Why is my younger dog suddenly aggressive towards my older dog indoors?

Question

I have a 10 yr old JRT and a 3 yr old Springer Spaniel, no issues until about a month or so ago when the springer started getting aggressive with the JRT, appears to be top dog syndrome of sorts. Both fine when on lead, both fine when walking together, but in the house we now have to monitor closely to check the trigger points (Springer circles JRT seemingly quite happy then stops, gives the "death stare" and they growl, snarl and then pounce - we now intervene before this point to stop them)

Jeffrey Milner · Accepted Answer

Aggression issues within the household can be scary and dangerous, particularly in situations like this where one dog is much older and younger than the other. I would approach this situation with a lot of care and patience. As you have asserted already, it would appear that the Springer seems to be guarding or possessing the house. In order to truly dissect this situation, I would need you to really think about where these incidents have been occurring within the house and how they might be preceded. Think about if they tend to occur in one area more than another, if they are only occurring when other people are around, if they are only occurring before or after some sort of event or instance, etc etc. If you can't identify any patterns, you either have to keep the Springer on leash inside the house until she can be retrained or keep the two dogs completely separate. This would be the only two options to keep the 10 year old safe and sound. I would be happy to speak with you in some more detail regarding the behavior issues in a consultation. These tend to be quite complicated and will require more time and details than I am able to write in this small area. Good luck to you either way.

Why is my younger dog suddenly aggressive towards my older dog indoors?

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