An Alpha Primer

An Alpha Primer

In dog training your dog, alpha is what it’s all about. If your dog is bad, marking the house, running away when you call him to come, scratching an itch when you say Down, breaking his stays, guarding his bowl, growling when you roll over onto him in your own bed, alpha is what it’s all about. If your good dog sit stays in the elevator, listens to anyone who takes his leash, lets you take his food away, does tricks on eye contact alone, looks to you for direction and approval, understands No and, no matter what, comes when called, even if he’s off leash, out of doors and playing with another dog, alpha is what it’s all about.

Professional trainers know that it is a waste of time to try to train a dog without first establishing themselves as alpha to the dog. The dog is a.pack animal. He must have a leader to listen to and adore. If he doesn’t, he takes the role himself. Then he’s nasty, he’s marking in the house, he’s running away when you call him, scratching an itch when you say Down, breaking his stays, guarding his bowl, growling when you roll over onto him in your own bed. Having so much to do and so little time, professional trainers establish short cuts to becoming alpha to any dog they meet. Of course, the longer they work with dogs, the more alpha they feel. The dog can read this. He can smell it. And this eau de alpha reinforces the message delivered by the trainer’s behavior and body language. As you learn and use these short cuts, as you begin to feel comfortable in the role of top dog, you’ll wear that all important perfume, too. These short cuts follow—and so do some long cuts, for as you know, dog training is an art which takes time. So work quickly and work slowly on becoming alpha. Here’s how:

Always praise a dog, anyone’s dog, as if you own it. Put your hands firmly on the dog. Hug the dog. Pull the dog into your leg for his hug when he’s in the heel position. Pat him so that your hand gets warm from the contact. Do not praise in a timid or offhand way.

Praise warmly, well and quickly. Do not drag out or draw out your praising of a working dog. Do not fawn over the dog just because he gave one crummy sit. As my first teacher used to say, ‘He wasn’t that good."

Reprimand fairly and quickly and then forgive. Again, if you ate putting your hands on your dog, do so with confidence and authority. NO—hands on does not mean hitting. Hands on may mean a collar shake, a shove, a surprising assist into the sit or down. Or it may mean a yank or the leash. Do it quickly and with authority. Then when you’ve made the dog do exactly what you want—once—give the beast a hug. That’s alpha.

Give permission. Give it for what he is about to do anyway as long as it is okay with you. This does not mean that you say OK when you see your dog about to steal the evening roast! This means you do say OK when your dog is about to get into the car for a motor trip with you, eat the food in his bowl, go out with you for his afternoon constitutional. It means that in a subtle way, you are teaching the dog to look to you for approval and permission instead of making decisions on his own. This is a good and comfortable set up which is easy to establish and no, it does not turn the dog into a robot. The better behaved the dog, the more freedom and fun he can have.

Deny permission. Monitor your dog’s behavior. Teach him some manners. Even if you like him to walk as your couch and coffee table (You know who you are!). he shouldn’t behave that way in other people’s homes. When you hike him to the lake, he should wait for permission to swim. It may be too cold some days or there may be too many young children swimming. And he should come onto your bed only with permission, too. More on this very soon. Remember, you are in charge—you call the shots.

Do a sit stay. My own very laid back way of becoming alpha in five minutes with a new dog is to put the dog on a sit stay. It he’s a wild animal and doesn’t know the meaning of obedience, all the better. When he breaks, and he will, I put him back. If he beaks 14 times, I put him back 14 times. You see, I have trained terriers! At the end of the five minutes (ten if it’s a terrier) the dog knows you are alpha. No yelling. No hitting. No electric stimulation. No leaving him in the kennel for three days. Just a sit stay. Easy.

Stand tall. Use your voice to express your confidence, your alpha-ness. Use your eyes in a top dog way—unless you are dealing with a biting lunatic. Breathe like a top dog. Smell like a top dog. What does that mean? Benevolent, but alpha, that’s what. Tough but loving. Capable of getting what you want, what’s necessary for safety and sanity, that’s what. Never jerky, show offy. arbitrarily rough, unfair, sadistic, never! Can a dog understand what’s fair and what isn’t? You bet!

Be a model to your dog, as his natural mother was. The top dog behaves with dignity, surety, confidence, authority, intelligence. He or she is in charge, comfortably. Your comfort in your alpha role will help the dog to be calm. Comfort is contagious. Remember—he’s watching.

The Hindu proverb says. "A dog is a lion in his own lane." Don’t let a lion sleep in your bed! If you’ve got no problems being alpha and no problems with your dog and you want your dog in your bed, invite him up. Invite him. He should not ever feel it’s his right to sleep in your bed. That would make him your equal, which he is not.

Indulge in an occasional demonstration of power. Wolves and dogs do this all the time. The alpha wolf will remind the others ritualistically that he is in charge. It may look violent to you—that grabbing of the muzzle, that tossing of the other onto his or her back. But it’s not. It is a ritual. It is communication. You can indulge in a demonstration of power symbolically, too. Use the down stay once a day. It’s a panacea. It’s easy. It says, "I’m alpha." It says, "Calm down." It’s humane and effective. It’s communication. It’s non-violent, yet it does the trick.

What your dog sees, hears and smells, what he (feels, when he’s in your presence) should all read alpha to him. As you can see, this does not require you to walk around your house growling. Far from it. The more confident you are as "top dog," the more easily you can step into your dog’s mother’s shoes—for surely she was alpha and taught him the power and justness of the role—the more relaxed and loving your household will be, With his faith well placed in you, your calm dog knows there are rules and customs to be honored., love and fun to be shared.

With the role of alpha yours, no longer will you have to tiptoe around your own house, hoping against hope not to come upon your dog when he is guarding his plastic frog or chomping on a bone, no longer will you fear a dog fight breaking out when you are least prepared. no longer will you need to spend afternoons searching the neighborhood for your runaway. With order established and the habit of reminding your dog who’s who and what‘s what firmly established, peace will reign and there’ll be time and energy for fun. That, too, is what it’s al1 about, this living with dogs.

THE DOG WHO KNOWS HE IS DOMINANT:

Is possessive of food/toys/his favorite resting place and may mutter/growl/snap over them.

· "Talks back" at you when corrected.

Mouthes you when you groom or try to position him.
May lift his leg frequently, even on your furniture.
‘Humps’ you or the kids or pushes you with his body, or puts his head over you and bears down (all forms of ritualistic dominance in dogs).
Becomes stiff and growls when handled on parts of his body he is touchy about.

A dog who does any one of the latter behaviors needs immediate re-training and remember: NO DOG AT ANY TIME, EVER HAS A REASON TO SNARL, GROWL OR SNAP AT ANY FAMILY MEMBER. If you give him an excuse you are denying a potentially lethal problem. Most dog bites are upon family members and could have been prevented if the signals mentioned above had been heeded and dealt with.

TO STATE YOUR DOMINANCE:

Ways in which to gain dominance over your pet and become ‘alpha’ are often very varied and much depends on how pushy the dog was allowed to become. Dogs which are already biting need the help of a professional trainer . IT CAN BE DANGEROUS TO DO THESE EXERCISES WITH AN AGGRESSIVE DOG, without assistance. Obviously starting out right with a puppy prevents alpha conflicts but older dogs can change their attitude if the following tips and exercises are followed on a regular basis:

Leave a light nylon cord dragging from the dog’s collar so it is handy to grab When you need to reprimand your dog, do so immediately then forgive. A harsh yell, a shove, a yank on his collar for misbehavior, then have him do something easy like ‘sit’ and praise him. If you are still mad, ignore the dog, don’t nag.
Praise enthusiastically, when appropriate, but make him earn it and don’t drag it out. Don’t fawn over the dog and no more than five seconds petting for pushy dogs
Make him wait at doors, gates, etc, until you have gone through then say, "O.K.!" and allow him to follow you through.

Make him sit-stay, them give permission "OK!’ when having him do things he enjoys, i.e. eating, swimming, chasing a ball, playing with other dogs.

Never let him on furniture or beds, only "alphas" are allowed in high places and have the best resting places. Yank the dog off hard if he gets on forbidden territory A well-mannered dog can be allowed up if you wish but by permission only and practice telling him so get off (and make sure he does!).

Tell him ‘Move!’ or ‘Get Back!’ when he is in your way, (yes, even if he is lying down) and shove or knee him back hard if he doesn’t move.

Say "No!" and slam him into a down-stay when he barks at you. Squirt him with vinegar/water mixture if he persists. Praise and play after a minute of "quiet time"

Practice taking toys, etc. away from him and giving them back after a sit and ‘O.K.’. Use a
"Leave it" command and teach it to pups by exchanging the article for a treat. Possessive dogs can be made to release something by pressing their top lips under their molar teeth hard. Shaking by the collar or a firm jerk on the line may also make him spit it out. If the article is a "no-no," show it to him and emphasize the fact, then give him one of his toys.
Put your hand in his food dish while he is eating, a praise him, put a piece of cheese on his food as a reward. Take the dish away, make him sit and give it back, and then allow him to continue eating, with permission, of course.

Allow him a few "watchdog" barks. He should just alert you, the leader, then shut up as you, the leader, take control of the situation. Say, "that’s enough!", make him sit and praise. Jerk on his collar or squirt him if he persists. Correct him sharply barking at familiar things like neighbor’s and squirrels, he will then learn to discriminate and be a more reliable alarm system.

Do down-stays, lots of them. Half an hour at a time is not excessive for a dog over nine months. Placing a dog in a submissive position and making him stay there is a symbolic demonstration of power. It is the most essential obedience exercise for a disrespectful dog—you will be surprised how multiple "downs" will calm him and affect his attitude to other commands.

Correct a problem dog sharply for aggression to other pets, you do the disciplining in the house, not him! (Bitches defending their puppies and any dog defending his own food/bed from other dogs are forgiven.)

Occasionally demonstrate your power as all alpha dogs do. The rituals of grabbing, and holding for a few seconds, the dog’s muzzle; rolling him on his back and holding by the throat skin, and sometimes "staring him down" are all actions he will inherently recognize as being ‘alpha".

Corrections for any show of aggression (even that warning look he sometimes gives you) must be strong enough to impress the dog. For mouthing a crack on the muzzle usually works if done with enough force to impress the pup. Soothe and pat his head with your hands when he quits to prevent hand-shyness. For a pup, a good shake by the scruff is a heavy correction, but feisty youngsters may need to be held by the cheeks, front end off the ground and shaken and yelled at! A real "alpha" move on any dog is to shove him down, yell in a harsh tone and don’t let him up until he becomes still and looks away and concedes that you are truly the "alpha" wolf.
A snapping dog can be lifted up by the leash or cord (remember—dragging from his collar?) and shaken and held there until he quits snapping. If he is determined to "nail" you, get professional help before trying any direct contact exercises.
After having an altercation with you dog, where, hopefully, you have settled the matter over who is the dominant one, you can show him what a fair leader you are; have him execute an easy command, e.g. "sit" then hug him and praise!

"Alpha" is an attitude_,and dogs pick up on it immediately. If you handle your dog confidently, look him in the eyes, and command firmly, he will work to earn your love and praise. Look at your obedience instructors’ dogs; they are happy, trusting and secure an the knowledge that they have good leaders. With you in the "alpha" position, your dog too is freed to be a loyal, affectionate, family member.