| Will this dog Walk behind the human on a walk without prior training if you make him wait while you walk through the door first? Of course not! |
I hear a lot more of these blanket statements when people refer to dominance-based methods. A lot of the time it seems like making the Dog Walk behind you on a walk will make him see you as a leader and will therefore behave better in the house, but it doesn't make much sense does it? They'll tell you "eat first, walk through doorways first, have him sleep on the floor and not your bed, make him wait to eat, and make him walk behind you and he will be a well-behaved dog overall." It does teach one good lesson, impulse control, but these things will do nothing to make your dog understand that he should be obedient to you or that he shouldn't guard his food from other animals. Do you see what I mean?
| The puppy is displaying a submissive behavior when the larger dog stares it down. Does this mean that the puppy will be more respectful of the large dog in other situations? Probably not. |
Instead of relying on leadership as the way to eliminate a wide range of behavior problems, focus on each issue individually.
-Why is Fido jumping up on guests? Perhaps it's because when he does he gets more attention. To fix that, make sure Fido gets no attention when he jumps up.
-Why does Fido bark at strangers? Maybe he is being territorial or is afraid of strangers. Help Fido overcome his fears and teach him that strangers are not a threat to him or his territory.
-Why does Fido keep peeing in the house? He might not be completely potty trained, he doesn't get let out often enough, or you are not giving him enough attention. To help this problem, work on potty training skills, let him outside more often to potty, and give him a little more attention throughout the day.
-Why is Fido pulling on the leash? Because pulling gets him where he wants to go. Curb this behavior by not letting Fido go anywhere or sniff anything if he pulls, and only let him walk and sniff when he is walking with a loose leash by your side.
etc. etc. etc. The point is, EVERY SINGLE issue that your dog faces should be carefully evaluated before making a decision on how to correct it. If you can focus on each problem individually rather than assume that it's for one reason such as "lack of leadership," then you will have a much easier time correcting it. You will also become less frustrated with the dog and will not see the dog as stubborn or hard-headed (oh man, if I had a dollar for every time I've heard "my dog is so stubborn!")
| You can't make this dog walk until you figure out WHY he doesn't want to. |
