Well since both of the dogs in question are female, it's definitely a territory problem. None of the males in the pack ever dared to compete for your attention in a way that made Boots feel threatened before (you didn't mention any of the other dogs ever spending alone time with you in the house, which could be a key point- only Boots did before, which made her even more 'Alpha'; if the males did, too, it wasn't in a way that threatened Boots' authority).
My immediate thought is that you have to show Boots that Paola is a family member and will get your love and attention too, but I know you shouldn't try to disrupt the 'pecking order' of the pack. So, you need to find a way to show Boots that while she may be Alpha, Paola still gets attention and love from you.
I wouldn't suggest trying to bring Paola out and then showing Boots that you're giving Paola attention. I would suggest trying to get them both in the house (maybe find a way to get Paola in a crate/kennel in one room, so that neither dog can attack the other very effectively) and giving Boots attention in the same room, then going about your business, occassionally going back to Boots. That way Boots can see that Paola's presence isn't a threat to her, and can maybe warm Boots up to Paola. I wouldn't do this for very long; maybe let Paola cool inside with Boots around for a half hour or an hour, then let Paola go back outside and let Boots stay in. I'd suggest doing this over the course of days or weeks, maybe a few times a day if your schedule allows and the dogs are cooperative about it. But definitely never do it if either dog is too amped up/ upset. After a while, the goal would be to let Paola in the same area that all the dogs get fed, without Boots getting threatened. It might even be best to only do the above mentioned whereever the dogs are fed; maybe you can use tie outs to keep them both in the area but out of each others reach if you feed them outside.
I'll admit right now that I'm not an expert; that said, I've been around dogs all of my life, and I have many family members (who I am close to) who are either training a new dog (if it's not one of thirty cousins who just got a dog, it's two of them) or train dogs professionally. I, also, train my own dogs, and we all share our stories. What I have learned from them (as well as online forums like this one) is that if you do it right (and with great care and patience) you will hopefully be able to train Boots that Paola isn't a threat to her title, and thus train Paola that Boots isn't going to attack her without cause (being threatened). I've also learned that two older females are the most territorial, and the hardest to train to get along with each other (hence why I adopted a boy to give my 14 year old girl a companion; not that I'm saying you did something wrong. I just know that IF the two dogs didn't get along, I wouldn't have the time at home needed to train them to accept each other, and the goal was to get my existing dog a friend so she wasn't home all alone every day since her sister passed away). There's always the chance that they will never come to accept each other (as is the case for a friend of my mom's; they have two girls who don't get along, and aren't allowed in the same parts of the house. Before one can go outside, they have to check that the other dog isn't already out), but as long as one dog is submissive to the other, in most cases, you can train them to get along.
The most important thing is that Boots doesn't think that her position is threatened, or that you're encouraging the position to be threatened.
While I want to commend you for taking in the six dogs, I think it's only fair to say that if the situation gets worse, the best option might be to either create a safe area of the property for Paola (maybe separate it with a fence/ get a dog run), or make Boots an indoor dog and only take her out with supervision, or find another loving home for Paola.
Let me know how to turns out!
My immediate thought is that you have to show Boots that Paola is a family member and will get your love and attention too, but I know you shouldn't try to disrupt the 'pecking order' of the pack. So, you need to find a way to show Boots that while she may be Alpha, Paola still gets attention and love from you.
I wouldn't suggest trying to bring Paola out and then showing Boots that you're giving Paola attention. I would suggest trying to get them both in the house (maybe find a way to get Paola in a crate/kennel in one room, so that neither dog can attack the other very effectively) and giving Boots attention in the same room, then going about your business, occassionally going back to Boots. That way Boots can see that Paola's presence isn't a threat to her, and can maybe warm Boots up to Paola. I wouldn't do this for very long; maybe let Paola cool inside with Boots around for a half hour or an hour, then let Paola go back outside and let Boots stay in. I'd suggest doing this over the course of days or weeks, maybe a few times a day if your schedule allows and the dogs are cooperative about it. But definitely never do it if either dog is too amped up/ upset. After a while, the goal would be to let Paola in the same area that all the dogs get fed, without Boots getting threatened. It might even be best to only do the above mentioned whereever the dogs are fed; maybe you can use tie outs to keep them both in the area but out of each others reach if you feed them outside.
I'll admit right now that I'm not an expert; that said, I've been around dogs all of my life, and I have many family members (who I am close to) who are either training a new dog (if it's not one of thirty cousins who just got a dog, it's two of them) or train dogs professionally. I, also, train my own dogs, and we all share our stories. What I have learned from them (as well as online forums like this one) is that if you do it right (and with great care and patience) you will hopefully be able to train Boots that Paola isn't a threat to her title, and thus train Paola that Boots isn't going to attack her without cause (being threatened). I've also learned that two older females are the most territorial, and the hardest to train to get along with each other (hence why I adopted a boy to give my 14 year old girl a companion; not that I'm saying you did something wrong. I just know that IF the two dogs didn't get along, I wouldn't have the time at home needed to train them to accept each other, and the goal was to get my existing dog a friend so she wasn't home all alone every day since her sister passed away). There's always the chance that they will never come to accept each other (as is the case for a friend of my mom's; they have two girls who don't get along, and aren't allowed in the same parts of the house. Before one can go outside, they have to check that the other dog isn't already out), but as long as one dog is submissive to the other, in most cases, you can train them to get along.
The most important thing is that Boots doesn't think that her position is threatened, or that you're encouraging the position to be threatened.
While I want to commend you for taking in the six dogs, I think it's only fair to say that if the situation gets worse, the best option might be to either create a safe area of the property for Paola (maybe separate it with a fence/ get a dog run), or make Boots an indoor dog and only take her out with supervision, or find another loving home for Paola.
Let me know how to turns out!
