K9 Perspective

The magazine your dog would want you to read

Editorial October-November 2008

Observe and listen to your pet

DOGS have been man’s best friend for a very long time now - long enough for man to have learned something about dogs and their language, customs and traditions, way of life, needs and desires. Considering the centuries and generations of dogs that have served man through hunting for him, racing other dogs for man’s pleasure, search and rescue duties, tracking, assisting those with disabilities, serving alongside our Police and Military personnel, guarding business premises and being the best companions anyone could want, it should be understood by now that dogs have earned the right to comfortable and happy lives with their human families. They have earned their status as family members and their right to warm, dry lodgings, good wholesome food, adequate exercise and rest daily, and the constant companionship of family members.

It is such a shame that humans have not been so adept at learning about dogs and their body language.

A huge number of trainers it seems still promote the very old-hat theory that humans have to establish themselves as leader of the pack, putting their unfortunate dog-owning clients immediately into a bad relationship with their family companion. Research on which the theory of alpha dog is based was done many decades ago and has not been updated in the minds of the public – nor, it seems, in the minds of many trainers.

The fact is that the original wolf packs were made up of family units. What appeared to be the alpha dogs of the pack were really the pack parents who were always given the respect they deserved by their offspring. These family members would stay with the parents until they were fully mature and ready to break away and start a pack of their own with a chosen mate. If pack parents had young pups and hunting was not fruitful, far from being first to eat, they would feed their pups first, or if the pups were very young they would eat at the kill site and regurgitate food for the pups. So there is no such thing as the alpha dog of the wolf pack – there is just the pack mother or the pack father, looking after a variety of generations of family members.

Which brings us to the “top dog” theory and the trainers (and yes, even some vets will still tell their clients to show their dog they are boss of the pack!) who promote that style of training. Just ask yourself whether you want your relationship with the family pet to be one of “boss and servant” or would you rather your pet was a member of your family and a “good friend”? That doesn’t mean that your dog shouldn’t be trained at all. Even children require training and dogs are the same. But modern methods of training are very different from the methods of even 10 years ago and are based on mutual respect and observed body language.

A recent scientific magazine article explained that dogs worldwide are becoming more intelligent because of their constant association with people and their altered lifestyle patterns. Dogs today are very likely to have a full-time job like their human partners and seem more than capable of “thinking on their feet” in jobs like search-and-rescue or customs or military work, and with service dogs they often begin performing tasks for their owners that they were never trained to do. They have simply made observations and responded to them.

It is certainly time that the outdated desire of humans to prove themselves ‘alpha dog of their pack’ was stored for posterity and owners sought the services of modern trainers who can show them the way. Dogs do not need an alpha pack leader – they need gentle, caring and respectful guidance on the rules to observe when living with their human family, just as that human family needs guidance on how to cohabit safely and happily with their canine companion. Dogs do try to communicate with us all the time, to tell us what they want and what they don’t want – listen to them if you wish to earn their respect. Take note of their warning growl – how else can they tell you they are not happy in a situation? Watch when they try to walk away from a situation – how else can they tell you they are panicking and don’t want to be there?

You need to help dogs in such trouble and remove them from the person or location or situation that is causing their anxiety. Observe their body language always and listen to their vocal communication. They have learned centuries of body language from us, so surely it is time we returned the favour? – Elezabeth