Being a Leader

Looking at the list of needs in the previous post, it’s clear that the only way to provide for all of a dog’s needs in a human environment is to be the dog’s leader. This isn’t a condition we can just decide exists, however; the dog must believe it. So how do we convince them? Using the same methods dominant dogs use.

When a canine mother is correcting members of its litter, the puppies learn to respect her. She is the source of many of the consequences of the puppy’s actions. She’ll use a series of increasing consequences until the puppy surrenders to her will, and it’s very effective if we create a series of human equivalents to those corrections. First she’ll use direct, sustained eye contact and a bossy posture. If that doesn’t work, she’ll take a step forward while increasing the intensity of her gaze and add a sound (growl, bark, etc.). If that doesn’t work she’ll use physical contact such as a bump with her nose or placing a paw on the puppy. If that still doesn’t convince the puppy, she’ll pin it to the ground until it surrenders.

There are a few important aspects of this process that we should notice. First, the mother takes action to gain control (necessary to be dominant) and persists until she succeeds. Next, she will consistently use the same series of actions so the puppy learns each stage of the consequences of its actions. As the puppy learns this series of consequences and begins to understand that others will follow, it begins surrendering sooner during the process and fewer consequences become necessary with time. Finally, she has demonstrated to us the most successful forms of corrections to use with dogs; posture/eye contact, sound, touch and forced submission. Since every dog is familiar with this series of consequences due to its experiences with its own mother, we can use the same series regardless of the dog’s age and they will work.

There are only two postures needed to train a dog successfully; big and bossy and small and friendly. The big and bossy posture is used to correct or teach and the small and friendly posture is used to reward, play or share affection. The big and bossy posture consists of standing tall with the shoulders back, the chest pushed out and the hands on the hips. The legs should be shoulder width apart and the feet turned slightly outward as if you’re ready to take action. A serious facial expression and direct sustained eye contact should be included. The small and friendly posture consists of getting as close to eye level with the dog as possible with the arms held close to the body. A smile and brief glances should accompany this posture.

The best sound to use is whatever gets the dog to look at you. I use a “shush” sound but other people have chosen “hey” or an “aagghh” sound. It doesn’t matter what sound is chosen, as long as it is used consistently and it always means the same thing; “Look at me!” This sound should also have a slight bark to it indicating a serious need for the dog to pay attention. A wimpy sound is easy to ignore.

The best touching methods are those that dogs use on each other. I use two fingers to simulate the feel of fangs when I touch (not jab or pinch) the side or back of a dog’s neck.
Dogs bump and shoulder each other and a bump with the knee or a push with the hand will simulate these methods easily.
Describing the submission (pinning the dog to the ground) in written words would require a lengthy post that wouldn’t adequately explain it anyway. I described it in my book “Trainer Train Thyself” and never felt it was really a very effective way to pass that particular information to others. The best thing to do is watch the television program “The Dog Whisperer” and see it demonstrated.