My Dogs Got Into a Fight — Here's How We Got Our Pack Back

If you have multiple dogs and have ever experience a fight between them, this one is for you

...but if you know me, you know that all my kids have 4 paws which means it wasn't an argument. It was a dog fight.

All I remember was yelling no, off and stop. The fight was broken up, and everyone was okay except for me.

I was not okay… rather shaken to my core. It's been over six months, and I still feel uncomfortable talking about what happened - where did I fail? I'd always had a harmonious multi-dog home. Was I bad pet parent?

So, I called the trainer, the breeder, the handler and everyone I knew in the dog world. The common response was: it does happen, it is scary and you're not a bad pet parent.

That may all be true. But I needed more than reassurance. I needed help.

What was Actually Going On

Looking back, we were on the verge of a perfect storm.

Daisy was going through her first heat cycle. Fleetwood was 3 1/2 . Hormones were high all around. Ironically, the fight wasn't beetwen them - it broke out between Fleetwood and Hudson, on a stormy morning in my home office. It seemed to last forever. It was over fast. And all five dogs looked at me like, "What's wrong with you?"

I have always had a harmonious pack before things suddenly changed that day.

Was this going to be fixable?

When I sprang into action on that day, I was also very anxious - and "very anxious" is an understatement. I felt like I couldn’t breathe.

I got Fleetwood and Hudson into their crates and called my friend Laurent at Elite Pro. They do boarding, daycare, and training, and they know my dogs. ThenI reached out to Marc Wingdassen, my dog trainer. We had just started working together. I sent an email explaining what happened and thought: Is he going to think I'm a bad pet parent?

He did not.

What We Worked On

Marc and I started working every week - and as needed on:

• Dog obedience and excitement control

• Understanding your pack's dynamic – different dogs have very different personalities and triggers

• Crate management – use crates for movement, personal space and timeouts

• Resource guarding - what it is and how to address it

• Structure and consistency

• Becoming the lcalm, confident leader your pack needs

Meanwhile, Laurent worked separtely with Fleetwood and Hudson. The question was whether these two could peacefully co-exist after a fight. Not all dogs can.

How It Actually Went

After a couple of weeks, everyone was home. Was it great? Nope. It was stressful. I felt like a warden and a prisoner in my own house. I watched every dog and every move. I wanted everything to be okay. These are my kids, after-all.

But we kept working. One step at a time.

Where We Are Now

Fast forward to 2026. We now have a fun, obedient (debatable with Airedales), and manageable pack. We still work at it every day.

If you're going through something similar, here's what I want you to know:

• It can happen even in the most harmonious multi-dog homes - hormones, environment, and timing all play a role

• Getting professional help is not a sign of failure. It's the best thing I did.

• Recovery takes time and structure, but it's possible

• you are not a bad pet parent

Have you ever dealt with a dog fight or tension in a multi-dog household? Drop a comment - I'd love to hear how you navigated it.

-Kim Opdyke

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