Never, ever use a shock collar!!! It will only make matters worse. Your girl is certainly an alpha and needs training. You need intervention now before your boy is seriously injured. Lynn King here on the board can direct you to a behaviorist in your area.

Shock collars should be outlawed. The dogs that come through our rescue that have had shock collars used on them have been the most difficult dogs to retrain. Put the collar on and test it - I did, I know I'm nuts. If you were ever shocked by one you would never dream of using it on your pet. I don't mean to sound harsh, I'm just trying to be honest.

Please visit HeavenSent's Cafe Press Store ... http://www.cafepress.com/hsbr

For information about Bulldog adoption,
or if you have a bulldog at risk in
NJ, PA, DE or MD, please go to :
http://www.heavensentbulldogrescue.com

I am having a problem with my female bully and female westy. I thought it had gotten better that I was able to read the tell-tell signs and stop the fight before it started but I was wrong! About New years it began again only worse. Today I called the trainer I had used for my shepard and spoke to her. I'm going next Monday to start training my bully. She gave me some of the same suggestions you have recieved. I asked her if this situation can be resolved and she said sometimes but not always. Sometimes seperation is the only answer. She also said it is very commmon and that we as humans can unwittingly contribute to it. She has even had the problem herself. She is going to give me some reading suggestions. Also she told me if they are in a biting type fight and two people are present that if you pull them apart by pulling their back legs, they will release their grip on each other. Tonight mine are quiet so I haven't tried that yet! It's a really awful experience to witness your dogs fight. Mine were friends for over two years before this started. I will post any new tips she gives me and also the books she suggests.

Heading off the outburst before they happen is key, and separating the dogs from the "combat zone" is a start.

Realizing that it takes two to fight is another point, altho one is starting it most often, it still requires both be cooled down (kenneled).

Contact a trained behaviorist (ADPT certified)to come and watch the dynamics in your home. Situations like this cannot be truly observed by conversation alone...she needs to watch the room, watch the body language of both dogs, and see how they respond to you as well, to establish a plan for change.

have 3 females and one male.

2 of my females have been battling over top dog spot since my youngest female hit maturity 5 months ago.....
in my case its the possession of the bed...MY BED...
I have started to learn what triggers the out bursts and watch for the signs both body language and eye contact.
And there is a whole silent language of body and eye movement going on before the out burst hits that we 2 legers don't pay attention to. start to watch and observe the body language before an outburst and in most cases you can avoid it by removing them ...
I have also found that having my pack takes 2 long walks every day this also helps reduce the frequency of aggressive out breaks( I have a dog trainer come to take them) I never have both girls in my bed room on my bed at the same time as this is the trigger for them. They share food toys and doggie bedding with no incidents...
In your case its the kitchen and food, so stop having them in the kitchen when you are working with food would be a good way to avoid this.

I also keep the collars on in the home so I can quickly pull them apart.
Try to avoid shouting or screaming as this is fuel on a fire. I say nothing but pull them apart and time out them both in designated areas till they cool down...

there is no cure or quick fix. and in most cases I am learning it will be up to me to pay more attention to the silent goings on and keep aware that certain things trigger this and calmer you are the better chance of containing and managing the situation...
my guys are very dog social in public and only fight over the BED....

in regards to electric collars I agree.. I only use a collar on my Pitt bull to deter her from running after deer on hikes...When its on she is magically obedient and we have a pleasant hike .. no shock collar and she ignores me and tries pull me off my feet and on occasion takes of for hours...... I have only zapped her 3 times ever in 2 years. so properly used I think they are useful..but not for preventing a fight. I think it could be harmful to resolving the issue you have....
I am not a trainer but just a doggie person experiencing similar events as you .. I spent a lot of time learning what's out there from books and web sites and asking qualified people...

good luck.....

As the others have suggested, you need outside help, far more then the internet can provide. Go to apdt.com, there you can locate someone close to you.

All too often, we don't try to deal with a behavior until it is happening, when the best method is prevention and management. In your case, trying to deal with it in the middle of a dog fight, believe me, they are both way too aroused/stimulated to absorb any information.

I would keep them separated for now, until you can have a private consultation with a trainer/behaviorist.

Best of luck

... I definitely coddle Levi and pin all the blame on her. I didn't even think about how I was helping the problem by doing that. I will definitely research the resouce guarding as well, Thank you all for your very helpful feedback. I knew I came to the right place!!!

No-not harsh at all!!! Thank you for your feedback - I will definitely cross that off our list of options. She did go to training and I worked really hard at showing her I was the owner of the kitchen, garbage can, whatever she was dominating at the time. But maybe if we can get a behaviorist in our home it would be more helpful than dealing with it in a basic obedience class. Thank you for the feedback- I really appreciate it.

I would suggest you stop "yelling, squirting, and shaking cans" since none of that is working anyway. A shock collar would just be another negative approach and you don't want to do that anyway. I'd suggest finding a behaviorist to help you work through this with a positive approach. There are all kinds of things you can do to ease the tension between them and make Sadie think of Levi as less of a threat. She may not ever adore him, but she can learn to tolerate him AND he needs to learn to leave her alone. This probably isn't all her fault.

You may be blaming the wrong dog. Levi may seem innocent, but he may be instigating her attacks. Sadie is warning him to stay away and he is not listening. It's best no to take sides in a fight even if it's obvious to you who is at fault. Comforting the one you think is not at fault could make matters worse for him when you are not around. Both dogs should get a little time out to cool off if a fight breaks out.

If it usually starts in the kitchen over anticipation of dropped morsels, why don't you put them in their crates or separate isolated areas with a stuffed kong or special toy while you cook. Any time you give Sadie a bone or "supper treat" make sure she is someplace Levi can't bother her or even see her. Feed them in separate areas and pick up the bowls as soon as they are finished. Nobody should be able to check out the other's empty bowl.

Rescues often "resource guard" people as well as food. My Rescue Roxy guards toys, but not food. She tries to guard me, but I don't allow it. I can always distract her by giving treats to everyone. You are lucky in that she is good with other dogs and people. I think you can work through this with some help. Until you get outside help, Google the term, "Resource Guarding." You will find lots of ideas of things you can do.

Good Luck and thank you for rescuing!

I would contact a behavorist as already suggested. But in the mean time since you say it seems to happen most often in the kitchen i would keep the basset out of the kitchen when meal time is going on. maybe the other times are when toys are around?The water bottle,though I dont even like to use that was very effective in my case but thats because neither one of mine likes to get wet,they dont even like the rain. But it is a serious issue that needs to be worked on. I am sure other more experienced people will have suggestions here.
Good Luck