dog behavior training

One remedy to your dog showing alpha tendencies is to put your face close to your dog’s, preferably by leaning over it, providing of course that there isn’t a biting problem. You can then simulate growls, barks or even shout if necessary. This may not work the first time, but over time the dog will recognise this as alpha behavior similar to the type of contest that occurs in dog packs.

A common exhibition of alpha dog behavior is jumping at you. The dog is trying to get close to your face, and it may not be alpha behavior - it could just be seeking your attention. Whether or not you suspect this is alpha behavior, the best initial reaction is to make sure that your hands are in front of you and push it down, accompanying it with a “down” command as it drops, and not before. Do not push it forcefully as in mnay instances, the dog will see this as a game to which it will react - playfully for the dog, irritatingly for you! If the problem persists, you should consistently ignore her and if necessary, calmly turn away. When you feel the dog has got the message, to reinforce it you should stoop to its level and let it come to you. You may find it useful to “stare it down” carefully for no more than a few seconds as it reaches you, then praise it. Repeated, these techniques normally work well.

Training your dog to greet you fully when you are at her level, by crouching or kneeling, is good practice, and a very effective reinforcement to numerous training techniques.

Allowing dogs on furniture is not good from several perspectives, but in alpha terms can be seen as a concession, yielding your “ground”, which is going to encourage your dog to try other natural alpha behavior.

Feeding your dog only after you have eaten is a strong alpha signal, see the “dog begging for food” post for a little more explanation.

Most dogs, alpha types included, have a natural fear of being excluded from the pack so ignoring or physically separating her from the “pack”, be that a dog pack or the family, can be used to effect. However, some care is needed depending on the situation. The separation will probably be part of correcting another situation than alpha issues alone.

To be the alpha, the leader of the pack that your dog looks to belong to, you should make use of the signs that dogs naturally recognize to continually reinforce the message.

Most good practices in dog behavior training build on the recognition by your dog that you are the alpha of the pack. Many instances of poor dog behavior arise from the dog not recognizing or sometimes challenging your position.

You don’t want your dog to be too submissive; it is her level of assertiveness that requires some control. To achieve this, yet again consistency is essential. It will take time, patience and repetition on your part with difficult cases.

In a young (6-12 week old) puppy, amongst the aptitude tests used to evaluate assertive characteristics for specialist dog training such as mountain rescue, a test sometimes referred to as the dominance-submission test is used. The puppy is placed on its back and a hand placed on its chest. An assessment is made of how much and for how long the puppy struggles before relaxing by, for example, dropping its paws, dropping its head back or looking away from the evaluator. There will be some variation by breed; most terriers don’t normally react too well to this but a Labador Retriever will often relax in a shorter time, which is fine - it’s the degree and nature of protest that tell the experienced evaluator what nature of dog he is dealing with.

Alternative forms of test are to kneel or stand in front of the dog and lift it by the chest, or to lift it gently by its front paws without being aggressive. The dog may react initially but will usually comply, which encourages it to accept its future role as well as giving the tester a further pointer to the dog’s nature.

The physical “lead position” within the pack is usually associated with the alpha. Personally I think it is the owner’s preference as to how far this signal should be taken. While it is clearly sensible not to let your dog greet visitors at the door by being in front of you, whether you want to take it as far as training your dog never to walk in front of you when out walking, under any circumstances, is a matter of choice. 

The next post will review day-to-day signs of alpha behavior and how to strike the right balance in alpha dog training.