How Dogs Think and Why?

Why do dogs behave in the manner that they do?  Well number one thing most people forget is this, they are dogs.  They do not understand being human or what we love and cherish that is democracy.  They understand only one concept that is dictatorship.  The biggest, baddest, and smartest are the leaders.  They do not vote on it but it is excepted just by the actions of the leader.  What I mean is he the leader acts the boss, he believes he is the boss, and he stands, looks and behaves like he is the boss.  There is no questions about it, unless he becomes weak, sick, or old.  There is a very real reason for this, as in a pack, the strongest is the leader he makes the life and death decision that make up their every day life’s.  Reference where they are going that day, when to hunt, who is to breed.  Even what the individual wolves behavior is or should be.  There is hardly any fights within a pack.  If they did this, every time some punk youngster thought he was tough enough then there would be no future leaders.  So just by being, acting and believing and by using body language he is the boss, the challenger backs down.  An alpha dog will walk thru the others in a pack, they move out of his or her way.  They know just by his bearings that he is the leader, he believes it to be so, so do they.  This is because in the wild they all have to work together to bring down their prey which is a lot bigger than they are (moose, deer, elk, etc, etc.)   Now if every time a young upcoming male thought he should decide when to chase the prey the whole pack could starve by his mistakes.  That is why leadership is so important.  And by his body language and his strong believe in him self, by his attitude he has a firm hold on his leadership.  In a true pack wolves or dogs will do a lot of body talking.  The number one communication by body only, they do not over use the verbal skills we so highly think of.  In fact most of their communication is by how they act towards each other.  Body stance, eye contact, walking threw the pack.  They have several times in the day where they re-establish their ranking with in the pack.  And they are:

Upon regretting of the pack when the Alpha's return to the pack.  The lesser, or subordinate, dogs or wolves will greet the Alpha's.  The leaders do not make a fuss over the lesser dogs, but ignore them.  It is the lesser dogs of the pack that greet the leaders with the face kissing.  The Alphas are too important to be loving up the other members of the pack.

The next moment of ranking is when the pack eats after a kill.

Only the Alphas get to eat first, it is not until they get their fill do the other members of the pack get to eat.

And the next instant is when strangers come upon the pack.

The leader chooses what the behavior should be, if they want to accept the stranger they are calm, reserve and greet the visitor and that is it.  No big fuss is made over them, and the pack gets their clue from them and it is excepted as is.  There is no shouting or yelling and obnoxious behavior.

This holds true in you home also, your are now the pups pack, his security, his life line.  You tell him what the proper behavior is, not the pup.  And they learn this very early from their dam, or mother.  When it is time to wean the pups and they try and nurse.  She will growl ( which is saying NO), she pins them down to the ground by grabbing their muzzle (correction). They then in turn will go to her face and lick the muzzle (submission).  The dam then regurgitate her food to feed the pups (reward).  Thus they learn the proper way to behave around their elders, and other pack members.  I have a large group of dogs (nine).  That includes three males (intact), one male neutered, and four females (intact) that all live in my home.  They do not live in kennels, but in my home, out on my ten acres or in their crates.  By watching their interactions with each other I see the every day communication they have with each other.  The Alphas I have two a male and a very on top of things Female.  She is the actual Alpha that runs the everyday running of the pack.  If they go where they are not to go, farther out on my property, She barks and has a fit and corrects them if need be.  If they bark when they should not do so, they are corrected.  She is very loving but firm in her domination over the pack.  She is so sure of her self in her role of leader that there is no challenges on any of the other dogs.  When she wants something that they have she comes along and takes it.  She does not flinch or hesitate in her actions towards the other less dominant dogs.  She walks threw the dogs, not around them.  They MOVE out of her way because that is how it is.  But she is very loving to the younger members of the pack.  But there is no doubt in their minds who the boss is or who they respect.  The Alphas are so sure of themselves in their position you would actual think they are not because they are not pushy about it.  So I too like to use this NATURAL methods of the mom to teach my or a clients dogs.  YOU do not get mad, loose your temper, kick or hit a dog to correct them or to teach them a lesson.  They do not understand, or deserve this method of training.

One of several things I will do to let my dogs know that I am the boss is to use your voice, a calm and steady but (deep and growly from your chest for a correction and high pitch for praise) body, (by standing tall, assure of your self, confidant) actions, (physical correction or treat,) and attitude (knowing your the boss, and having a plan for when he does something wrong) to steer your pup in the right directions in how he should behave.

So when he behaves in an ill manner, aggression, chewing, jumping, and many of the other things young dogs will do.  You want to use your voice a deep, loud, growl voice to tell you dog NO! and your look him right in his eyes to let him know you mean business, and that you are the boss.

You then tell him what you want him to do, sit, down, be nice, etc. And when he does behave and do what you asked of him you tell him what a good sit, good down, etc etc. I find it very important to say the good boys, good sits, the good downs, These are more important than the no’s. You also give him lots of praise, his favorite toy, and food when he does what you have told him to do.( always make the reward and treat a bigger thing than the correction, talk to him allot. When I say a lot I mean a lot. If your neighbor can not hear you, and think you have gone nuts then your not talking enough to your dog. I like to call my dogs name the whole time I am working them in the beginning, I use my voice to get their attention on to me where it belongs. I am the Alpha I am telling him what I want him to do. When you tell him something, you tell him DO NOT ASK OF HIM, but TELL him what you want, they do not respect being asked.

Now when he does behave in a bad manner and you know he is going to do it. You want to stop him from doing this behavior before he does it. Example is: he is dog aggressive you see a dog coming. You do not become fearful, or stressed, but ready for his correction. So while he is thinking about it, is when you want to stop him. Not when he is all ready going full bore in aggression. Stop it before he or it gets out of hand. And a good strong snap of the leash will not hurt him. I would tell him to LEAVE IT! And then give him a command he can do to replace the bad behavior, heel, sit, down, or be nice is good also. But I prefer the WATCH command to get your dog to look at you instead of looking at the dog, or person. Have treats available for your dog to get his attention on to you where it belongs. So he sees an aggressive dog, you tell him to LEAVE IT, a good snap of the leash, change your direction of your walk or go in reverse, and you then say WATCH , WATCH ! And have his treat right there for him to see. If you have to put the treat into his face, bring it back to your face getting his attention on to you. You have dictated what his behavior should be not him, and what you do want him to do instead. Remember that your his boss, not him, so do not feel sorry for him having to do what your making him to. Its for his safety not happiness. Remember the time period most dominant, intelligent or working type pups ages from 8 months to 2 years is when most Dogs are put in pounds, shelters, new homes or destroyed because the owners did not research what or how owning a dog or GSD and what it took to handle these dogs, German Shepherd Dogs they are a very intelligent breed and are not Goldens or Labs but GSDS, which can be a very dominant and troublesome breed if not handled right. Training is a must for this breed, thru training you learn how to control your dog who then learns that by doing what you tell him, that your the boss. In obedience I like to do the attention, direction, correction, direction, then praise. What I mean is you get your dogs attention, call his name, slap your leg, move in a opposite direction, get excited. No one wants to work in a boring atmosphere so neither does your dog. So make working your dog fun and upbeat. Then I do the direction phase of his training, I will tell him what I want him to do. I show him first, praise, treat, and repeat. It is only after he knows the exercise will I ever correct a dog. If the dog acts up, refuses to do a command or is not paying attention to me. I will snap the leash saying watch, or repeat the command. This is not a punishment ONLY A ATTENTION GETTING DEVICE TO GET HIM TO LOOK AT ME. So I can give his direction again, by showing him what I want or to repeat the command. And of course the praise, treat, and favorite toy of his. Give him some good pets, hugs, loves and just show him how great he is or what he did was great.

Also I want to talk about dogs that I believe that cause bad behavior due to being lonely or bored. A bored dog is one that will cause lots of havoc or problems in your home. If your dog is chewing your furniture then you should not have left him alone in order to chew your furniture. It is like having a two year old you would never leave a toddler alone unsupervised so to you will or should not leave your pup along to roam thru the house. I highly recommend a crate to put him in for when you can not watch him, A crate is not a jail cell but a place of security for him to feel safe in. I also will do a tether to me, so he is always with me, in the house so he can feel safe, not get into trouble and if he does you can stop it right away. I also have them with me all the time , no matter where I go, for the first year of their life. If I am home they are with me, if I am going to the store by car they are with me. I am at the beach they are with me, by this close time spent with each other we learn about each other and we bond. This is most important for you to have you dog bond with you in order to be able to train him with his temperament in mind, and get and keep control.