DOMINANCE    

Giving an aggressive or dominant dog food to train it is extremely dangerous

If your dog has dominance issues, you definitely need professional help. Don't be fooled by amateur and hobbyist dog trainers into believing group obedience classes will help. They almost always make it worse.

The dog trainers at the park said Goldie can't be trained and should be destroyed. We tried the obedience classes and it only made Goldie worse.

What Does "Dominance" Mean?

In order to understand why your dog is acting "dominant," it’s important to know some things about canine social systems. Animals who live in social groups, including domestic dogs and wolves, establish a social structure called a dominance hierarchy within their group. This hierarchy serves to maintain order, reduce conflict and promote cooperation among group members. A position within the dominance hierarchy is established by each member of the group, based on the outcomes of interactions between themselves and the other pack members. The more dominant animals can control access to valued items such as food, den sites and mates. For domestic dogs, valued items might be food, toys, sleeping or resting places, as well as attention from their owner.

For your home to be a safe and happy place for pets and people, it’s best that the humans in the household assume the highest positions in the dominance hierarchy. Most dogs assume a neutral or submissive role toward people, but some dogs will challenge their owners for dominance. A dominant dog may stare, bark, growl, snap or even bite when you give him a command or ask him to give up a toy, treat or resting place. Sometimes even hugging, petting or grooming can be interpreted as gestures of dominance and, therefore, provoke a growl or snap because of the similarity of these actions to behaviors that are displayed by dominant dogs. Nevertheless, a dominant dog may still be very affectionate and may even solicit petting and attention from you.

• Resists obeying commands that he knows well.
• Won't move out of your way when required.
• Nudges your hand, takes you're arm in his mouth or insists on being petted or played with (in other words, ordering you to obey him).
• Defends his food bowl, toys or other objects from you.
• Growls or bares his teeth at you under any circumstances.
• Won't let anyone (you, the vet, the groomer) give him medication or handle him.
• Gets up on furniture without permission and won't get down.
• Snaps at you.

What To Do If You Recognize Signs of Dominance In Your Dog

If you recognize the beginning signs of dominance aggression in your dog, you should immediately consult an animal behavior specialist. No physical punishment should be used. Getting physical with a dominant dog may cause the dog to intensify his aggression, posing the risk of injury to you. With a dog that has shown signs of dominance aggression, you should always take precautions to ensure the safety of your family and others who may encounter your dog by:

• Don't listen to "Positive Reinforcement" trainers who tell you have to put your dog down.
• Don't listen to amateur and hobbyist dog trainers teaching dogs in parks. . .Bribing dogs with food makes many dogs even more dominant and aggressive.
• Find a professional in-home dog trainer.
• Avoiding situations that elicit the aggressive behavior.
• During the times your dog is acting aggressively, back off and use "happy talk" to relieve the tenseness of the situation.
• Supervise, confine and/or restrict your dog’s activities as necessary, especially when children or other pets are present.
• When you're outdoors with your dog, use a muzzle if necessary.
• When you're indoors with your dog, control access to the entire house by using baby gates and/or by crating your dog. You can also use a cage-type muzzle, but only when you can closely supervise your dog. Dominance aggression problems are unlikely to go away without your taking steps to resolve them. Treatment of dominance aggression problems should always be supervised by an animal behavior specialist, since dominant aggressive dogs can be potentially dangerous.

From your dog’s point of view, children, too, have a place in the dominance hierarchy. Because children are smaller and get down on the dog’s level to play, dogs often consider them to be playmates, rather than superiors. Small children and dogs should not be left alone together without adult supervision. Older children should be taught how to play and interact appropriately and safely with dogs; however, no child should be left alone with a dog who has displayed signs of aggression.

While it's sometimes possible to successfully resolve aggressive behavior problems related to dominance, this is not a process that can be done by behavior helplines. Very detailed questioning in order to obtain a complete behavioral history, plus direct observation of your pet in his own environment, is necessary before recommendations to resolve the problem can be made.

If you need your dog trained at your home,

you need dog training at your home.

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