[GBA]

How to be or not to be pack leader.

[mylife]

They figured out that dawgs are pack animals?

Whow, Bravo /s

[Badeye]

‘In a new, year-long University of Pennsylvania survey of dog owners who use confrontational or aversive methods to train aggressive pets, veterinary researchers have found that most of these animals will continue to be aggressive unless training techniques are modified. ‘

Maybe its because I’ve had dogs all my life, but...Duh.

The same is true with most species on this planet, including the children of humans.

[BenLurkin]

In other words......only the remaining civilized members of our society should own dogs? The urban barbarians should not?

[Anitius Severinus Boethius]

A lot of these “You’re the alpha, take charge!” style of training methods miss the point completely.

An alpha in a pack doesn’t have to be overly assertive: he’s the alpha.

Not letting your dog get away with growling at you, snapping at you, or ignoring you when he is a puppy should instill the “alpha” imprint without too much else. If you have a difficult, strong willed puppy (particularly with an aggressive breed), you might need to use some stronger methods of imprinting.

As with most things in life, moderation and good common sense is the best way.

[hellbender]

The book Animals Make Us Human, by animal-behavior expert Temple Grandin, cites long-term studies which showed that wild wolves do not live in packs with a domineering alpha male; they live in small independent family groups. The "pack with alpha male" view arose from studies of unrelated captive wolves. So the whole theory behind dominating a pet dog and playing alpha may be flawed. You might be better off behaving as if you were your dog's parent!

Grandin also has lots of good material on the effectiveness of different kinds of training. Positive reinforcement is best. Negative reinforcement, however, is not the same as punishment or abuse.

[Albion Wilde]

Having served on both city and suburban community associations, I can certainly agree that a dog’s behavior is a very direct reflection of its owner. Especially in cities, many owners use their dogs like a weapon. Even in suburbs, dogs are used passive-aggressively to annoy or disrespect various neighbors, such as selective poop-leaving, or “oops, how did he get in your garden again”, etc.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Very timely. I’m training my 10 month old Yellow Lab these days. She’s going to be a very good dog, and ADORES her mistress. I can’t imagine a better dog than the Labradors; she’s our third to date and we love ‘em.

I am, “Mommy, Giver of All Foodstuffs.” :)

[Clintons Are White Trash]

I disagree. I’m a laid back person and I have one laid back dachshund and another that will jump for your crotch with teeth bared if you come in my door and he doesn’t like you. Who knows??

[Oldpuppymax]

All I know is the dogs who’ve owned me over the past 45 years have only been aggressive in licking my face, begging for treats, wanting to go outside and asking to play ball. At night, they’ve only been aggressive in hogging the covers.

[goodwithagun]

Wow. How big was the grant for this earth-shattering research?

[wardaddy]

so will your kids....

and the point is

[Marylander]

There are a lot of flaws in this study. For one thing it is a poll of opinions, no better than an internet poll. In fact it is worse than an internet poll because the respondents are at the end of their rope and have brought an intractable dog in for expensive treatment. the alternative for many would be to put the dog down. Why would they not claim to have used every version of physical force to control their dog without success? Their opinions and memories are tainted by desperation.

The authors also have a bias because they are behaviorists. They know from a hundred years of behavioral science that programmatically rewarding either the occurrence of good behavior or the absence of bad behavior consistently leads to favorable results over virtually all animal species, not just dogs. They also know that punishment for bad behavior only temporarily suppresses the behavior and struggling with an animal leads the animal to struggle back. If the animal wins, the tendency to fight is strengthened. Armed with this knowledge, how could the authors compose a questionnaire in any other way than to confirm their beliefs?

So the authors have rigged up a faulty study to show something that has already been firmly established by behavioral science. I conclude their motives were not scientific or clinical, but political and economic. The Dog Whisperer is making inroads on their clientele.

So, they are right in one respect, although their study has nothing to do with proving it. They are also wrong in one respect. As powerful and reliable as reinforcement is, it is subject to instinctual drift, that is, the problem often gradually or suddenly reappears, especially when the behavior in question is closely tied to the nature of the animal, as aggression may be to some dogs. The techniques that rely on pack leadership take the nature of the dog into account first, reinforcement second. Techniques that rely on reinforcement take it the other way around. Both approaches will give some control, even a lot of control over an aggressive dog, however both require something that many owners are unwilling or unable to give: consistent practice and constant vigilance.