So - it's been about two weeks since our last doggie altercation. Marcus and I have basically retrained ourselves in how we deal with the dogs.
They can all sleep together in the same room and even share the same bed. Our morning walks are now boy/girl - rather then the girls first and then the boys.
During the working day, Lillie remains in the downstairs bedroom by herself. We made it very comfortable for her, so that the bed is against the window giving her the same view the other three have from the living-room window they look out of.
We walk around the house fully armed with our water bottles.
When we get home from work - you ready yourself with the H20 before opening the door for Lillie but generally speaking, and so far anyways - things have been well. It's been more about us establishing our role as the pack leader. Safety has to come first.
They can eat together, and walk around the house together, and for the most part don't pay each other much attention. The big no-no is indoor running or wrestling with everyone in the same room. The boys will start running around, Lillie will want to jump in and MayeMaye sees that as an opportunity to play with Lille, which she so desperately wants to do - and as soon as MayeMaye nips at her ear or tail to get some attention - Lillie comes at her like an angry mob. That's probably the worst part of this gig. If Lillie wants to play, Marcus and I will take her and one of the boys into the downstairs bedroom and do a bit of wrestling, or use the laser pointer and get them to run around a bit.
I was watching "It's Me or the Dog" today on Animal Planet and it was almost like it was meant to be for me to watch this episcode. It was a couple with 4 dogs - 2 girls and 2 boys. They looked to be German Shephard mixes. In any case, they too had a female on female issue - with one completely dominating the other. They had it bad enough where their animals couldn't be in the same room together, off leash....ever.
Basically it came down to the trainer informing them of two things:
1.) Not every person likes every person they meet - doesn't matter if they did anything to them or not - it just isn't going to happen and you cannot force it. Same thing for animals.
2.) She informed the couple that these two dogs may be able to coexist by coping with the situation but that they can never be together off leash without supervision - ever. They could not be trusted.
I think we are in the same boat with our two. Unless we want to remove one of them from our home, this is our new life and we just have to hope that eventually things get better and they work it out. My mother-in-law has offered to take Lillie if she has to be removed, we're just not ready to give up quite yet.
Wish us luck
