July/August 2010 - Dogs Naturally Magazine

y: Leonard Cecil
Two of the questions you have to ask before answering that one
are:
Why would my dog want to dominate me?
What's in it for her that she doesn't already have?
These three questions are actually quite intertwined, so let's
look at the situation with her - oops, I mean OUR pack:
She gets 2 squares a day. And that doesn't count all the treats
for doing tricks, coming back on recall and such. Would she
somehow get MORE to eat if she were to win domination over
me? Maybe a better quality? Are you inferring, that what she
gets now is of inferior quality and that by dominating me, she
would get better food? Or more?
She gets all the water she can drink, both from her water dish,
but also on walks from the various fountains and water troughs.
Now if she were to dominate me, would she somehow demand
and get more and better liquid refreshment? German white
wine, French red wine? Maybe a real Czech Pilsner beer. Single-
Malt Scotch (from my collection?)?
If she were to win domination over me, would she then get to
leave the house before me? Maybe. But it's very possible she
wouldn't live very long, charging out the door in front of me into
the street. But then I'd just have to get another dog to dominate
me. And another. And another. And then where would she want
to go? Can't go shopping with no money. She's not crazy about
the movies unless they're animal films.
If she were trying to dominate me, what would she have to gain
by walking in front of me. Well, for one thing she would have to
STAY in front of me. What a drag, if there was a lovely piece of
cow dung behind me or to the side of me. She'd have to make
that hard choice between cementing her domination over me by
staying out in front of me and perhaps losing her domination by
falling behind to savor that dead bird. Choices, choices and the
RESPONSIBILITIES attached to them. What's a dog to do?
And of course, she'd have to choose the route to take, determining
where we are to go. Fine. And if there's no food or water
there when we get there, is she supposed to force me to provide
it for her wherever we end up? Now try this with your dog, just
what I tried today. My dog was sniffing dominantly 10-20 yards
in front of me. We came to a fork in the road. She headed down
the right fork and I, being the rebellious soul I am, purposely
took the left path. I would have thought, her being the dominant
wanna-be, that she would have insisted, that I come to her, but
no, low and behold, without me even calling to her, she not only
was suddenly running past me up the left road, but when I then
decided to go on the right road, she then bounded on by me and
up the right road. Well, ok, I see your point. What a cunning little
cur. She actually TRICKED me into thinking I was dominating her
by going on the left road, when she knew, that I would eventually
see it her way and go on the right path, which she'd originally
been on. Sometime you don't have to dominate with force,
you can do it by cunning and treachery.
Now, when I come home, it's obvious who is the dominant one
in the house. As soon as my key hits the door, she is at the door,
demanding my attention. It's quite clear, that if my wife were
actually the leader of the pack (for what husband is EVER the
leader of the pack?), she would come right to the door, beating
my dog by a nose to greet me at the door, I would then give her
a big smacker, a bunch of roses and a bottle of champagne. Or
Dogs...Naturally! July/August 2010