Who’s In Charge?

by Ginger McAfee 

Dogs are communal creatures and believers in social structure as well as a clearly defined pecking order within the formation of their pack. The leader of this pack is called alpha. Alpha is the boss, the top dog, so to speak. The one who gets to do everything first. He gets to eat first, he gets the choice sleeping places and is the first to get attention from the other members of his pack. Your family is your dogs pack, this includes the human as well as canine members of your family unit.

Some dogs will naturally fit into the social structure of a pack in a subordinate position. Certain breeds are predisposed more than others to do this, however a Scottie is not one of them. Scotties, for the most part, come into the world believing themselves to be in charge.  Our job is to help them understand that we humans are going to be the leaders of our pack. This may not be too difficult if we begin when they are wee pups, but if we have allowed them to grow up thinking they control the household, we may have a problem on our hands.

Your dog’s mother taught him very early that she was the alpha, and that he was to respect her position. When you bring a puppy home, you need to continue the training that his mother has begun and transfer the alpha roll to you and he is free to find a more secure place within the pecking order. Begin by rolling him over on his back often. Not for a belly rub, but in order for him to become comfortable exposing his belly to you, a real sign of submission. Hold him in your arms and place your chin over his neck and head. This is what dogs do when they meet each other for the first time, the dog who gets his head on top is alpha. Hold him up to your eye level and look him directly in the eyes until he looks away. Teach him to sit and stay, then always make him wait until you go in or out of the doorway first. When you feed him, make him sit for a moment after you place his food on the floor. Several times a week, take his food away from him for a moment, after he has started to eat, this will not only help to establish your position of alpha, it is good training  should he put something harmful in his mouth and you need to take the food away from him without getting bitten. Never allow him to growl at you when you attempt to take his food. It may be cute as a puppy, but he is dead serious about it. Also, I suggest that you never play tug of war with your Scottie, or if you do, stop it at the first sign that he is taking it seriously, then YOU take the rope and put it up. If you stop the game but allow him to keep the rope, he will believe that he has won.

If your dog is older and you realize that you need to reestablish the pecking order, there are still some things you can do. Being alpha is more of an attitude. A dog can sense this attitude in other animals and humans. Practice being tough, stand straight and look your dog solidly in the eye. Speak to him in a deep and firm voice. Never ask him to obey, tell him. As alpha you are in charge. If you have not already taught him to sit and stay, that would definitely be in order now. Then any time he asked to go outside, make him sit for a moment, then as already mentioned, you go out the door first. Make him sit for his treats and his dinner. If he hesitates, then don’t feed him, ignore him for awhile, and bring the dinner out later, again telling him to sit for it. Be firm and confident. Once your dog has shown a willingness to accept his new place in the pack, it is time to enter him into a professional training class and then work with him regularly. A well trained obedient dog is a happy dog and a delight to live with.