Training is everything. The peach was once a bitter almond; cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education. — Mark Twain

Usually, when I write of training, I'm referring to a dog. But there are times when only a coin flip can decide who — dog or master — is in greater need of education. This is one of those times.

"We got our Doberman, Sasha, from a breeder when she was 8 weeks old. She's now 4.

"When she first came to live at our house, we had a male pug named Max and a female black Lab named Quincy, who stays outside in a kennel. Max and Sasha loved each other, but Sasha didn't love Quincy. They got into a few fights when Quincy came inside on winter nights. Sasha always went after her neck, but Quincy was never hurt.

"A few weeks later, Max died from unknown diabetes. We tried to bring Sasha around other dogs, but she wouldn't accept them.

"Then, when Sasha was a year old, we found kittens in a woodpile. She loved them! She thought they were her babies. So we kept a male cat we call Patch, and those two never had any problems, except for one time when Patch scratched Sasha. But Sasha didn't fight back.

"We also have a parakeet that Sasha loves to stalk and chase around.

"So far, Sasha has bitten six people; three of them had to go to the hospital for stitches. Two of the people she bit live in the house, me being one and my mom the other. She bit me to the extent that I had to get plastic surgery on my cheek.

"She also has bitten my aunt and three friends who walked into my house without me accompanying them — which is understandable but not tolerable.

"A few weeks ago, we brought a puppy that we wanted to keep home to see Sasha. He is a Boxer-black Lab mix. Sasha loved him. It's obvious that she always wanted to play with other dogs, but was just too scared.

"We've had the puppy for about four weeks now. The second week, Sasha bit him on the nose when he tried to walk over to her food bowl. She has growled at Patch a few times when he did this, but she never bit. The puppy wasn't hurt.

"Today, though, Sasha clamped down on the puppy's head when he jumped up onto the couch where Sasha was sitting. The puppy might not survive.

"We love our Sasha with everything in us, and nobody wants to get rid of her or put her down. She really is a great dog! She has never been abused, beaten or deprived of anything, and we don't understand why she acts like this. Is she just jealous?"

The issues at hand are plentiful, but jealousy is not among them. Multiple female dogs in one house is not advisable — they are prone to fighting over dominance and territory. Providing an aggressive dog a throne, such as a couch, bed or other piece of furniture usually reserved for humans, only elevates an already existing sense of entitlement. And failing to act at the first sign of aggression invites the unwanted behavior to stay.

But primary among them stands the issue of judgment. The wrong dog is in the doghouse. Until the owners recognize this, no person, dog, cat or parakeet in this house is safe.

Woof!

Dog trainer Matthew "Uncle Matty" Margolis is co-author of 18 books about dogs, a behaviorist, a popular radio and television guest, and host of the PBS series "WOOF! It's a Dog's Life!" Read all of Uncle Matty's columns at the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com, and visit him at http://www.unclematty.com. Send your questions to dearuncle.gazette@unclematty.com or by mail to Uncle Matty at P.O. Box 3300, Diamond Springs, CA 95619.

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