Dog Fight? How to keep your cool and separate dogs safely

See below for a disclaimer—this article is about separating dog fights, after all!

Whether you have multiple dogs of your own or your dogs play with glorious abandon at the dog park or at play dates, squabbles can be a real concern. However, most dogs’ great ability to ‘pull their punches’ and bite without maiming force means that occasional tiffs, while needing to be humanely and rapidly stopped, are not a welfare issue and are not a reason to avoid supervised loose play time. Separating dog fights humanely and quickly is possible, and good technique can protect both you and your dogs.   

When a fight breaks out, the first thing to try is a quick yell or if you have it, citronella spray or water. Sometimes that is enough to end the fight, and many fights fizzle out with no intervention at all after a brief exchange of blows. But if the fight is still ongoing by the time you arrive running, and a quick shout has not worked, it is time to get more serious. Do not delay – move quickly and calmly through the steps.  

Step one: if there are other loose dogs who seem drawn to the action, nab them quickly and secure them, if you can. This may seem counter-intuitive…it does feel like the most pressing matter is the two dogs squabbling. However, a fight with multiple dogs involved is more likely to turn into a serious, injurious fight. Two dogs fighting are less likely to do much damage.

A handstand pull-apart to stop dog fights.

Step two: quickly choose the dog that seems to be the aggressor, or the one less likely to be called off with your voice. In a smooth motion, grab the dog by grasping his hips or his hind legs near the hips and pull his back end straight up into the air, into a handstand position, so only his front feet are on the ground. Back him rapidly away from the fight. This is called a handstand pull-apart, and the dog you are holding will be unable to redirect a bite to you from this position. If there is another person available to help, you should each grab a dog and do a handstand pull-apart. Do not grab the dog by the back feet and pull them apart in a wheel-barrow move as this is less safe for the dog—aim for the hips.

Step three: assess.  Are there injuries beyond small dings on the face, legs, or ears? If not, walk the dogs away from each other, distract them for a few minutes, and let them loose. If they immediately squabble again, they should be separated for now. Multiple fights over a few days is a flag that you may need to do some detective work and hire a pro.

Wait. Didn’t you say “Keeping your cool during dog fights”?

Like many professional dog trainers, I have worked with all sorts of dogs, including those who sometimes show aggression to other dogs. I have a secret weapon, I think: I have lived with oodles and oodles of sled dogs. Sled dogs are fantastic and lovely and interesting, but heck yeah they can squabble with the best of them! I have separated hundreds of fights over my life. Due to my essentially forced habituation, I can keep my cool if a dog fight breaks out, even with multiple dogs involved. This is an important skill and one worth cultivating–so the next time a dog fight breaks out, try to keep calm. I like to coach people to practice the technique above in your imagination. It’s not as good as real practice, but it can help! Remember just how frenetic and scary dog fights feel, and imagine yourself doing a successful handstand pull apart and ending it safely.

What if that’s not enough?

For most dog squabbles, a handstand pull-apart ends the fight. However, there are some cases when it is just not enough. You may have to deal with latch-ons, and if you are breaking up a fight alone, occasionally the dogs will keep fighting despite the handstand. Everything is not lost: there are other ways to end a fight.

Rarely, a dog fight will end with what’s called a latch-on, where one dog grabs and holds the other dog with his teeth. If the dog being held is calm and not in dire straits (i.e. doesn’t have his airway cut off) then this is actually an opportunity for you to take a deep breath before you handle it. We have had latch-ons and they are generally around the head in our dogs. Grab something that is strong but will not break the dog’s teeth and is somewhat flat – an official break-stick or parting stick is a wooden stick the size of a broom handle with a flat end, made for this purpose (there are legal concerns in some areas to do with break-sticks, so please check your local laws). Straddle the latched-on dog, firmly grasp his collar in one hand, insert the break-stick into his mouth near the back and rotate it using the same motion you would if you were revving a motorcycle. This mechanically opens the dog’s jaws.  Once you have opened his jaws, haul the dog off and move him away quickly, and then assess for injury on all dogs. Unlike handstand pull-aparts, you are at risk for a redirected bite here. Although we have found that other ways of separating latched-on dogs are not effective or safe, nor hygienic, I do know that some dog pros also successfully use a choking method to get latched dogs to release—if you are around a breed that regularly latches, you may want to explore and train yourself on this method as well. 

Caution! Attempting to pull latched-on dogs off each other without first causing the latched dog to release their bite can gravely exacerbate the latch-on and actually cause injuries. 

After you have secured the dogs and checked for injuries, then and only then can you reach for the whisky…for yourself! Also, if your dog was the latcher, plan to call a qualified positive reinforcement dog trainer to talk about training, risk, and muzzles.

If you are separating a dog fight by yourself and the handstand does not end the squabble, try using the handstand on the other dog. If you have citronella spray or a hose and haven’t tried them yet, try those as well. If these do not work, you may need to get something between the dogs. Grab the most manoeuvrable dog into a handstand, and back the fight up to a door. Yes, this will feel absolutely like a horror show, but it can work. Pull the dogs into the door opening and close the door between the dogs’ faces, without hitting them. They will separate when the door comes between them.

Other measures for breaking up dog squabbles can have unintended and negative effects. Yelling, kicking, or hitting dogs often ramps the fight up and makes it more injurious or intense–not what we want at all! There is also the very real issue of human injury. Getting your hands into a dog fight is asking for a redirected bite, so avoid reaching for the collar even thought it feels like the safest thing to do.

If your dog injures another dog beyond a small ding or injures a human during a dog fight, reach out to a qualified, positive reinforcement dog pro asap.

Standard non-injurious dog fights are extremely upsetting to us humans (I’ve written about this here), because they look and feel like the dogs are trying to kill or main each other. But…they aren’t. Non-injurious dog squabbles are simply the way that many dogs settle minor disputes, the same as when we fight with our siblings or spouses over normal domestic stuff. Most dog fights end with only minor injuries if any at all, and learning how to safely intervene can help us become more confident around our dogs when they are living their best lives: playing, romping, sniffing, saying hello!

A version of this article was originally published for dog mushers in the publication “The Sled Dogger”.

Disclaimer:  This article is designed for educational purposes only.  The services of a competent professional trainer or applied behaviourist should be sought regarding its applicability with respect to your own dog(s). Interacting with dogs is not without risk.  The author shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by the information contained in this article.