You will have heard about dominance in dogs at one point or another. Dog owners and even non-dog owners will tell you you that our pooches need to understand their ‘position in the pack’. Thankfully, it’s a theory that has been thoroughly debunked.
There are two primary issues with the dominance theory:
1) Dominance in relation to pack theory was based on one flawed study from the 1940’s and has been thoroughly debunked.
2) It’s a blanket statement and does not capture the complex nuances of behaviour.
Dispelling the myth
Pack theory is based on a flawed study by Schenkel published in 1947. It suggested that within wolf packs there was a dominate dog – an alpha whose status meant he got the best resources. It also decreed that within the pack there was a constant struggle to become the alpha. This meant continual fighting within the pack was the social norm.
The study was based on observation of several unrelated wolves from different packs put together in captivity. From these observations, it was decided that wolves must live in a strict social hierarchy and that dominant and aggressive interactions must happen regularly to maintain social order.
A line was then inaccurately drawn between wolves and dogs,* leading to humans believing that to have control and harmony they had to consistently let their dog know that the human was the alpha. This included the human walking through the door first, never sitting or laying ‘lower’ than the dog (so no dogs on furniture), and more sinisterly, alpha rolls, knees in the chest to stop jumping, and pushing the dog around.
Thankfully, alpha theory has been thoroughly debunked as it was based on flawed information about both wolves and dog behaviour (Also it was debunked here and here and here and here).
*Fun fact, whilst dogs and wolves do have a common ancestor, they are thought to have diverged as a separate species around 15,000 years ago. Dogs and wolves are their own species and whilst there can be similarities (same with humans and apes) there aren’t identical behavioural characteristics.
But is dominance a thing?
If you are a quiet person who avoids conflict, you could be referred to as a submissive person. If one day you are pushed to your limits and you yell at someone, does that make you a dominant person? Or are you choosing a more dominant behaviour in that moment to be heard?
Similarly, if you feel strongly about a resource, you may act differently at times to maintain access or control over that resource. For example, you might argue with your partner about what channel on TV to watch, but at other times be quite happy to let them make the choice.
It is important to learn what resources your dog values, and what environment triggers unwanted behaviours. You can then manage or even prevent the unwanted behaviours from occurring.
This is the second primary issue with dominance theory. It reduces the behaviour of a complex sentient being down to a black and white power struggle.
Understanding resources
With dogs, resources are king. Our greyhounds have had very few opportunities to engage with many resources. When they come into pet life, all the fun, comfortable and yummy resources can be overwhelming. We often ask why their dogs are growling when asked to get off the couch or bed. It is so simple to attach the ‘dominance’ label to this behaviour, but it’s just not the case.
Let’s take the bed or couch as an example. The dog has discovered this great resource. It’s super comfy, generally temperature controlled, and big enough for them to stretch out on. Then a human comes and wants them to move? The dog is not a fan of this plan, so they let you know in a way they can.
First, they may tell you in ways that are very clear in dog language, but easily missed by humans. A head turn, showing the whites of their eye, a lip lick. All saying, I’m uncomfortable with the human’s approach here, I would prefer to be left alone. The humans often miss this, meaning the dog needs to begin to be clearer in their communication. This is often a growl or bark. It can sometimes be interpreted as resource guarding but often can be as simple as, ‘I’ve found a comfortable spot and I don’t want to get up’. (If you think your dog is resource guarding, please reach out to your adoption coordinator!)
This can also help explain why some dogs do quite happily get up when asked. Perhaps they were hot, needed a drink or simply didn’t hold that much value in that spot on the couch. Just like the TV show example, they didn’t care that deeply about that resource in that moment.
So how do we stop the undesirable behaviour?
We hear about dominance when a dog is doing something we don’t like, or displaying a behaviour we view as aggressive. Growling, snarling, baring teeth, lunging, biting etc.
Often the dog is displaying this behaviour because they are scared. In the case of resources, they’re scared of losing the resource. They are removed from the couch, they have the shoe or what they think of as a toy taken away, or food is snatched back. This teaches them they’re right to be concerned about the potential loss of the resource and could lead them to guard these items more vigorously in the future. They might even become scared and anxious of the humans because they’re acting scary and intimidating.
Instead of this, we need ways to better communicate what we expect of our dogs. Management is key.
We often see hounds lounging on the couch. We may want to restrict access to that resource until we have a good way of communicating when we want them to jump down. We also need to have comfortable alternatives. Greyhounds are all angles so they can be quite particular about where they get comfy. Having soft beds around the home will help ease the temptation of human beds.
If you do find that your dog has taken up residence on the bed or sofa, don’t grab them or try and yank them down. Instead get a high value treat and lure them down on to a more appropriate bed. You can also encourage them to be in particular places by treating them when they are laying in particular areas.
When you first adopt, having glass jars with treats in them around the house means you can quickly identify and reward behaviours you want to see.
Building your relationship bank account
As with any blossoming relationship, the early days are critical, but the relationship bank account can be deposited into at any time.
The more trust you can build with your dog through understanding what they’re communicating, the better your relationship will be. This means that if you do need to lure them off the bed or swap an item for a high value treat, you are building your relationship rather than damaging it.
The next time someone jumps to tell you that a behaviour is likely driven by dominance, stop and consider what the dog could be thinking.
It’s likely to be far more nuanced than world domination.