Border Bullie

Hi and thanks for your post.
Inter-dog aggression is almost always a socialisation problem. I would also agree that there may be an aspect of alpha dog misplacement also. Finally as you say she is home alone all day she must have alot of pent up energy and relieving this may help too.

Socialisation
The first thing to try is socialisation and lots of it! In the initial part of the training it is best to walk your girl regulalry on lead whenever you can. I would suggest using a head collar for this training. These are sold under many brand names including halti and gentle leader but are basically all the same. The idea is that instead of the collar going around the neck the collar goes around the nose but also has a part that clips behind the ears to hold it on. The lead is attached to a ring that hangs under the nose and when the dog pulls the nose band tightens. This is no way hurts the dog it is just annoying for the dog like someone holding your nose. However the main idea of the design is that the dog is attached to the lead via its nose and head rather than its neck and shoulder area where its powerful muscles are. The dog cannot pull you using only its nose so you can assert full control over the dogs behaviour because the dog can only go where you let it go. Because the dog cannot pull you towards other dogs on walks it also learns to react more calmly to the situation and also to look to you for guidance as to how to react because you are in control of it. If you do decide to try the head collar it is important that you read the instructions that come with it in order for it to work properly especially the instructions on introducing your dog to the head collar as dogs may initially dislike having a band around their nose.

The head collar is a great socialisation tool. Take her for walks on it as often as you can, initially to areas with some dogs and later to areas with many dogs. Go for a normal walk and be calm, if you tense as another dog approaches your dog will interpret this to mean that you the pack leader also think another dog is a problem. As the dog gets closer you dog may attempt to growl and lunge. Make sure you are holding the leash vertically so the head collar can control her behavior. Ignore the bad behavior yourself but as soon as it stop praise her warmly. Trying to use treats in this situation is probably not appropriate as she may snap at your hand in her excitement over the other dog. Continue to praise calmness and ignore bad reactions. Walk calmy and firmly onwards and you dog will have to follow.

This should correct your dogs on leash aggression very quickly and should also make her much calmer around dogs at any time. When she does becomes less interested in other dogs you can start taking her to off leash areas with a muzzle on if neccessary and with toys or treats on you. Before letting her off leash let her see the toys or treats. Keep her interested in what you have as you walk around the park offleash. Practise the come command with the treats. After her large amount of on lead socialisation she should now find you and your treats much more exciting than other dogs and respond to the 'come' command that you give as soon as she starts looking towards other dogs.

Alpha-dog training
Alpha-dog training will greatly increase your control over your dog and reduce any aggression towards you and other humans.
Remember that in a wild dog pack the dominant pack member controls :
-access to food
-access to favoured sleeping areas
-any interactions with lower pack members
-access to favoured items such as toys

In order to show your dog her position as bottom of the pack you and anyone interacting with her can make use of these keys points, for example:

1) Your dog must be the last to eat at every meal and should never get treats from the table.

2) Your dog should never walk through doors before you. A good way to practice this is to walk around the house and make her sit at each doorway and wait.

3) If your dog is lying in the hallway or anywhere you have to get past make her move.

4) When you arrive home completely ignore the dog for 15 minutes. Don't look at her, talk to her or pat her. After this go to her and give her some quiet attention only as long as she is relaxed and calm.

Only interact with the dog on your terms. If your or someone else is petting the dog or playing with it and it becomes aggressive or badly behaved immediately remove your attention from the dog by either removing yourself from the area or moving the dog to another area. You should do this without displaying any emotion such as anger just be a calm but decisive pack leader and the dog will appreciate knowing where it stands. Similarly you can assert your dominance by not allowing access to beds and couches or only allowing access when you have invited her up. Also you can assert dominance by bringing out favourite toys when you want to play and removing them when you are finished.

Alpha dog training is not so much about training as about changing permanently how you and your dog interact and it is something you can do at all times when your are home. It therefore can be used by anyone no matter what their schedules so will be useful for you especially.

Mentaly and physcically challenging your dog
With your dog spending alot of time home alone she may become bored and frustrated. An important part of alleviating this is exercising her when you are home. If you are unable to take her out for a walk or run on weekdays consider teaching her to use a treadmill. Most dogs love these and they are an excellent way to exercise almost any dog. Alternatively find ways to run her at home. Maybe you could build a little obstacle course and run her round it. Obedience training is also a great way to challenge a dog and helps in your overall control of the dog. See your dog training secrets manual and train at home until she is socialised enough to try and obedience class.

Also try and build up a wide variety of toys especially play-alone toys such as treat balls and kongs which you can fill with food and allows the dog to spend a long time working out how to get the food out. rotate toys so each day or two new ones come back out and old ones go back in a box or cupboard. Also raw hide chews and dental chews can help.

Making all of these changes with your dog can be difficult at first but you will soon have a much happier and easier to handle dog that you can enjoy more. If you have any more questions as you and your dog progress don't hesitate to ask.