People frequently ask how
a Dog Behaviorist
and Dog Obedience
Trainer relates to
dogs and earns their respect
and control
. . .
and especially that
of the Dominant Dog. The first part
of that answer
is simply stated but
difficult for many people to internalize
and act upon:
To relate to
a dog,
you must first see
and treat
him fully
as a DOG!
Before
you can deal
with a
dog dominance issue at home
or in dog obedience training,
you must recognize that
dog behavior
and dog communication are NOT in line
with human psychology. After all,
your dog is a CANINE (canis familiaris of
the Family Canidae),
and not
homo sapiens. So he thinks like a canine, not like a person. Your dog responds as
one might in a wolf pack, not as a human family
member. He or
she has real emotions, but
they are canine emotions, not human emotions, and not to be mistaken as such.
The basic communication system of dogs involves three critical elements --silence, submission, and leadership --
sometimes referred to
generally as
the dog whisper technique, with elements of wolf pack communication. We will use these elements in this and subsequent dog training articles about solving
Dog Dominance problems. You and I need to understand, read, and use your dogs own communication system for optimal
effectiveness in working with him.
Dogs have
an inherent Pack Psychology which
governs their thinking and actions. In a pack,
there is one dominant one, and
the rest are all followers.
There is one Alpha male and one Alpha female. To relate to a dog from a position of strength, respect, and control, YOU must be
the Alpha Leader,
the Pack Leader, and
you must use pack psychology and pack communication.
Often we see dominant dogs taken home as young pups,
because people are amused
by their spirited behavior. Actually, they are usually
the first puppies chosen, the proverbial Pick of the Litter. However, if this high-spirited nature is not
controlled, then things get out of control quickly . . . becoming worse over
time . . . until the situation sometimes becomes dangerous. Dominance can lead to violence.
So you might look for a mature dog, such as a Shelter Dog or Rescued Dog. However, looking for a less dominant
pet is not so easy in shelters. There a dogs true nature is difficult to discern without the aid of an experienced person. While in the shelter, the dog rarely has an area or anything that is under the dogs control, so there is little opportunity to
observe possessiveness and dominance problems.
Nor are dogs cooped up in shelters able to
burn off excess energy.
Its very hard for an untrained eye to differentiate between an excited Please take me home and the more
troublesome I want to control you! of the hyper-active, dominant canine.
But the dominance problem quickly becomes evident
when you go home and relax, for dominance shows up where
perceived weakness is present. For example, petting your dog
when it is submissive (e.g., sitting or lying down) is appropriate and desirable, but not when it is in an aggressive or dominant
stance. If you display any sign of soft laxity at the wrong time because of your affection, that will be interpreted
by your dog as weakness . . . and then, Katie bar the
door! With dominant types, you simply cannot afford to let down your guard or to
make an exception just this once because the pup is so cute.
You must establish and maintain firm, consistent control of the Dominant Dog at all times. These
eye-catching, spirited animals are
highly intelligent and have great potential, but they also are usually very willful, stubborn, born leaders who seek to control you, other
animals, and their environment. They want to rule the roost!
You cannot give them an inch . . . or they will take it, and take it, and take it . . . over and over, time and again. These dogs are persistent!
For example, one friend had an Old English Sheepdog puppy, an Alpha Female about eight months
old, who had a very bad reaction to a toxic flea dip back in 1976. As the
puppy started to tremor, the frightened owners lifted their darling
onto the foot of the bed, both for her comfort and to ease their own backs as they nursed her.
MISTAKE! That one incident led that puppy and her litter-mate to sneak onto the bed whenever
possible . . . a pattern the owners never succeeded in terminating for the rest of the dogs lives!
Too many owners just coddle the two-and-three
month old babies and
think that puppy training can start later. NO! The intelligent, spirited
ones, especially, must be trained from
day one with consistency, with You clearly as the Master!
Because of their high intelligence, they are ready
much earlier
than others for more formal types of training, too. Training helps remove boredom and release energy, while giving the prideful animal a proper goal for which to strive, and achievement about which to
strut with
regal, dignified, proud bearing and the clear satisfaction of pleasing.
DONT MOVE WITH THEM, YOU LOSE THEM!
I, too, have had a trying personal experience with an aggressive Alpha Pup. I brought home a beautiful Rescued Dog, an eight-week-old retriever puppy from the Humane Society. She turned out to be the most willful and
stubborn dog I have ever seen, striving for dominance in all things! There is no way she would have lasted in a normal
home. However, because of my sheer determination with consistent, proper training, she is becoming a loving, playful, and obedient sweetheart who, without loss of any spunk or pride, nevertheless
submits to my
command by a mere glance. I am her undisputed Pack Leader.
Still, it wasnt easy to get her to that state. In great frustration, I eagerly sought the advice of two other trainers with vast puppy experience. So I say to beleaguered Owners of aggressive, dominant puppies and dogs, Dont be embarrassed.
This can happen to anyone! Never be ashamed to ask for help from a Dog Trainer. (Just make sure they really understand pack psychology.)
If you have a dog dominance problem, there IS a specific training technique that will work for you, and it centers on FOCUS. It applies the communication system of silence, submission, and leadership and is a dog training technique which is effective with most dog dominance issues. [Its much more effective and pleasant than hitting and yelling!]
So get help with control of the dog dominance behavior, and restore a right relationship with your pet, and peace and harmony in your home!
PawPersuasion © Copyright 2006. This article may be freely distributed if Rena Murrays author resource box and this notice stay attached.
Expert Author RENA MURRAY is a no-nonsense Dog Obedience Trainer
& Dog Behaviorist who publishes Articles, free email Newsletter "PAW PERSUASION POINTERS" & Blog to help you better select, communicate with, train & control your dog. Catering to serious dog trainers & dog lovers alike, Rena also provides Dog Products & Dog Behavior Consultations through
http://www.pawpersuasion.com.
What
is the known secret
to becoming
an Ace athlete? Do you know? Well, personally, i think
the secret lies
within each
and everyone
of us who desires
to be an ace athlete.
I say this
because i could sit here and tell
you all
the secrets and yet
if you do not put in the required action you
will still be
there reading
these secrets in this article while i go
on and apply
what i'm
telling you and
become an
ace athlete while reaching peak performance.
A true athlete sticks
to a goal.
He works hard
to achieve it.
Initially what he does
is setting goals, then he thinks of a strategy or
plan to help him achieve
his goals. He follows that plan religiously since he believes it
will help him
to reach this goal.
Before a plan
is put into motion to
reach a
goal there
are factors that
will serve
as fuel,
motivation, propulsion to help you achieve
your goal. Let's consider some of them.
You will need to
ask yourself some soul searching questions to enable you to draw
your plans and
follow through.
Ask yourself:
Why do i
want to be an ace athlete?
What is
my goal in life?
What are my plans?
How can my plans help me to reach peak performance?
Do i love competing with others?
Do i make efforts to win?
Asking yourself these questions will help you to appreciate your heart's desire as it relates to this
area. It will provide you true
answers lying within you which only you can give. These answers will be your motivation, your guiding
force to implement your plans, your burning desire to achieve.
However, you
would want to give
good answers to questions such; Why do i want to be an ace athlete?
If your answer is for winning then you are heading the wrong direction. This is because, though athletes
always think of winning, they can loose, but what makes you a winning athlete is your ability of never quitting, the next time you may be a winner. If your mind is too focused on being a winner,
if and when you loose, you will quit the game, then you
become a true looser, and you wont want that would you? Therefore your answer
should be to achieve because athletes win and loose at the same time.
Another
area you would want to give a good answer to is on the question; Do i love competing with others? Competing in itself is
not a bad thing. However, if you are competing it
shows you
have the true quality of an
athlete, but that should not be your major goal. You should always consider the possibility of another athlete out-performing
you, once you realise that, you will be able to strive to
come out victorious.
What about answer to; What are my plans?
Well if you do not know
before about exercise and dieting, you will want to implement them.
But first you will need to read all the available information on this subject so as to be able to fully equip you to succesfully implement your plans to ultimately reach your goals.
What if i
ask you what your goals
are, can you tell me?
Well i have a goal
myself. My goal is to bring to your realisations what you need to do to be an ace athlete
by writing
informative articles on this subject, while providing you with details on
how to arrive at your own goals. So can you tell me what your goals are?
In
all, you will need a good plan and strategies all geared
towards your main goal to achieve
whatever your fixed target is at the end of the
day. Remember, your goal is your last destination which you may not reach if you do not plan and activate the plans accordingly.
Joe Okoro writes about how to become an Ace Athletes in his free reports. You can sign up for his courses and
get additional information by visiting
http://www.coolcashjackpot.com/aceform.htm.
