Part 2 of a 3 part series.
Your dog watches you constantly and reads your body language. He knows if you’re insecure, uncomfortable in a leadership role or won’t enforce a command. This behavior confuses him and makes him insecure. If your dog is a natural leader or has a social-climbing personality, this will encourage him to assume the alpha position and tell you what to do.
“Alpha” is an attitude. It involves quiet confidence, dignity, intelligence, an air of authority. A dog can sense this attitude almost immediately - its how his mother acted towards him. Watch a professional trainer or a good obedience instructor. They stand tall and use their voices and eyes to project the idea that they’re capable of getting what they want. They’re gentle but firm, loving but tough, all at the same time. Most dogs are immediately submissive towards this type of personality because they recognize and respect alpha when they see it.
Practice being alpha. Stand up straight with your shoulders back. Walk tall. Practice using a new tone of voice, one that’s deep and firm.
Don’t ask your dog to do something - tell him.
There’s a difference. He knows the difference! Remember that, as alpha, you’re entitled to make the rules and give the orders. Your dog understands that instinctively.
With most dogs, just this change in your attitude and our obedience training course will be enough to turn things around. With a dog that has already taken over the household and has enforced his position by growling or biting and has been allowed to get away with it, you’ll need to do more than just decide to be alpha. The dog is going to need an attitude adjustment as well. Natural leaders and social climbers aren’t going to want to give up their alpha position. Your sudden change in behavior is going to shock and threaten them. Your dog might act even more aggressively than before. An alpha dog will instinctively respond to challenges to his authority. It’s his nature to want to put down revolutionary uprisings by the peasants! Don’t worry, there’s a way around it.
What you need to do is use your brain! You are smarter than he is and you can out-think him. You’ll also need to be more stubborn than he is. What I’m about to describe here is an effective, non-violent method of removing your dog from alpha status and putting him back at the bottom of the family totem pole where he belongs and where he needs to be. In order for this method to work, your whole family has to be involved. It requires an attitude adjustment from everyone and a new way of working with your dog.
This is serious business. A dog that bites or threatens people is a dangerous dog, no matter how much you love him. If treating your dog like a dog and not an equal seems harsh to you, keep in mind that our society no longer tolerates dangerous dogs. Lawsuits from dog bites are now settling for millions of dollars - you could lose your home and everything else you own if your dog injures someone. You or your children could be permanently disfigured and your dog could lose his life. That’s the bottom line. Remember he is not a human baby, he is your dog.
Watch for part 3 of this 3 part series.