idea for an amateur breeder to breed a white Boxer.

By the way, my fiance's name is Leo and even he says the ornaments should come off! If he could, he would thank you for it, for extending his life and making life less frustrating without all those hormones.