Dogs Demonstrate Typical Sibling Rivalry On Camera

It’s fun to think of pet-to-pet angst as sibling rivalry but puppy aggression can be serious. I doubt the parents of two-legged kids put up with a tooth-and-claw terror campaign. Unfortunately, pets face serious injury if puppy aggression gets out of hand. Check it out as one dog wants to play while the other not so much. Too funny!

More often, the behavior is simply healthy competition. In terms of evolution, the competition offered a way for the “winner” to gain the most and thus survive. Therefore, the rivalry could be considered a normal survival mechanism.

Dogs are social animals whose evolutionary history makes them willing and able to live in groups. Group living enabled the dog’s ancestors, wolves, to work together to obtain food, raise their young, and defend their territory. Much of a dog’s communication with other members of its species is by subtle, energy-conserving body language and physical displays.

Sibling rivalry, or fighting amongst dogs inside the same household, usually stems from either normal competitiveness amongst dogs of similar age, sex and development, or adolescent dominance struggles, or both. Remember, dogs who live together are siblings and siblings squabble. No one gets along perfectly all the time. Anything short of bloodshed is normal and can be managed easily, like this tiny dog growling at her bigger brother is the equivalent to a teenager's "Go away" adolescent period!

Watch as the smaller dog shows teeth and growls at its sibling because it isn’t really in play mood and is not interested in having any kind of interaction with her chubby sibling. It is hilarious to see this grumpy dog throw an epic temper tantrum mood on its sibling!