How To Become The Pack Leader

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• Who's The Pack Leader You Or Your Dog?
• Many owners whose dogs exhibit behavior problems
  fail to realize that they are not in charge of
  the pack. Canines have a pack leader mentality
  and this thought process exist even if your dog
  is the only dog in the family because you are
  his or her pack. As a pack leader the dog is the
  decision maker and as the decision maker the dog
  decides what is acceptable in the pack. If you
  fail to realize how the pack mentality works then
  you are the subordinate in the pack instead of
  your dog being subordinate to you and your family
  members.
• 15 Ways to Become a Pack Leader
• By Lisa L Lane
• A dog who does not know who the pack leader is,
  is a confused dog and can exhibit many unwanted
  behaviors because of it. Your Great Dane is a
  pack animal. All dog packs have a pack leader
  and social hierarchy in which each individual
  animal knows its own place.
• Great Dane puppies are taught pack behavior by
  their mothers before they even leave the
  whelping box. By understanding pack behavior you
  can use it to help train your dog.
• Pack leadership always involves the strongest
  animal. In dogs and wolves this leadership
  position is generally held by an adult male in
  his prime with sufficient life experiences to
  guide the pack in the business of day-to-day
  survival. Your dog will need to have a pack
  leader or she/he will become confused which will
  cause her to exhibit destructive behaviors and
  she will take her anxiety out on those around
  her and her surroundings. A dog's behavior and
  your dogs body language is a good sign of them
  having a pack leader or them becoming the pack
  leader. A dog who knows her place in her human
  pack is a happy and well balanced dog.
• You, your family, and your Great Dane make up a
  pack. You or one of your family members will
  have to assume the alpha male or pack leader
  responsibilities and hopefully the hierarchy
  will have each human at a point above the Great
  Dane dog.
• Here are 15 tips to help you become the Pack
  Leader of your dog family

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• 4. You should have set times for your Great Dane
  feeding, Great Dane feeding should be done on a
  schedule. Do not feed table scraps to your dog
  (especially Great Danes) Great Danes have very
  sensitive stomachs and if you deviate from her
  normal food and treats you will have a sick
  Dane.
• Just like the walking and going through doorways
  first you should always eat first. The leader
  always eats first. When you give your dog food,
  eat a small snack first while your dog watches
  before feeding her.
• You should never allow your dog to mouth or bite
  anyone at any time, including during play.
• Your Great Dane should not sleep in your bed, not
  only because there may not be room for you but
  also because in the dog pack the leader sleeps in
  the most comfortable place. This is not to say
  you can not ever allow your dog on your bed. You
  can invite your Dane to lay in bed with you but
  just make her stay at the bottom of the bed and
  not push you out of the way.
• If you establish eye contact with your Great Dane
  she should look away first. When the dog looks
  away first it reinforces your status as pack
  leader.
• When walking your dog you should never allow your
  dog to "walk you". You should have a slack
  lease, not tight. Remember, the leader is always
  first and leads the way.
• One of the basic commands your Great Dane puppies
  should learn is "drop it". What ever is in
  her/his mouth you should be able to take
  possession of at any time.
• You should never play tug-of-war with your Great
  Dane. This is a game of power and you may lose,
  especially if you have a Great Dane, you may end
  up getting hurt.
• When you put your dogs food dish down make her
  wait until you tell her "Ok" to eat. Put
  yourself in front of the food dish and make her
  sit first. If the dog does not follow your
  command take the food up and try again in 15
  minutes.
• All games played with your Great Dane pups should
  start and end with you.

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Casey L Lane is an avid animal lover. She
volunteers at her local animal shelter and has
been know to take in strays. While waiting in
her car at a local food market parking lot a
women dropped her dog out of the car and drove
away, well Casey picked that dog up, brought it
home, and gave it the love it needed. She owns a
Great Dane website called the World of Great
Danes, it has a ton of pictures and several
articles. She is adding content daily so check
this site often. On the Kids and Danes page she
has a book you can download for the kids, on the
Great Dane Puppies page there is a book you can
download for How to Find a Good Dog Breeder, and
more free things to see and download. Article
Source http//EzineArticles.com/expert/Lisa_L_Lan
e/207312
Click The Image To Download This Free Resource PDF
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How to Be the Pack Leader of Your Dog By Danny
Taylor One of the most important and effective
methods of training your dog or puppy is to
establish your place leader of the dog pack. We
all want to love our canine companions and become
their friends. However, many people mistake
"friend" for "equal." You can become the dog
pack leader and remain your pet's companion. In
fact, this type of relationship leads to a
healthy, safe, and less stressful existence for
both dog and human. An actual pack of dogs
operates with a strict social system. There is
always an alpha and various "lesser" dogs that
submit to the alpha. What human's may view as
primitive is actually a long established form of
survival and peacekeeping. The alpha helps
protect the pack, making decisions that are in
the group's best interests and maintaining order
among the group's members. In return, each pack
member has his or her job to do in order to
maintain a healthy lifestyle for all. Without
dog pack leaders, the pack itself would fall
apart. In a domesticated situation, the same
rule applies. While your pet dog may not need to
hunt and exist in an actual pack, he or she
still needs the guidance of a leader. Learning
how to be the pack leader with your dog is very
important for this reason. Not only does it keep
your beloved pet safe and content, it makes for
a more efficient dog training technique. Developi
ng your position as leader does not mean you are
demanding of your dog. You do not have to bark
commands and order you furry friend around to
maintain your position. Rather, it is a matter of
respect and boundaries. By setting up certain
boundaries, you are telling your dog that he or
she cannot simply do as they wish. They must
follow your rules and your lead. There are
three important things to remember as you attempt
leader of the pack dog training. The first is
consistency. Canines are creatures of habit, and
this should reflect in discipline and training.
Your pet should always know what to expect and
what is expected of him or her. When you are
consistent, the dog is far less likely to grow
confused and frustrated by training. If your dog
sees you as a familiar and consistent member of
the family pack, he or she will be far more
likely to follow your lead. Being unpredictable
can make your dog nervous which can lead to a
number of negative behaviors, even
aggression. Respect is very important in the
alpha and omega relationship. Dog pack leaders
should always be firm, but fair. If your dog
lacks respect for you as alpha, he or she will be
far less likely to follow your lead and command.
You do not want to become a "weak"
leader. However, the opposite can be equally as
damaging to the dog human relationship. If you
are overly harsh, your dog will come to fear
rather than respect you. The last part of the
dog pack leadership equation is to build up a
bond through interaction. Being a part of your
dog's life and spending time with your pet will
create more situations to reinforce the leader
and follower relationship. It will also create a
stronger emotional bond. The more you and your
dog do together, the more you can understand and
appreciate each other.
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Leader of the pack dog training is not always an
easy task. That being said, it does not have to
be a difficult one either. You can enjoy the time
spent with your dog. Learn ahead of time how to
react to possible regression or other negative
behavior so that your dog will learn to respect
you and expect consistency from you. Once you
have established yourself as leader and
protector of the pack, you can enjoy a strong
bond between human and canine. Your dog will be
happy, content, and glad you are there to lead,
support, and nurture him or her into a
well-behaved member of the family. Danny Taylor
of DogTraining-User-Reviews.com
http//www.dogtraining-user-reviews.com,
specializes in helping new pooch owners get the
info that they need to help train their new best
friend. Danny, a professional dog trainer
himself, leads his team of dog obedience
trainers to constantly review new training
methods, and programs in the market and make
sure you get the best value products that work
for you. Check out actual user reviews and
feedback of the most popular dog training
programs at DogTraining-User-Reviews
http//www.dogtraining-user-reviews.com. Artic
le Source http//EzineArticles.com/expert/Danny_T
aylor/324340
Becoming Pack Leader the Easy Way By Krista
Cantrell There's something I want to show you
today that has the power to solve about 90 of
dog obedience problems you may be having --
whether that's the frustration of not being able
to fully (that means NO accidents) house train
your dog, stop him from chewing your shoes or
the furniture, stop leash pulling, barking,
jumping on guests (or you) and just about
anything else you can name. It's a quick little
trick you can do today to help your dog recognize
you as pack leader instantly. Why is this
important? Well, in case you aren't familiar
with the way a dog's brain is wired, let me sum
it up for you like this When your dog doesn't
recognize your status as pack leader, all sorts
of things happen...none of them good. If your
dog defies or disobeys, or does any of the things
mentioned above, oftentimes all of these problem
behaviors can be traced right back to the fact
that he doesn't respect you -- doesn't see you
as the pack leader.
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When you fix this, lots of things happen. And
this time, all of them GOOD! Now, I want you to
understand that this is not an immediate cure-all
for every single thing you'd like to change
about your dog's behavior. But It does all start
here, with this one simple concept. So Here's
a quick little trick you can do the next time
it's time to feed your dog that will start the
process of having her recognize you as the
leader. Now here's an important note This is
one of 7 things you can start doing immediately
to finally put yourself in a leadership position
with your dog. This by itself will help, but you
may need more. So, it's very important to stay
tuned, because we're going to cover the other 6
things you should be doing in just a
second. Pack Leader Exercise The Food
Test Here's something you may or may not know
about the way dogs live with each other in the
pack. In the pack, the leader eats first.
Always. The problem many dog owners have is that
they inadvertently send a message directly to
their dog's hard-wired instinct that the dog, not
the owner, is pack leader. How do they do
this? By feeding the dog at the same time you
feed yourself, or by feeding the dog before you
eat. Big mistake! Try this next time you feed
your dog Step 1 Take your dog's bowl and set
it on your counter. Step 2 Now, place a human
plate next to the dog's bowl. It's important that
your dog see you do this, and that your plate
and his bowl are right next to each other on the
counter.
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Step 3 Now, fill your dog's bowl with his food.
BUT don't give it to him yet. He needs to see
you eat first. That's the point of this
exercise. Step 4 Put a piece of food on your
plate. It could be anything -- some crackers,
cookies, grapes, cheese, whatever. Step 5 Eat
your food first while your dog watches you. This
sends a signal right to his mind that you're the
pack leader. He knows pack leaders eat first. So
since you're eating first, it tells him you MUST
be pack leader. Step 6 After a few minutes,
when you're finished with your snack, you can
then put the dog's bowl down on the floor and
allow him to eat. Now, I said earlier there were
six other things you NEED to do right away to get
your dog to recognize you as pack leader, and
here's where to find them... First, go to this
becoming pack leader post on my blog. There's
also a video there showing you how this
technique works, and I'll tell you how to get the
other 6 super-simple strategies for making this
work. You might also want to check out this
becoming pack leader video on YouTube for more
information. I hope that helps. And please let
me know how you do! Article Source
http//EzineArticles.com/expert/Krista_Cantrell/26
9842
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Becoming Pack Leader to Your Dog is Key to
Successful Dog Training By Oscar B Jones Dogs
are naturally pack animals. Unfortunately as we
split up a litter and bring home one puppy we
tend to forget that ingrained in the genetic
make-up they are pack animals by nature. Failure
to recognize this fact can seriously inhibit your
dog training efforts. On the other hand, if you
do understand the meaning of the pack you could
be on to something very important indeed with
regards to succeeding with your dog's
training. Each pack has leaders. The one in the
position of leader holds great power and
authority over the rest of that pack. The others
will naturally take second place to the leader
and will expect to take instructions from and be
led by them. In today's world the domestic dog
doesn't travel around in a pack of dogs. What it
does is replaces the dog pack with those that it
interacts with on a regular basis i.e. You and
your family and possibly really close friends
who you see a lot of. The big opportunity for
you here, where training is concerned, is that if
you assume the position of leader by being a
leader and authoritarian your dog will naturally
want to follow you instruction by default and
learn from your guidance, making training so much
easier. Since a dog's real social structure will
always be seen through the innate canine
perspective of packs and leaders, it only makes
sense for trainers to take advantage of this by
assigning roles for both pet and master that
will make dog training especially
effective. Emulating pack leadership can be done
in several different ways. By doing these things
you will be allowing your dog to find its
rightful and natural place within the social
ordering of your family unit and will then make
your dog much more receptive to instructions of
all kinds. However, just being a bossy person
does not make you a leader. Simply trying to push
your dog into something it does not want to do
is not showing it leadership and will not gain
you any respect whatsoever. A trainer worth
paying attention to knows this and will ensure
that specifics are carried out to copy the role
of pack leader. The following techniques are
endorsed by many an expert Be Consistency A
great leader will remain consistent at all times.
Ensuring that the rules laid down are adhered to
and those that are suppose to follow them then
know where the boundaries lie between right and
wrong. Earn Respect - You Will Not Just Be Given
It A good leader earns respect because of the
way they go about things. A leader who shows
that they are firm, not a pushover, but fair,
will be respected and admired a lot more and
therefore others will want to follow. Be firm but
do not expect unrealistic things from your dog
to soon and never try to enforce anything through
physical punishment.
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A good pack leader will utilize positive
reinforcement training techniques that have been
proven to gain respect and therefore are
followed. When you become your dog's pack leader
you want to be there because you are respected
by your dog and appreciated by it. You do not
want to be in that position down to fear and/or
humiliation as this can induce fear aggression
which is not healthy. Keep Interacting With
Your Dog Pack leaders keep interacting with
their pack which ensures that the ranking remains
within their social hierarchy. Your dog will
watch you for eye contact. Keeping contact
through the eyes whilst training will allow your
dog to keep you as their leader. It is also
desirable to sometimes demand your dog's
attention while walking, playing or during more
intense training sessions. By commanding your dog
to heel and to look at you, for instance, you
will further reinforce your position as pack
leader. By creating the leader follower
mentality you make training a lot easier to
administer and much more effective. This will
enable you to avoid a host of problems
encountered by others who do not set this up
properly. Additional, you will create a situation
where your dog naturally wants to look up at you
and expects you to lead it. This makes for a much
more contented dog and a more relaxed atmosphere
all round. Becoming an effective pack leader is a
key element to be included in any holistic
training program. For a complimentary 34 page
report on dog training visit my website at The
Dog Advice Zone http//www.thedogadvicezone.com
Article Source http//EzineArticles.com/expert/
Oscar_B_Jones/173497