I cant say I dominate my dogs but with GSDs I feel they need to know who is pack leader, |I do this in a subtle way not in a negative or harsh way. My male dog wanted to be alpha male now I am (not sure I should brag about that ) It worked on him and Zeita will have to find her place below me wether its below or above him remains to be seen

I dont merely take chews away from my dogs without a reason. For the most part, i'm happy to let them get on with it and if I do take it away, they get it back a few moments later.

As I mentioned in my earlier post, Flynn is very dominant over Jed and will steal Jed's chew once he has finished his. Occassionally, it will happen vice versa which is the situation I found myself in a few days ago.

Flynn isnt overly keen on hide chews so decided he was bored of it. Once he'd moved away, Jed took it for himself (after eating his own). Now, because (albeit in the human world) this wasnt fair to Flynn I went to take it from Jed and he snapped at me. Still, I insisted that I was going to take it and he gave it up.

As Shona pointed out, you dont really want a dog to guard objects around children. Since my dogs see my 4 little nephews on a regular basis I want them to learn that any member of the extended pack has the right to remove any object from their possession without comeback from the dog.

It also goes without saying that the kids are told not to disturb the dogs when they have food of any kind but we all know kids like to do the opposite of what they are told and wont be able to see the danger until it's too late.

This dominance thing is actually very confusing for a new dog owner these days.

For example, the styles of dog 'training' that insist you have to become pack leader over your dog state quite strongly that by not becoming your dog's leader will result in your dog having a very stressful, desperate life. For example, some state that if you don't become leader, your dog feels it has to, even though it may not be able to successfully fill the role.

However, on the other hand, you could choose not to do the dominance bit and choose to fuss, pet and love your dog all you want, when you want. However, the dominance trainer will tell you that is the wrong approach.

So, what is right? If you dominate the dog as his 'Alpha', does this truly make him content, relaxed and blissfully happy as claimed (even though the dog actually looks depressed)? Or, does fussing, petting and general loving make them content and blissfully happy?

It's both of the above in equal measures.

Yes I am the 'Alpha' if that’s what you want to call it, I just use the term 'The Boss', i.e.: they do as I tell them, and when I tell them to do it, but that's not to say that my dogs are not totally relaxed and blissfully happy, nor is it that they are not loved and fussed over because they are.

Let me explain. I treat my lot exactly the same way as I did my children when they were about 12-years old. If they are being naughty then they will get told off for whatever they shouldn't be doing and told to sit until they have claimed down. If they start to fight over something then I put the two offenders in the garden (one at each end with me in the middle) and they are told to sit and wait until they have redirected their attention back on me. All my dogs get fed in the same order and in the same place, (but not in the same room) i.e.: Ruby is fed in the hallway by the ground floor toilet, Onyx in the kitchen, Jess by the front door, Max in my office, Skye in the conservatory, this not only stops them nicking out of each others bowls, but if one is on medication then I know it won’t go to the wrong dog. It is all down to discipline.

But on the other hand they are also my five little black ‘n’ tan sheep, because wherever I go they are sure to follow. At the moment I have got them all spread over my office floor, but if I got up to go to the kitchen they would just follow me unless told to wait.

Now I really don’t know what the better solution is, but I do know that when you have got more then one dog in your household you have go to be the boss and maintain complete control and discipline.

That all said, I have also found that a regular routine works just as well to the point that my dogs know what it expected of them so they don’t need to be told. Ie: they sit at the front door waiting for their leads to go on and they don’t touch their food until told to do so. Now whether this is their way of showing respect for the pack leader (me) I don’t know, but I do know that it makes my life easier.

As Colin mentions bringing the dogs up like his kids, I too am often asked,,,did you rear your son Gordon as you would a Rottweiler, or did you rear your dogs Like a child, the truth is, Im not one to be beaten,

If I say no its for good reason, {when Gordon asked for things, to go somewhere alone, or whatever when young, } I never just said NO I always gave a good reason for it, but I never changed my mind, NO means NO, so Gordon never asks twice, he knows that I wont change my mind, the dogs are the same,.

I think consistancy is the main thing, I often see people justifying there dog having a go at another dog, all be it sometimes Yes it is down to the other dog doing something silly, but I feel, your dog is allowed to bite or it is not allowed to bite,

{that said I have rotts} Its not ok for my dogs to bite, But I never let them get into a situation where they are in danger, My dogs look to me to deal with any situation that comes up,

I have been lucky to date and havent had something happen to upset the dogs in a neg way, should that happen it could be a diff story,

I often find Kaos {who seems to get it the most } will come running back to me with a pap, appso, or similar hanging from him, he has this panic stricken look on his face which says "get it orff,,get-it orff quick mum } its pathetic, but its the way I like em to be, more so as I use my lot to assess agression in dogs that come to me outwith normal training for aggression problems, it wouldnt work too well if they reacted to dogs being aggressive, or got wound up,. it would be of no use to me, or the other dog, they often just look at the dog like its loopy,


I feel rotts if reared properly dont need to go out and act the tough guy, they are so confident in there own skin, abillity, that they just get on with it, Royce will take three bites before he retaliates, then he doesnt go for a fight, he has a fab method of stopping the other dog dead in its tracks,,,,he gets it by the ear boobah and nero can back this up, cos they have seen it a few times,

The key is knowing when to fuss your dog and when to be assertive. If you're dog is behaving and doing as it's told then by all means show it some love because it deserves it.

Many dogs owners, not so much give their dog too much affection, they just give it at totally the wrong times and thats when they nurture misbehaving mutts.

If my dogs are scrounging whilst i'm eating, they'll get told no and moved away so i'm able to have that space to eat in peace. I insist that they stay at a reasonable distance whilst I have food. Many other people would stroke their dogs whilst having a meal thus teaching the dog that they get praised for scrounging. It simply creates bad manners and a lack of respect.

Like Colin Bradish says, it's both in equal measures, and in the right order!

Good post Leanne.

The Jan Fennel followers, or anyone else that thinks that we should be 'ALPHAS' (makes dog trainers giggle) can never answer the fact that dogs, know, that we, are not dogs.

It matters not what species you are.

Animals which are fostered by other species will happily follow.

It's about common sense and good leadership, which means consistency and clear instructions.

I dont act like Alpha to my dogs, but I suppose in that context I am, as I'm their leader, their boss, their provider, but I wouldnt alpha roll them or pin them, they would laugh at me

I admit that I used to pin my BC when he was younger but he was a wild little tearaway who wouldnt give up and it was a constant battle of wills. It never worked because he used to simply get more wound up and more aggressive and my arms used to be torn to ribbons trying to physically overpower him. I had never had any responsibility over a dog who wanted to be boss so I did what I thought was best but nowadays I wouldnt pin my dogs down. Fortunately, he's grown up to be a perfect gentleman and only a firm command is needed on occassions now.

What I do find tends to work brilliantly and without fail is giving warning growls to my pair. Maybe i'm the only person who growls at their dogs but the way I see it, i'm speaking their language. An example is Flynn's lack of walking to heel. I've tried changing directions, using headcollars, slip leads, treats and the "heel" command but he still pulls like a train. The only thing that has an effect is a growl from me if he moves from the position and he's straight back at my heel. If he ignores me he gets a finger bite in the neck. But obviously, keeping up this growling whilst on a walk gets you some funny looks and it also hurts your throat, lol!

If Flynn is after something in my possession like food or a toy I only have to give a short growl and he backs straight off and sits at a respectable distance.

Just out of curiosity, am I the only person here who uses growling?