A Few New Year's Resolutions

Happy New Year everyone! When it comes to New Year’s Resolutions we tend to focus on ourselves. But since this is a dog training blog, I am going to focus on our dogs.  Here are a few resolutions based on my experiences with my own dogs and from helping my clients with theirs:

1) Incorporate dog training in my everyday routine – now that my “puppy” is full grown, it is very easy to let all that old puppy training fall by the wayside. So this year I will strive to reinforce my dogs’ training by continuing to incorporate them in my everyday routine. A few examples are:
• Asking my dogs to “sit” and “wait” behind the door before going for a walk so that they learn not to dash into the street.
• Asking my dogs to “sit” before I put the leash on them for a walk so that they learn to be calm before going out for a walk.
• Asking my dog to “sit” before releasing her to “take” the toy for a game of tug of war or fetch.
• Asking my dogs to “sit” and “leave it” until I am able to put the food bowl down on the floor before giving them my release cue (“o.k”) to take the food.
• Asking my dogs to “go to their beds” and “stay” while I am eating my meals.

Incorporating these simple requests to your daily routine will seem less like a chore (for both you and your dog).  In the end, you will have a well-mannered dog with relatively little effort.

2) Management – having a dog with good house manners is a combination of management and actual training. Often the management portion of this equation is overlooked. Keeping or removing food from the counter before leaving the house will reduce temptations for your dog and will help keep your dog from forming a habit of “counter-surfing.” Dogs will continue to perform behaviors that are successful for them and behaviors that do not reap any rewards gradually extinguish. So, if my dog is “rewarded” by getting a piece of food off that counter (even if relatively infrequent), there is no impetus for her to stop checking out the counter while I am out of the room. If my dog knows that food is not on that counter when I am not home, she is less likely to scavenge while I am out of sight. Management is also good way to keep your pup from destroying your favorite pair of leather shoes. Putting shoes away in your closet and closing the doors to your bedroom will prevent access into non-puppy proofed parts of the house when you are not home. Baby gates are also good management tools until your puppy passes the chewing phase and learns to chew the appropriate toys. If your puppy does not have access to shoes but instead has access to chew toys, you will protect your property. Who knew that having a puppy can lead to a clutter-free house.

3) Give my dog time to think - often we get impatient and we have a tendency to repeat the verbal cue over and over again thinking that it will make our dogs perform the behavior more quickly. If anything, it leads to your dog tuning you out. Instead, once your dog has learned the verbal cue for the behavior you are training, use the word once and give your dog time (10-15 seconds) to think about it. Repeating the cue while your dog is trying to figure out the behavior is the human equivalent of someone standing over your shoulder asking you, “what is 29x37” over and over again while you are trying to solve the equation. If your dog does not complete the task within that time frame, go back to the previous step in training (e.g. using a hand signal or lure with the verbal cue) and practice at that level until your dog becomes more proficient.

4) Exercise – regular exercise stimulates your dog not only physically but mentally. Your neighborhood is a smorgasbord of smells, sights and sounds that are different from what your dog experiences at home. A bored dog can be very destructive. When my dogs are bored, I often find little holes my backyard. Exercise can help channel some of that pent up energy.  Similarly, exercise can help with high energy and anxious dog.

5) Play more games with my dogs – playing games with your dog not only stimulates your dog mentally but it helps foster the bond with your dog. Although some dogs can play fetch until the cows come home, other dogs will get bored of this game after awhile (Northern breeds come to mind). This year I plan to introduce more games into my dogs lives beyond fetch and tug of war (which my dog never seems to get tired of). My dogs like to hunt and they love the “find it” games where they have to search for different objects to receive a treat. I also use training as a game and try to teach new tricks or combine different behaviors in a row (chaining behaviors) before the dog receives a reward. Keep training sessions short (5 -10 minute sessions at a time) to maximize on the “fun factor.”  For more information see my review of popular interactive dog toys on the market.

6) Give my dogs some down time – sometimes it is tempting to try to train your dog every day for long periods of time especially if you are working on modifying  particular behavior. I have found that it is beneficial to give my dog some down time from such intensive training because I want my dog to look forward to training rather than view it as a stressful event. Taking a day or two break can give my dog time to recoup and lessen the likelihood of burnout (for me too). Dogs need alone time too.

7) Appreciate every moment with my dogs – dog years are too short as far as we are concerned. That is why we should appreciate the time we have with our pets while they are with us. I have two senior dogs right now and I appreciate the confidence and tolerance that many older dogs have. The comfort and security that our senior pets provide is reflection of the strong bond formed after years of working together. Without my older dogs, I am sure my Akita puppy would have been a handful, but my older dogs have kept some of her rowdy teenage behavior in check. There is something to be said about the wisdom and experience of an older dog.

8) Keep expectations realistic – there is a temptation to expect too much from our pets. We have a 6 month old puppy and we expect them not to chew on our favorite chair. We expect a kitten not to climb up our drapes. We have a 10 year old dog and we expect them to adapt to new and strange situations like a younger dog. We expect an independent breed like a husky or akita to want stick to your side at all times or want to perform repetitive tasks. We adopted a dog from the shelter a few weeks ago and we expect them not to be fearful or anxious. This New Year, let’s keep our expectations realistic based on our pet’s age, history, temperament and personality. Realistic expectations reduce frustration and forge a better bond with your pet!

9)  Nip those behavioral problems in the bud - sometimes it is easy to ignore some of your dog's behavioral problems.  For example, we let the dog jump on us because we think it is cute or affectionate but let it go on and one day your dog may knock someone over.  Your dog may start guarding objects or food and let that go on and it can escalate to guarding entire locations of the house/couch or the behavior may become more pronounced.  Sometimes, I get calls from people who have had a behavioral issue that has gone on for years.  In such cases the behavior can become so ingrained that it is harder to treat.  So, if there is a behavior that you find problematic or can foresee becoming problematic, get the help you need and address it before it escalates.

10)  Go at your dog's own pace - this is a corollary to #8 above. Often when we are working with our dogs, whether it be a puppy or a dog with behavioral issues such as fear or aggression, we may have some arbitrary time table by which we have set some goal or want a problem "fixed."  Sometimes our timetables do not match up with what our dog's is able to accomplish. Trying to push our dogs faster than what they can handle can backfire or lead to frustration on our parts. For example, if you have a fearful dog, bombarding the dog with the object he/she is afraid of (person, dog, garbage truck, motorcycle etc) over a short period of time may intensity this fear and cause the dog to shut down. Often with behavioral problems it may take weeks or months to resolve and pushing your dog above and beyond what he or she is capable of will only serve to increase stress levels.  Instead, just go with the flow and appreciate the accomplishments your dog makes even if it seems like baby steps.

Do you have any New Year's resolutions for you and your pet?

Happy New Year and Happy Training!

Pawsitive Feedback Training
www.pawsitivefeedback.com

A Tale of Two Canines: Leash Aggression and the Power of Pavlov.

Last year I related the story of my young Akita, Kiku, who I was working on to curb her tendency to lunge and bark at other dogs while on a leash and discussed the source of leash aggression/reactivity. Often during our walks we see other people working on the same issue because it is such a common behavior among canines. While the behavior is relatively common, how people address this behavior can be quite different.

On our walks I often run into other owners who have leash aggressive dogs who opt to use more forceful techniques. There is one owner I used to run into fairly regularly who had a choke chain on her dog and she would yell and scream at the dog while yanking on the choke chain. It was a very uncomfortable experience running into these two because you could hear her screaming all the way down the block and the force she would exert on the choke chain would pull the dog of his front feet.  She would also violently yank on the choke chain even when her dog looked in the direction of my dog but did not lunge or bark. I see other owners doing this as well and have even witnessed people hitting their dogs. So, the end result of these aversive techniques is that the dog is effectively punished for just glancing at another dog. Whenever, I see this, I think to myself, what message is the owner sending the dog? See dog, jerk on collar, pain. The dog is associating the presence of other dogs with physical punishment.  This also illustrates the problem of physical punishment; incorrect application and timing.  In this case, the owner was punishing the dog when the dog is actually not doing anything wrong per se leaving the dog confused and walking on eggshells. 

I like to call Kiku "Ms. Control Freak." She likes to know what is going on around her and can be a little intense and vigilant. Trying to make her sit and ignore the dogs around her is just a little too much for her to bear and it makes her more anxious and feel out of control.  She has gone through all kinds of group classes from puppy kindergarten up through intermediate/advanced levels of obedience with few outbursts and enjoys being in class. But it is the non-class setting or unfamiliar areas where she is the most reactive. My favorite technique has been associating the presence of other dogs with a food reward. Like the bell in Pavlov’s dogs, when my dog looks at another dog she gets her favorite treat (boiled chicken or string cheese in her case). This technique of pairing something that the dog finds unpleasant with something that the dog likes (in this case a tasty treat) is called “counter-conditioning.” The goal of this technique is to change the emotional response of the dog towards the object that causes the fearful or aggressive behavior (in this case the dog but it could be the vacuum cleaner or any other object). I eventually turned this routine into a game where she gets a click and treat when she first looks at another dog and then looks back at me.¹ So unlike the owner who punishes their dog for looking towards another dog (probably because the owner fears or anticipates an outburst), I actually encourage it. For my particular dog, being able to see the other dog rather than ignoring the dog is a more comfortable situation for her and I am pairing the presence of other dogs with something the dog likes. 

Kiku, ever vigilant, scanning the horizon.

I recently attended a webinar on leash aggression led by Kathy Sdao (Cujo Meets Pavlov) who is a great clicker trainer and behaviorist. She reminded everyone of a video made by Dr. Sophia Yin demonstrating the effectiveness of counterconditioning. In this video Dr. Yin is working with an aggressive Jack Russell Terrier and the results are very dramatic:
Training Aggression?: counterconditioning a dog to blowing in the face

You can see that the dog initially reacted to being blown in the face by biting and lunging but by the end of the training sessions, he no longer reacts aggressively even with being blown in the face quite forcefully. The same principal applies to leash aggression/reactivity. I would rather have my dog look forward to the appearance of a new dog rather than dread it.

Flash forward several months . . .

I occasionally see the woman with her dog and thankfully she is not yelling at him anymore. However, now she carries a little spray bottle attached to her belt loop. The dog is not lunging but his head is held a little low and he does not have the look of a confident dog. His body language also tells me that he is not relaxed. The behavior is being suppressed through punishment but I am not so sure that this dog enjoys seeing other dogs on walks.  As noted in one of my earlier blogs, using aversive or dominance-based methods to suppress aggression does not address the underlying causes of such behavior. 

My dog is not perfect but she does not have the loud, scary outbursts that she originally had as an adolescent. If we are at a corner and there are multiple dogs walking around, I may ask her to sit and click and treat watching other leashed dogs while she is sitting. Sometimes, she does not pay attention at all and we simply keep moving. But the main difference is that my dog is not walking on eggshells when she sees another dog. Her carriage is more relaxed and confident.  She does not associate other dogs with physical punishment, coercion or pain. When we pass by houses where she knows there is a barking dog, she will often excitedly sit in front of the fence facing me waiting for a click while ignoring the dog. There is one house we pass by quite often and the dog behind the fence will bark once and then lie down and watch our strange little routine every time we pass by. 

So while the end result is that both of these dogs may have outwardly curbed their tendencies to lunge and bark on the leash, the final product is, in my opinion, not equivalent.

The other day I ran into my neighbor from another block with her two goldens on their Gentle Leaders. This owner has worked hard on her dogs’ lunging and aggressive behavior on the leash. Because her dogs are now relatively calm, I have my dog sit at the curb and watch them walk by. As my neighbor sees me working with my dog she waves and pulls her clicker out of her pocket.

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¹    This technique is a version of one of the techniques addressed by Leslie McDevitt in Control Unleashed and Emma Parsons in Click to Calm.

What is a Leash Reactive or Leash Aggressive Dog?

Recently, I started a workshop for leash reactive or leash aggressive dogs and their owners. I have found that many people who have reactive dogs enroll in group classes hoping that the group setting will help their dog grow accustomed to being around other dogs. Mildly reactive dogs usually get used to a class situation after a few weeks but other dogs may find the setting too overwhelming. In other cases, a dog might be reactive to a particular type of dog or in a specific setting that the group class cannot mimic. Usually people who enroll these dogs in class have recently adopted the dog and are often are more interested in helping the dog get used to other dogs than general obedience. So I started the workshops to specifically address this behavior because in the basic group classes the focus is on general obedience and the level of training required for the reactive dog requires a different focus and skill set.

A frequent question I receive is “what is a leash reactive dog”? The term “reactive” is somewhat vague. Although it is a term that is commonly used in the dog training world, the term can have various connotations to your average dog owner. Reactivity in dogs can manifest itself as lunging, jumping, rearing up like a stallion, snarling, growling, barking and overexcitement. A leash-reactive dog is one that is especially reactive while on a leash. Interestingly, many leash reactive or leash aggressive dogs are perfectly fine off-leash and many of them play well in dog parks.

So why are dogs more reactive on leash than off-leash? There are several possibilities. One reason is that the leash prevents dogs from behaving the way they would normally behave when they see another dog. For dogs that are overly excited, the leash prevents them from greeting the dog and they react in frustration which devolves into barking and lunging. For fearful dogs, they may perceive that the “flight” part of the “flight or fight response” is not an option because they are stuck on a leash and feel “trapped.” In some cases, the dog reacts in response to tension on the leash because the owner is pulling back on it in anticipation of the encounter. When the dog feels the tension in connection with seeing other canines, the dog may perceive that there is a threat and become more aggressive. Sometimes if the owner jerks on the leash, it is a simple association between seeing a strange dog and pain (from the tightening of the collar).

This behavior can manifest itself at adolescence. A dog that has been socialized as a puppy can still become reactive. Some adolescent dogs can become feisty and test out certain behaviors. My female akita who is now 2 years old started manifesting this behavior at about a year. She had been through puppy kindergarten, basic obedience, intermediate and advanced obedience classes so she had a lot of socialization and been to the dog park etc. Now, she did witness an attack of my 13 year old akita by a neighbor’s loose shepherd while we were on a walk (the neighbor left the front door open and the dog ran from his property) which probably did not help. After the incident, she whined and became vigilant every time we walked by that house. My old akita was unharmed. The two male dogs rolled around before the owner called his dog away and my old guy dusted himself off and trotted away like nothing happened. My old male is a rescue that I adopted as a previously intact two-year old adult and I have a feeling that he was used to minor scuffles with his male and female Akita housemates. But, my female who was still a puppy at the time was left with quite an impression and she started becoming reactive soon after this incident. Granted, there is a breed predisposition for dog aggression in Akitas and she was a feisty adolescent so it is possible that she would have become somewhat leash reactive despite this incident and reactivity can be common in the guarding breeds. For example, in obedience classes, my akita can sit touching (butt-to-butt) with a classmate, but if she sees a strange dog approaching the outskirts of class, she will start barking in alarm. Small dogs can be reactive too so this behavior is not limited to the large dogs. In fact, several dogs in my workshops have been small or toy breeds.

Regardless of the reason why a dog has become leash reactive, it is important to not overreact to the situation. Yelling, scolding and tightening or jerking on the leash can exacerbate the problem and give your dog the false impression that there is something to be worried about. In the case of my Akita, I started a program where I taught her that good things happen when she sees another dog while on a leash. I have also taught her that there are options to standing her ground and lunging. In fact, whenever we pass by the house where the shepherd lives and we see him by the gate, she gets a treat for looking at the dog and then looking at me. Although this seems like a simple routine, it took weeks of training to get her to this point where she could focus on me and there were intermediate steps involved. Eventually, I put this behavior on cue by uttering the phrase, “there’s your friend,” and clicking and treating when she looks at the dog and then looks at me. She then gets another reward for following me past the gate without reacting (this is the options part of the equation where she learns that retreating is an alternative). I use my happy “let’s go” voice and act like nothing is bothering me. With Akitas, retreat is not something they naturally do so it took a lot of training to teach her to ignore other dogs. Luckily, the shepherd has no problem with my female and just sits by the gate staring at our strange little exercise. Slowly, she has gotten less reactive to dogs while on walks and defaults into turning her back on other dogs and sitting facing me whenever another dog is around.

My dog has doggie playmates and has good social skills once she gets to know a dog but my current goals are for her to be calm around unfamiliar dogs and not lunge at them while on a leash. It is not important for me at this time for her to be buddy-buddy with every dog she meets. My goals are realistic for her current stage in this training process because she is a large, strong, rowdy, adolescent that needs to learn a little self-control while on walks and not react on impulse. Sometimes it is more important to have lots and lots of minor successes (not reacting and ignoring a dog) compared to having a few stupendous interactions (doggie play) followed by a bad interaction. It is important to be aware of what your dog can handle and set your dog up for success.



My "Feisty" Dog


Working with a reactive dog is a slow process that requires patience. Using a positive reinforcement and a reward-based system will reap rewards in the long-run. Contact a dog training professional who uses methods based on positive reinforcement and does not use coercive or punitive methods with reactive dogs.

Los Angeles Dog Trainer
www.pawsitivefeedback.com

City Dog Etiquette in an Urban Jungle

I recently had a conversation with a colleague of mine regarding the differences in lifestyles of urban dogs and rural dogs. Many rural dogs spend their time off leash and don’t have to deal with narrow sidewalks, busy streets and parks teeming with unfamiliar dogs. City dogs on the other hand have to learn to navigate their environment while connected to their owner on a leash.

Often when I go to pet stores, I see people so distracted by shopping and talking to other people that they do not pay attention to what their dog is doing. Take for example, the family that lets their two year old hold the flexi leash in the pet store while their dog takes full advantage of the 20 foot radius of freedom the child just gave him or the woman with the reactive terrier who obliviously stands in the middle of the aisle talking to a friend while her dog threatens every dog that tries to walk by. A dog on a leash should be viewed as an extension of yourself. For safety reasons, you should be aware of what your dog is doing at all times. Even if your dog is not normally reactive, your dog may encounter a reactive dog or your dog may become insecure and reactive in tight quarters.

An urban Akita surveys
the City of Santa Monica

Here are a couple of tips to safely navigate your dog in an urban environment:

Stay Away From Retractable Leashes (AKA Flexi Leash) – This is my least favorite piece of equipment. Retractable leashes are better used for field work and they are often misused in an urban setting. They are not designed to work well in tight quarters or narrow urban sidewalks, let alone trying to teach your dog to walk by your side with a slack or loose lead. It is too easy for the cartridge to slip from your hands or for your thumb to let go of the lever. Then, your dog has 20 feet of instant freedom. I have seen too many owners lose control of these devices only to have their dog get into an altercation with another dog. Another problem with this contraption is when an owner accidentally lets go of the cartridge, the leash begins to retract and their little Pomeranian is suddenly being “chased” by a brightly colored plastic object; a very scary experience for a small dog. You are better off with a 6 foot leather or nylon leash.

Be aware of what your dog is doing at all times - If you are getting into a conversation with someone, train your dog to sit calmly by your side. If your dog does not know how to do this or gets too distracted, consider enrolling your dog in an obedience class that teaches polite greetings and focus exercises. You do not want your dog to get into other peoples’ or dogs’ space.

Stand away from the middle of an aisle or sidewalk - Most dog altercations happen when dogs are forced to meet each other in narrow aisles or have to walk past each other in a constricted or confined area. So if you are speaking to someone, try to avoid standing in the middle of an aisle or sidewalk. Instead, try stand to the side of an aisle to allow other people and their dogs to walk by and minimize confrontation.

Coming and going from elevators and or exits - Elevators are scary contraptions for some dogs. They are a confined space that moves, which can elevate the stress level for dogs. I know of several vet offices that are on a second floor and the elevator is one of the ways to get to the main floor. If you are waiting for an elevator, stand a few feet away with your dog sitting at your side. Wait for the door to open and allow the occupants to exit the elevator first. When exiting the elevator, check the surroundings first before exiting. If you have a reactive dog, wait for the next ride if you have to share the car with another dog. Teach your dog to “wait” so they do not dart out of the elevator before you do. The same rules apply to doorways and exits.

Polite Greetings – when encountering other people walking their dogs, try not to let your dog run ahead of you and “rush” at the other dog. Teach your dog to “sit” or “heel” and “wait” at a safe distance (greater than 6 feet) until you can say hello to the other person and ask them if their dog is friendly. Even if your dog is friendly, other people’s dogs may not do well with a strange dog rushing head on at them and they can become defensive and/or aggressive.

Reactive dogs – if you have a reactive dog, you will need to be more aware of your dog’s behavior and the triggers that make them react. If your dog cannot walk calmly in tight quarters with other dogs the pet store may not be the best place to take your dog. Toy dogs can be reactive too. Size is not an excuse to allow your dog to bark and lunge at another dog. The danger of having a small reactive dog is that a larger dog may not be tolerant of such behavior. Small dogs that are reactive need training just as much as a large breed. From the other dog’s perspective, the behavior can still be viewed as a threat even if it is coming from a smaller package. Reactive dogs need to learn to make positive associations with the sight of strange dogs and learn alternative behaviors to lunging and barking. Jerking the dog's collar and yelling at them will not make them feel better about the strange dog that is invading their space.

If you view your dog as an extension of yourself, it will help you navigate your dog in our often congested urban jungle.

Who’s the Boss? The Complexity of Relationships in Multi-dog Households.

Here is a scenario for you to ponder:

Three dogs live in a multi-dog household:

• Dog A is a 1.5 year old female
• Dog B is a 10 year old female
• Dog C is a 12 year old male

Each of the dogs exhibits the following behaviors.

Dog B – claims the sofa and that is where she sleeps. The other dogs never disturb her nor do they ever try to take her spot. She sometimes sleeps in the bedroom. Dog B usually sleeps at a higher elevation from the other dogs.

Dog C – claims the bedroom where the owner sleeps almost every night. Dog B will also sleep in the bedroom on occasion.

Dog A - sleeps in the kitchen most nights but will sometimes sleep in the bedroom if Dog C or Dog B do not get there first.

Dog A – usually tries to muscle her way out of doorways and hallways first. However, none of the dogs will attempt to walk over or around another dog if a dog is blocking a hallway or doorway.

Dog A will claim the chew toys such as deer antlers and nylabones. Sometimes Dog C will take it from her and successfully keep it away from Dog A. Dog B will not steal chew toys from Dog A. Dog A will take chew toys from Dog B.

Dog B can stare down Dog C, until he drops whatever food he has in his mouth. She will then take the food that was in his mouth.

Dog A will try to take toys from Dog B. Dog B will drop toys and allow Dog A to have them.

Dog A is the most likely to initiate physical skirmishes, Dog B rarely initiates physical fights. Dog C never initiates fights.

Dog B receives the most face-licking from the other dogs, followed by Dog A. Dog C initiates most face-licking and even licks the cat’s face. Dog B rarely licks the faces of the other dogs.

All dogs initiate play with each other. Dog A initiates the most rounds of play followed by Dog C.


Which dog do you think is the “alpha”?



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The scenario above depicts the real-life group dynamics of my three dogs. Dog A is my 70 pound female Akita, Dog B is my 25 pound female Shiba Inu and Dog C is my 90 pound male Akita. Does knowing these size differences change your analysis of the scenario? Does it surprise you that a 25 pound shiba can stare down an 90 pound male Akita to the point where he will drop the food already in his mouth?

Dominance in the animal behavior world is typically defined as a relationship between individual animals to determine who has priority access to resources such as food, preferred resting spots, and mates. So the term applies to the dynamics between two animals rather than an attribute or trait of a single animal. And, these mostly ritualized interactions determine access to resources whether it be food, space or even proximity to the owner. Often, the relationship between two animals can vary depending on context and degree of motivation as seen in the scenario above. For example, a younger dog may be more motivated to possess toys than a senior dog. Moreover relationships between the dogs in the same household can sometimes be quite complex as context, age, size and gender can factor into how dogs interact with each other.

So where did all this alpha stuff come from?

The alpha dog concept has its roots in early captive wolf studies. These studies focused on the interactions of unrelated, captive wolf packs. From these studies developed the notion that since dogs were descended from wolves and that wolves had an alpha-male and alpha-female pack leaders, domesticated dogs operated the same way. Based on this theory of canine social dynamics developed training techniques such as the “alpha-roll,” pinning the dog on the ground, and scruff-shaking, which were supposed to mimic what a dominant wolf did to a subordinate wolf. Other notions such as walking ahead of your dog through doorways, not letting your dog on the bed and eating before your dog can be traced to early perceptions of how wolf packs operated. Recent studies have shown that the basis for adopting such practices is flawed and physical corrections such as scruff shaking and alpha rolls can have detrimental effects. See my previous post regarding the risks of punishment for reactive dogs.

Canid researchers have debunked the alpha theory on several grounds. First, David Mech, a respected authority of wolf behavior, noted that the term “alpha” is outdated. Mech points out that the terminology is based on older studies of captive wolf populations. More recent studies have shown that wild wolf populations consist of family units with the parents acting as the breeding pair. (1) Thus, the “alpha pair” being the parents and the “subordinates” are the offspring.

Moreover, studies of feral dog populations suggest that dog pack dynamics are fluid and less rigid than wild wolf populations.(2) Scientists believe that dogs have been domesticated as long as 12,000 to 14,000 years based on fossil evidence(3) and perhaps as long as 100,000 years based on genetic comparisons between wolves and dogs.(4) Given that mammalian social structures can be strongly affected by the external environment, it is not surprising that the social dynamics of dogs have diverged from their wolf ancestors. Living with humans has had a profound influence on the evolution of canine social systems. Canine expert Raymond Coppinger theorizes that early dogs adapted to a scavenging lifestyle by living off the food scraps and waste left near human settlements. (5) The evolutionary pressure to be a large, highly organized group hunter became less significant and the two species diverged into two separate niches. The AVSAB position statement highlights other aspects of dominance theory which are not supported by observations of canine or wolf social dynamics. See AVSAB Statement.

For these reasons, characterizing an individual dog as an “alpha dog” is not scientifically accurate nor is it very productive. For example, in situations where dogs are fighting in a household, there is a line of thought that the owner should support the “alpha or “dominant” dog. However, in a multi-dog household, relationships between dogs are not always a simple, linear hierarchy. Such approaches can result in a misinterpretation of who is the dominant dog and inadvertently reward inappropriate behavior. For example, in the scenario above, supporting Dog A during skirmishes could easily result in an adolescent dog being rewarded for her bullying behavior which could translate to other undesirable behaviors outside of the home.

Therefore, when dealing with inter-dog dynamics within a household, caution should be exercised and owners should consult professional trainers who are well-versed in animal learning theory and behavior modification techniques relying mainly on reward-based approaches to animal training.

www.pawsitivefeedback.com


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1) Mech, L.D. 2008. What every happened to the term alpha wolf? International Wolf.
(http://www.wolf.org/wolves/news/iwmag/2008/winter/winter2008.asp).

2) Van Kerkhove, Wendy , A Fresh Look at the Wolf-Pack Theory of Companion-Animal Dog Social Behavior, JOURNAL OF APPLIED ANIMAL WELFARE SCIENCE, Volume 7, Issue 4 January 2004 , pages 279 – 285.

3) Lindsay, Steven, Applied Dog Behavior and Training, Volume 1, pgs. 4-5, Blackwell Publishing (2000).

4) Vila, Carles, Savolainen, Peter, Maldonado, Jesus E., Amorim, Isabel, Multiple and Ancient Origins of the Domestic Dog, SCIENCE, Vol. 276, No. 5319: 1687-1689 (13 June 1997).

5) Coppinger, Raymond and Coppiner, Lorna, Dogs: A New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior and Evolution. University of Chicago Press (2001) pgs. 58-67.