Wolves are our dog’s ancestors and we know, even today, wolf packs have a leader. This leader is known as the alpha dog. This is the boss and the boss entirely dominates the whole pack, and, without adequate dog obedience training, a domestic dog with a strong will, living in a soft household, may begin to think it is the alpha dog and attempt to dominate the family.
At the very least, this type of untrained dog will be very confused about its place in the pack and could become a major problem and nuisance to its neighbours.
The alpha dog does not necessarily need to be male. Females can be just as much an alpha dog.
In domestic dogs, the pack is the household he lives in. You cannot afford to let your puppy become an alpha dog. If you are one of those people who do not believe it is essential to properly obedience train your dog, and who believe it is OK for the pup to sit on any piece of furniture whenever he likes, then you are likely to be heading for alpha dog syndrome issues.
It is easy enough to establish if your dog is developing alpha ways:
•Does the dog ignore commands: When you take him for a walk does he constantly ignore your commands to come back to you? You know he hears you, he may even look back at you, and then carry on doing what he was doing.
•Is the dog being food defensive : Can you walk up to him whilst he is eating his dinner and take his bowl away from him? Can you take a bone out of his mouth? Does he growl at other dog members of the family if they come too close when he is eating?
•Is he jumping onto furniture and growling at you, or just ignoring you, when you tell him to get off. The alpha dog always takes the higher ground. This is instinctive and unless you stop him and insist he stays on the floor, he will get the impression that he is higher in the pack than anything below his lofty position, including the baby crawling on the floor.
•He may growl when you discipline him. I do not mean physical discipline here. I do not believe in that. However there are times when you need to tell a dog he is doing the wrong thing. Maybe he chewed your Gucci shoes, or confetti the toilet roll, or stole a piece of meat off the kitchen counter. You are angry and it is totally evident to your dog. He knows this, so when you go to grab his collar to take him outside, he growls at you.
•Does he push you out of the way when you go to open the door? An alpha dog goes first. Again this is instinctive. They are the leader and they go through the doors and gates first. You need to ensure the dog is made to wait until the rest of his pack has gone through the door before he is allowed to come through.
•Does he pull your arm out of its socket when you go for a walk? Again, this is instinctive behaviour. The alpha is the leader and wants to be right out front all the time.
If you see any of these signs developing then you need to take action to put the dog back in his place immediately or you will find you will start having aggression issues. If you have young children in the house then taking immediate action is imperative and the dog must accept he is lower in the pack than the youngest member of his human pack.
When you are researching what type of dog you are going to bring into your pack, ensure you also research the depth of experience offered by the local dog obedience training clubs and facilities so that, should you start having obedience training problems with your dog, you can obtain correct and meaningful advice and prevent alpha dog issues from arising.
Author Resource:-
Nev Allen is a dog trainer with 30 years of experience and he is now sharing this experience to help you make your puppy a good, happy and well trained obedient dog. http://www.dogobediencetrainingblogs.com Visit my blog for more detailed dog obedience training and clicker training articles.
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