I got this bit below from the ASPCA website and thought it was funny because humans are always spouting off about how gentle and kind "the feminine side" is. Hopefully the link above will take you to their site, although the longer this sits here the more chance there is that it won't. You know how it is with the Internet.
The article reads:
The ASPCA Animal Behavior Center’s Dr. Pamela Reid and Dr. Crista Coppola tackle your toughest problems.
Q: I have a girl dog and want to adopt a second dog. Should I get a male?
A: Assuming that your female dog is spayed, it is best to add a male to your family. In general, female and male dogs get along better than dogs of the same sex—and when two dogs in the same household do not get along, it is most often a pair of the same sex. We’ve also seen that when two females disagree, they are more likely to inflict injury on each other during fights.
There's more to the article. I've provided the link above.
Little tidbits like this remind me that we fill the world with generalizations about what certain things mean or what they're going to mean based on our bodies. We aren't dogs but sometimes we act like them (which looking at my dogs, might not be such a bad thing). The above statement is a generalization about what the chances are of two dogs getting along. Chances are, if you get a male and female (both sterilized) then they'll probably get along. If you get two of the same sex, they probably won't. This is true of humans sometimes too. And sometimes not. Get what I'm saying?
As I grew up, I was told by the general social system that women get along, are not competitive, are kinder and gentler than men. I doubt I need to get into it because I can't imagine that there are too many humans that have been able to avoid this social weirdness. The point is all of that is meaningless speculation and wishful thinking because we are not generalized beings. Men and women are as much the same as they are different and sometimes "sameness" does not mean peace. We are not our bodies. In fact, our bodies are secondary, or maybe even lower, to the truth of what we are. The same goes for dogs.
I have personally experienced more women than men acting out competively, aggressively and with hostility and I don't mean with me directly but through careful and curious observation on my part. My experiences have shown me that generally, women act far more 'macho' than men in daily, social activities but these things are masked by certain gender bias that allow for women to 'get away' with behaviours that are frowned on if your a man. I also find that women engage in extremes of behaviour more often.
Having noticed these things in humans I want to add that I have two female dogs that have lived together for eight years without a conflict of any sort. Personally, I think that has more to do with both of them knowing that in pack fighting is unacceptable because the boss (me and my husband) enforce this harmony. They experience harmony because neither one is fighting for the dominant position. That role has been filled.
So maybe it's wise to keep an open mind about general statements made about earthly experiences; being male or female, black or white, dog or human, then step into the reality of the moment and the individuals within the generalizations. You may be surprised at what you find if you can let go of social illusions.
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