Possibly Dominant Puppy

FabSascha

Hello everyone,

My partner and I recently adopted a Pug puppy. She's settled in nicely, however we have a couple of issues that I could do with some advice about. Firstly, I very much get the impression that she's showing early signs of dominance as she's clearly very intelligent (she got the hang of all the usual commands very quickly) but only does them when she feels like it, plus she jumps on our laps and we have a major biting problem, which I'm assuming might be a bi-product of the dominance. There's a lot of conflicting advice (I've got quite a few books, all saying different things!) so I'm just hoping there might be some experienced people on here who can share their thoughts.

The biting is a big problem too; we've done all the usual yelping when she bites, firmly stating 'no' and handing her chew toys, but she's really keen to keep biting and her bites are REALLY hard. She is a very excitable puppy and we do try and make sure she's calm before interacting with her, but she gets excited really easily. If we try to stroke her when she's like that she'll try and bite and if we hold her she'll bite whatever's nearest i.e. face, ears, chest, arms etc.

I'm determined to ensure she has a proper upbringing and I will be seeking advice from a professional trainer and enrolling her on puppy training.

One other thing worth mentioning is that she has attended a couple of puppy socialisation classes. The first one went really well and there was a slightly older puppy there who was very excitable too, so they played with each other quite happily. The second visit there was her and a couple of other puppies who were a bit on the shy side which she intimidated quite badly. It was obvious she was only playing, but the other puppies and their owners were unimpressed! It was a fairly significant change from the previous week and I'm a bit unsure as to what I might have done as we're careful not to overstimulate her.

Any thoughts most welcome and thanks in advance

WolfSong2000

Sounds like the puppy is testing her boundaries . From personal experience, I can recommend the following authors/books:

Why does my dog...?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Why-Does-Dog-John-Fisher/dp/028563481X

And just about anything by Ian Dunbar who is in my eyes an absolute genius . Examples include...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Before-after-Getting-Your-Puppy/dp/1577314557/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1300622562&sr=1-1

but there are many others.

Another option may be to look into clicker training, especially if your dog is very intelligent. It rewards and encourages good behaviour whilst ignoring bad. It can be quite tricky at first, so until you get the hang of it I'd recommend having a professional help you. Otherwise you could potentially end up confusing yourself and/or the dog

sarabe

The theory that a hierarchy based on dominance between dogs and between dogs and humans is just that - a theory and this theory has been scientifically disproved over and over again in recent years yet it is still very popular. Probably because it sounds plausible. It's a bit like an urban myth. TV reality shows about dogs also tend to fuel the myths.

This link is a good one and explains it quite well.
http://www.apbc.org.uk/articles/why-wont-dominance-die

You don't say how old your pup is or why she was up for adoption. Anyway puppies bite, they use their teeth in play because they have no hands.

The best way to teach a pup what to bite and how to play appropriately is to use a tug toy that is really long - attach some rope to a favourite toy so that there is a good distance between your hand and her teeth.

Then animate the toy on the floor, like a snake in the grass and she should prefer to bite the toy rather than you.

You can toss food on the floor when she is excitable and this will calm her down and getting her doing somthing else instead.

Look into her diet and make sure that she isn't on a high from food additives.

Don't try to stroke her if it makes her bite you. Touch is something that some dogs need to be desensitised to and not all dogs enjoy being touched as much as we think they should.

It is a common mistake to think that once you have taught a dog a command that they will understand it in every situation and also be motivated to comply.

Try learning a new skill yourself or a new language and then see if you can still master it when you are highly distracted or have other things on your mind.

If you are going to take her to puppy socialising you need to be careful that the experiences she has whilst there are worthwhile experiences.

FabSascha

Thanks WolfSong, I'll definitely look into those books and check out Ian Dunbar.

Sarabe - I see what you mean about the dominance thing, the only thing that's worrying me is that I need to make sure she doesn't get dominant with the cats and that's the main thing that's concerning me as I'm building up to introducing them soon. She's 12 weeks this Thursday. I said 'adopt' as I see taking on any animal as an adoption, but I got her from a breeder rather than a rescue centre as I've done quite a lot of research and apparently it's much better to introduce a puppy to a cat household than it is an older dog, so I wanted to play it safe.

She's doing better with the biting already; we've started a zero tolerance approach to it by completing shutting down for a few minutes when she bites and then going massively over the top with encouragement when she licks. She's letting me kiss and touch her face and head already, so I'm really pleased/relieved!

Thanks for your replies and help

WolfSong2000

sarabe wrote: »

The theory that a hierarchy based on dominance between dogs and between dogs and humans is just that - a theory and this theory has been scientifically disproved over and over again in recent years yet it is still very popular. Probably because it sounds plausible. It's a bit like an urban myth. TV reality shows about dogs also tend to fuel the myths.

This link is a good one and explains it quite well.
http://www.apbc.org.uk/articles/why-wont-dominance-die

hhmmm...am going to put the cat among the pigeons here and say I don't totally agree with this article. It's oversimplifying things. It's correct in that owners shouldn't be focusing on trying to "dominate" their dogs, but I disagree with the fact that dogs are completely devoid of dominant capabilities. Dogs personalities are as diverse as people's. Personally, I haven't come accross many people who are 'naturally' dominant, but there have been a few - same with dogs.

I'm not suggesting that a person should try and dominate any dog, even one with dominant tendencies, but I do think that dogs need to know where they stand, what is and isn't acceptable behaviour, etc, and the way you express this should be tailored to the personality of the dog. If a dog is being dominant toward me, I take no nonsense from that dog - a very harsh line of right/wrong is taken until the dog understands I mean business. With more laid back dogs, I can be more flexible in my approach.

For instance, if I had a dog with a dominant personality, there is no way on this earth that I would allow it on a chair/sofa/bed, etc, as once you ask it to get off, you're asking for an argument, which puts you immediately at a disadvantage as confrontation is ideally to be avoided as much as possible. It also gives the dog clear boundaries as to what is/isn't acceptable. On the other hand, if I had a more relaxed dog, I'd be more lenient. So the dog would be allowed on the furniture on the understanding that it would get off when asked without issue.

I prefer having the latter relationship as it's more relaxed, the dog knows I'm happy to be flexible, but there's still a bottom line where I take no nonsense. I have dealt with more dominant dogs, however, where I have had to be more black and white and occasionally assertive in my approach.

Anyhow, what I am trying to say is that I think it's ridiculous to suggest that you don't get dogs who exhibit dominant tendencies. The trick is to make sure owners don't think that 'dominating' their dogs is an acceptable method of training.

sarabe

I deliberately posted that article because it does explain things simply. It is easier to understand.

This one is better.

http://www.nonlineardogs.com/socialorganisation.html

I used to subscribe to the old dominance, hierarchy theories. I had well behaved dogs that knew their place.

I have learned a lot over the years though and now have a relationship with my dogs that is based on cooperation not competition.

There is nothing that cannot be taught using positive reinforcement.

I don't need my dogs to 'know their place' anymore because they are happy to comply with my wishes and there is now no danger of them challenging me over anything.

What is a dominant personality?

I saw a family last year that had three dogs and I'm sure they weren't as bothered about the dogs' problems as they were about wanting me to settle a family argument.

At mealtimes the Labrador scoffed his food and then pushed the other two off of their bowls and nicked theirs as well.

On walks the Collie usually always got the ball first and if one of the other two got it he'd attack them and they'd drop it so he could have it.

In the evening the Chihuahua would sit between Mum and Dad on the sofa and dare the other two to come near.

Of course the solutions were easy and I won't insult your intelligence by telling you what they were but it had diddly squat to do with dominance.

ameliarate

I am so confused by all of this. The articles are extremely long and quite hard to read/digest.

I get the impression there is a school of thought that says there isn't an issue with dominance as such in dogs and yet my dog, for example, when we have another dog at home, will try and put her head over the head/neck of another dog, which I understood to be dominance.

sarabe

ameliarate wrote: »

I am so confused by all of this. The articles are extremely long and quite hard to read/digest.

I get the impression there is a school of thought that says there isn't an issue with dominance as such in dogs and yet my dog, for example, when we have another dog at home, will try and put her head over the head/neck of another dog, which I understood to be dominance.

Therein lies the problem. Everything that a dog does is labelled as dominant or submissive and it isn't necessarily so.

Dogs can put their head on another dog's shoulder to invite them to play or to tell them to watch their step and of course the obvious one of mating and probably other reasons that we are not aware of.

sarabe

ameliarate wrote: »

I am so confused by all of this. The articles are extremely long and quite hard to read/digest.

.

Try this one http://web.me.com/support.notation/Site/Is_My_Dog_Trying_To_Dominate_Me.html

WolfSong2000

sarabe wrote: »

I deliberately posted that article because it does explain things simply. It is easier to understand.

This one is better.

http://www.nonlineardogs.com/socialorganisation.html

I used to subscribe to the old dominance, hierarchy theories. I had well behaved dogs that knew their place.

I have learned a lot over the years though and now have a relationship with my dogs that is based on cooperation not competition.

There is nothing that cannot be taught using positive reinforcement.

I don't need my dogs to 'know their place' anymore because they are happy to comply with my wishes and there is now no danger of them challenging me over anything.

I'm totally and 100% behind you with the positive re-enforcement, but what I am saying is that dog's perosnality traits are as broad as humans. You don't behave the same way toward every person you meet, and likewise you have to be aware of, and if necessary adapt to, different behavioural "personalities".

My dogs have always been (fairly) well behaved . They respond to commands, know me well enough to know my limits, but the crucial thing is they know that I have the last say. I am not "dominant" toward them in any way as I have no need to be.

I've dealt with many, many dogs and many, many different doggy personalities and just as you get some people with bullying, domineering personalities, you get the same with dogs. For instance a relative used to own a dog who was nice enough, but was what I would call "dominant" and definitely ruled the roost. Since he passed, the same relative got another dog - same breed, who has a totally different personality. He's much sweeter, less dominant and much easier to get along with. The training/upbringing of both dogs was the same.

Let me give you another animal example - a horse this time. I used to work at a livery yard - a new horse was brought in who terrorised everyone. Every time someone walked past, she'd attack them. When I went to feed her, I had to walk out of the stable backwards facing her in case she attacked me. A few weeks later, I got utterly fed up with this and decided I'd never been scared of a horse and wasn't about to start now. I started heaving confidently around her, wouldn't take any nonsense, and after just a few mins, could do anything with her. She was a changed horse and owner couldn't believe it. I wasn't being "dominant", per se, but I was being firm in a way that I wasn't toward most horses. Am I making sense? This horse was dominant, and a bully, but once she realised I wasn't taking any nonsense, and knew where I stood, her behaviour toward me changed dramatically. I never once raised my voice, or my hand toward this horse, by the way.

What I am trying to say is that it is utterly unecessary for owners to behave "dominantly" toward animals, but it is useful to recognise that animals (and people) can have this tendency. Once you recognise this, you can find ways of dealing with it.

WolfSong2000

ameliarate wrote: »

I am so confused by all of this. The articles are extremely long and quite hard to read/digest.

I get the impression there is a school of thought that says there isn't an issue with dominance as such in dogs and yet my dog, for example, when we have another dog at home, will try and put her head over the head/neck of another dog, which I understood to be dominance.

Sarabe's right on this one...whilst it *can* be a sign of dominance, it can also be a sign of a lot of other things, including play-fighting. Depends on the dog's body language and behaviour in a wider context and I couldn't comment without seeing the dog in person.

Another example would be I was abroad with a group of people...a stray dog came up to us baring its teeth. Everyone in the group assumed that the dog was snarling and started backing away, but every other aspect of its body language suggested anything but aggression. The closest thing you could call it was "smiling", even though it looked like a grimace - the dog was just after attention and wasn't being aggressive.

Another example is tail wagging...everyone assumes that if a dog's wagging its tail then it's happy - not true. Depending on how high the tail is being wagged, and how much of the tail is being wagged (e.g. if it's just the tip) then this can signal aggression.