Breaking Up A Dog Fight
In light of the Bear Bear killing by an off duty policement at a dog park, there have been many discussions about dog fights and breaking them up. I have broken up several dog fights in my time, grabbing a collar and in one case kicking a fighting dog. Haven't been bitten yet, but that's just luck. I came across some instructions for breaking up a dog fight that sounded safe and intelligent - and obviously not something I had thought of:
If you must step in to break up the fight, get get the other dog's guardian, and both calmly approach the dogs. Never reach for a dog's collar, even your own. Always keep your hands away from their heads. Upon approach, each person should carefully grab his dog by the upper hind legs near the hips. Lift him in the wheelbarrow position, and pull your dog backward, turning him away from the other dog. While your dog may never intentionally bite you, in the heat of a fight a misplaced snap or redirected mouth can cause injury.
I have noticed that my dog does tend to stop what he is doing when his rear legs are playfully bitten by a friend. I tried this technique out on truly playing dogs, and it worked. The only problem is that you need both owners, which often times just isn't available.
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