Article
Two
Hierarchy
Last week
I briefly described how the hierarchy tree fits into
the family way of life. This week I shall be looking
into some of the actions that can lead the dog to
believe he has a higher place in the hierarchy tree
than he should. Going back to the dog being a pack
animal and still a wolf at heart it therefore stands
that the house is a pack den. This is were the majority
of behavior problems start but with a little effort
can easily be stopped.
Over the past
three or four decades our lifestyles have changed
quite dramatically and that of the family dog has
changed also. This change has inadvertently caused
many behavioral problems. The pet dog used to be treated
as a dog, it came last in the family order because
our living standards dictated that financially and
practically the dog must fit in that way. Now however
that is not the case and the dog has been raised in
rank within the family and as we all know rank brings
responsibility, privileges and allows you to make
decisions and enforce those decisions over those below
you.
The first
way this has come about is in the movement we allow
the dog within the den. Pack animals who are low in
the rank structure sleep and live on the fringes of
the pack society, they have limited movement around
the den and certain areas are strictly off limits.
Twenty or thirty years ago houses did not have central
heating and a system of "close doors" was
operated to keep the heat in the living room or bedrooms.
Dogs invariably were kept in the garden or at best
in the kit c hen, the door would be closed behind
them and there they stayed. However now most houses
are centrally heated, or in the case of Cyprus during
the summer heating is not required and a policy of
"open doors" is operated. This has led to
the dog having the opportunity to move around the
den and occupy the key areas within the house. The
top of the stairs so it can view the rest of the pack,
the doorways so it can restrict movement, and the
resting areas, bedrooms, chairs and settees even when
it has a bed in the kitchen. The dog now believes
it can move around the den as it feels fit and it
can rest were ever it wants but no human can rest
in it's bed. Hopefully now you will see two things,
first the relevance of the comparison to the wolf/pack
animal and secondly the way you allow your pet dog
to fit into your family hierarchy.
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This article
was written by Paul C Bunker, a professional dog trainer.
You can visit his website at www.Southwestk9services.com for more articles and
dog training resources. You may freely distribute
this article or save to any electronic media as long
as it is left intact, including this copyright box.
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