That’s all it takes. One look from Orso with his head lowered and it’s GAME ON! AJ, our eleven year old lab accepts the challenge with loads of exuberance, causing Orso, our five year old lab to reply in kind. This sets off a charge toward each other from opposite corners of the room and at the last moment just as the two would crash into each other, both raise up on their back legs and slam into each other with a forceful chest bump. Then they hit the floor chewing and barking at each other. AJ will then lunge at Orso, who for some reason will back up around to the hallway or stand in the bedroom doorway and bark at AJ.
AJ will then pretend to charge, stop short of actually connecting with Orso, then back up and bark back at Orso. Orso will lunge back and pretend to come out of the bedroom but doesn’t. The coward. All the while this is going on between those two, Charlie will stand at my side and bark at me, just to let me know that AJ and Orso were behaving badly and that he had nothing to do with it. If I don’t react and make them stop on a timely basis for Charlie, he will then join the fray, taking it out on Orso. This causes a mass Orso attack, hair up barking, snarling and chewing. No blood is drawn just wet slobbery necks and legs.
Orso will escape run towards the bedroom and leap onto the bed from the doorway with Charlie in hot pursuit. One of these days, one or both of the dogs is going to crash through the bedroom window. On that day, we’ll have dog stew for dinner.
A woman's view of hunting...with men 