"DOMINANCE" In the 1990s it was believed that dominance problems in dogs usually meant that the dog had got ideas above its station and is challenging the pack (the family) for top dog status. And that he majority of difficulties with dominance were man made, and resulted from a dog with too many privileges. We were told It was important to remember that there would be only one true pack leader per pack it being an Alpha Male or even female, with another one or two dogs waiting in the wings to take over one day. This meant that when we choose a dog the odds are that we will get a dog whose natural position is from the middle to the bottom of the pack.

This means that most dogs are gladly going to accept us as leader without any problems and why so many people tell you that they have had dogs all their lives without any of this 'behavioural' nonsense being necessary!

It was assumed that difficulties were created through giving status and privileges well above what would be normal for that animal. And that it was the pack leaders responsibility to make the decisions not the subordinates. He or she says when to eat, sleep, play and hunt. Dogs are not supposed to approach him even to play, although puppies are usually excused from pack manners and generally get away with murder!

Dominant behaviour can take many forms. and varies according to breed and the natural character of the dog. It is not just a dog who growls and barks at you or refuses to do anything for you, it could also be the dog who makes all the decisions. Obvious bad behaviour could be construed as the dog who growls at you when feeding or chewing a bone, ie "food or object guarding" or takes no notice of your commands.and suddenly acts the fool and starts reverting to puppy behaviour when you ask it to do something.

This popular perception on the social behaviour of dogs sees the dogs' behaviour as mimicking the social and biological pattern of the structured hierarchy that has been studied and observed within wolf packs. This view suggests that behavioural problems amongst dogs are natural expressions of conflict that occur when dominance, status, position, and hierarchy are contested.

This lead to the assumption that because dog’s distant cousins the wolf behaved like this then it was fair to assume that the dog would also have these instincts drives and responses. It is now confirmed by Mitochondrial DNA tests that our pet’s common ancestor is without doubt the wolf. These studies and findings gave birth to a completely new way of looking at dogs and in the 70s the pack rule theory was born.

May I suggest that this belief and technique is somewhat flawed in two main areas.

Firstly: this behaviour does not actually appear in the wild, the powerful dominance hierarchy described and observed in wolves is probably a by-product of captivity. That is like observing Prisoners in a high risk risk gaol and relating that to all human reactions and conflict. If true, it implies that social behavioureven in wolvesmay be a product more of environmental circumstances than an instinctive behaviour.

Secondly: feral dogs do not exhibit the classic wolf-pack structure, the validity of the canid, social dominance hierarchy again comes into question. Ray Coppinger who has written a book called "Dogs" (A New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behaviour and Evolution) probably one of the most important books on dogs published in the last 50 years, The Coppingers studied feral dogs all over the world, and found that all the feral and village dogs he studied did not form packs as we know them, they were more semi solitary animals, who predate on our waste middens and latrines. There are still parts of the world where when a new baby is born, they will get a puppy which is then used as a botty wipe for the child.

Rather than a rank reduction program for dominance related issues you would better advised to follow the following program.

The NILIF Program

NOTHING IN LIFE IS FREE

The NILIF program is remarkable because it's effective for such a wide variety of problems. A shy, timid dog becomes more relaxed knowing that he has nothing to worry about; the owner is in charge of all things. A dog that's pushing too hard to become "top dog" learns that the position is not available and that its life is far more enjoyable without the title.

It is equally successful with dogs that fall anywhere between those two extremes. The program is not difficult to put into effect and it's not time consuming if the dog already knows a few basic obedience commands. I've never seen this technique fail to bring about a positive change in behaviour; however, the change can be more profound in some dogs than others. Most owners use this program in conjunction with other behaviour modification techniques such as coping with fear or treatment for aggression. It is a perfectly suitable technique for the dog with no major behaviour problems that just needs some fine tuning.

ATTENTION ON DEMAND
The program begins by eliminating attention on demand. When your dog comes to you and nudges your hand, saying "pet me! pet me!" ignore him. Don't tell him "no", don't push him away. Simply pretend you don't notice him. This has worked for him before, so don't be surprised if he tries harder to get your attention. When he figures out that this no longer works, he'll stop. In a pack situation, the top ranking dogs can demand attention from the lower ranking ones, not the other way around. When you give your dog attention on demand you're telling him that he has more status in the pack than you do. Timid dogs become stressed by having this power and may become clingy. They're never sure when you'll be in charge so they can't relax. What if something scary happens, like a stranger coming in the house? Who will handle that? The timid dog that is demanding of attention can be on edge a lot of the time because he has more responsibility than he can handle.

Some dogs see their ability to demand attention as confirmation that they are the "alpha", then become difficult to handle when told to "sit" or "down" or some other demand is placed on them. It is not their leadership status that stresses them out, it's the lack of consistency. They may or may not actually be alpha material, but having no one in the pack that is clearly the leader is a bigger problem than having the dog assume that role full time. Dogs are happiest when the pack order is stable. Tension is created by a constant fluctuation of pack leadership.

EXTINCTION BURSTS
your dog already knows that it can demand your attention and knows what works to get that to happen. As of today, it no longer works, but your dog doesn't know that yet. We all try harder at something we know works when it stops working. If I gave you money every time you clapped your hands together, you'd clap a lot. But, if I suddenly stopped handing you money, even though you were still clapping, you'd clap more and clap louder. You might even get closer to me to make sure I was noticing that you were clapping. You might even shout at me "Hey! I'm clapping like crazy over here, where's the money?” If I didn't respond at all, in any way, you'd stop. It wasn't working anymore. That last try -- that loud, frequent clapping is an extinction burst. If, however, during that extinction burst, I gave you more money you'd be right back in it. It would take a lot longer to get you to stop clapping because you just learned that if you try hard enough, it will work.

When your dog learns that the behaviours that used to get your attention don't work any more its going to try harder and it’s going to have an extinction burst. If you give him attention during that time you will have to work that much harder to get him turned around again. Telling him "no" or pushing him away is not the kind of attention he's after, but its still attention. Completely ignoring him will work faster and better.

YOU HAVE THE POWER
As you are his owner you have control of all things that are wonderful in his life. This is the backbone of the NILIF program. You control all of the resources, playing, attention, food, walks, going in and out of the door, going for a ride in the car, going to the park, anything and everything that your dog wants comes from you. If he's been getting most of these things for free there is no real reason for him to respect your leadership or your ownership of these things. Again, a timid dog is going to be stressed by this situation, a pushy dog is going to be difficult to handle. Both of them would prefer to have you in charge.

To implement the NILIF program you simply have to have your dog earn his use of your resources. He's hungry? No problem, he simply has to sit before his bowl is put down. He wants to play fetch? Great! He has to "down" before you throw the ball. Want to go for a walk or a ride? He has to sit to get his lead snapped on and has to sit (2)
while the front door is opened. He has to sit and wait while the car door is opened and listen for the word (I use "good") that means "get into the car". When you return he has to wait for the word that means "get out of the car" even if the door is wide open. Don't be too hard on the dog. It’s already learned that it can make all of these decisions on its own. It has a strong history of being in control of when it gets these resources. Enforce the new rules, but keep in mind that your dogs only doing what it’s been taught to do and its going to need some time to get the hang of it all.

You're going to have to pay attention to things that you probably haven't noticed before. If you feed your dog from your plate do you just toss it a treat? No more. He has to earn it. You don't have to use standard obedience commands, any kind of action will do. If your dog knows "shake" or "spin around" or "speak" use those commands. Does your dog sleep on your bed? Teach him that he has to wait for you to say "good" to get on the bed and he has to get down when you say "off". Teach him to go to his bed, or other designated spot, on command. When he goes to his spot and lays down tell him "stay" and then release him with a treat reward. Having a particular spot where he stays is very helpful for when you have guests or otherwise need him out of the way for a while. It also teaches him that free run of the house is a resource that you control. There are probably many things that your dog sees as valuable resources that hasn’t been mentioned here.

 The NILIF program should not be a long, drawn out process. All you need to do is enforce a simple command before allowing him access to what he wants. Dinner, for example, should be a two or three second encounter that consists of nothing more than saying "sit", then "good", then putting the bowl down and walking away.

ATTENTION AND PLAY
Now that your dog is no longer calling the shots you will have to make an extra effort to provide him with attention and play time. Call him to you, have him "sit" and then lavish him with as much attention as you want. Have him go get his favorite toy and play as long as you both have the energy. The difference is that now you will be the one initiating the attention and beginning the play time. He's going to depend on you now, a lot more than before, to see that he gets what he needs. What he needs most is quality time with you. This would be a good time to enroll in a group obedience class. If his basic obedience is top notch, see about joining an agility class or fly ball team.

NILIF DOES *NOT* MEAN THAT YOU HAVE TO RESTRICT THE AMOUNT OF ATTENTION YOU GIVE TO YOUR DOG. The NILIF concept is about who initiates the attention (you!), not the amount of attention. Go ahead and call your dog to you 100 times a day for hugs and a fuss! You can demand his attention; he can no longer demand yours!  

Within a day or two your dog will see you in a whole new light and will be eager to learn more. Use this time to teach new things, such as 'roll over' or learn the specific names of different toys.

If you have a shy dog, you'll see a more relaxed dog. There is no longer any reason to worry about much of anything. He now has complete faith in you as his protector and guide. If you have a pushy dog he'll be glad that the fight for leadership is over and his new role is that of devoted and adored pet.

Note from Stan: this program has been in use since the mid 90,s it has survived because of its success, many of the UK ’s and the USA ’s top dog behaviourists recommend this method, as do I. However, it is not a magic wand, just a tool and like all tools it takes time to get used to using it correctly. Your dog will probably show signs of getting worse before it gets better, this is normal it is the extinction behaviour, so do not worry it will only last a short while. The important thing is to be consistent.

The NILIF program is not something you use until your dog changes and then stop, it is a lifestyle change, you must maintain it throughout your dogs life, but don’t worry because as the dog gets used to it so will you and it will become second nature. It is a known fact that if you do an action consistently for 14 days it becomes second nature. So don’t lapse or give in, see it through.

 NILIF program Courtesy of Deb McKean http://k9deb.com/nilif.htm

This article was written by Stan Rawlinson, a full time Dog Behaviourist. You can visit his website at www.doglistener.co.uk for more articles and training information. You may freely distribute this article or save to any electronic media as long as it is left intact, including this copyright box.