Vital information for everyone who owns a pet!


Monday, December 13, 2010



Hi and welcome everyone!

This is Sharda with another dog obedience training newsletter.

This newsletter is actually a continuation of yesterday’s newsletter about disobedient dogs.

So, let’s start shall we?

When you introduce a dog to your household, he sees the family as a pack and all the members contribute to the hierarchal system. Your dog will be watching everyone closely until he can figure out who the alpha leader is and exactly where he fits into this new system.

He will be watching for clues such as the physical size of each family member as well as the tone of voice that each person speaks with. He will also notice how everyone interacts with one another throughout the day.

For example, when a mother is standing tall looking down at her son and speaking in an authoritative voice, it is obvious to the dog that the mother is higher on the hierarchal system than the son. Additionally, if the dog sees the father looking down to the mother and she responds with respect, he will see the father as the alpha leader.

After careful evaluation, it will not take your dog long to recognize who is the alpha leader of the entire household. Once he figures this out, he will treat him (or her) respectfully as a leader—most of the time! You may find that your dog exhibits a dominant behavior.

In this case, he is trying to position himself as the alpha leader. When this happens, he will challenge your authority and might not follow your commands.


THE ALPHA ROLE

It is essential to establish yourself (or else another responsible adult in your household) as the alpha leader. The sooner this is established, the fewer behavioral problems you will see. You need to not only establish yourself or someone else as the alpha, but you must also have a clear understanding that your dog is at the bottom of your family’s hierarchical system.

If your dog sees that no hierarchical system is in place, he will create one and put himself in charge.

This is when a lot of dogs can become overly dominant and destructive. It needs to be very obvious to your dog that he is subordinate to everyone—including children. It is sometimes difficult for a dog to understand that he is lower ranked than children, because of their small size and their dependency on adults. For this reason, dogs can sometimes become very aggressive towards children, and they might even bite on occasion.

Through disciplined training, you can help your dog realize that his position is subordinate to every other family member. It is important to note that this training is not physically forceful, mean-spirited, or inhumane, but rather a positive experience that defines clarity.

In fact, dogs are quite content by being a follower and following a leader’s directions—as long as they know who the leader is! Believe it or not, your dog actually wants to please you. He wants to follow your commands. And he wants to be loved in return.


HOW TO BECOME THE ALPHA DOG

A good way to do this is to use food to your advantage. Dogs are descendants of Wolves so they still have that wolf instinct in them. You see, Wolves are accustomed to dividing duties, particularly when it comes to feeding: one determines the track, one stands on guard, one makes the attack, etc.

The alpha leader is always the first to feed and when he is satisfied, he allows the other members of the pack to finish his “leftovers.” Wolves gradually came to realize that men were superior at catching game. Most likely this was assumed because men threw the bones from their meals to the hungry wolves and other animals that lingered around the villages.

They interpreted this as men were superior in hunting; thus, they acknowledged men as the leaders.

Another good way to establish yourself as the alpha dog is to make sure that your dog doesn’t sleep anywhere he likes like the coach, sofa and especially in your own bedroom. The alpha dog of the family can sleep wherever he wants to sleep so you letting your dog sleep in your room and even on your bed is suggesting that he is the alpha dog.

Why? Let me ask you this, do you ever sleep in your dog’s bed? I rest my case.

These two methods are a bit simple, yes but they’re definitely effective. Just make sure that you are consistent and patient with your dog in introducing these methods.

Also, remember that hitting your dog is definitely a no no. This will not help you in any way to achieve that alpha role position in your family. Remember that fear does not equal respect.

So, there you go.

I do hope that you learned a lot from today’s dog obedience training newsletter.

All the best and take care

Warmly,