Becoming The Pack Leader
Obtaining and Maintaining Your Alpha Position

~What's an Alpha?~

You may be wondering what the heck I'm talking about, Alpha, dominant pack member and all that crazy stuff but I will explain it here. The structure of a wolf pack is really quite simple and relates to domestic dogs and wolfdogs as well.

AL*PHA- Noun. "Something that is first"

Adjective. "Socially dominant especially in a group of animals (I.E. wolves) There are only ever two Alphas in a pack, an Alpha male, and an Alpha female, the only two members of the pack allowed to mate. Sometimes there will be only one, a solitary male or solitary female Alpha who will choose a mate after a period of time.

BETA- Meaning second in position.

There can be up to 5 Beta wolves in an average-sized wolf pack; number ranges from pack to pack. There is a social structure within the Beta-ranking members of each pack ranging from most dominant under the Alpha to least above the Omega.

OMEGA- Noun. Last, Ending.

The Omega member of a pack is the lowest ranking individual. While observing a pack, some have commented they are "picked on" by most other members of the pack. This wolf, dog, or wolfdog in a pack is the member who typically "babysits" or watches the pups while the adult members of the pack go hunting. There can only be one Omega member in each pack.

Wolves and wolf/dogs Can make wonderful companions, BUT THEY ARE NOT the pet for just anyone. Just as some breeds of dog aren't the ideal pet for any person who wants one. Wolves and wolf/dogs can be dangerous if you don't know how to deal with them. They have strict behavioral patterns. Depending on the percentage of wolf blood, and what generation they are wolf/dogs can act very or exactly like wolves in the wild. They need a Pack, and what they do and how they act is all part of the Pack structure and where they lie in it. No matter if you own a domestic dog or a wolf, dominance is the key to happiness. Obtaining, and Maintaining your Alpha position is everything when dealing with a domestic dog, wolf/dog or wolf, unless you want to be ignored, growled/snapped at, picked on, or in extreme situations, even attacked. There are semi-safe ways to assert yourself over an animal. Here are some of the things I do to maintain my Alpha Position over all my furrbutts:

1. I eat before I feed any of them.

2. If we are both in the hallway, going opposite directions, I don't move, I make them move out of my way in order to get to wherever we were going.

3. I often have sessions with them on basic obedience, working especially on the 'down' and 'heel' commands, as well as some of the other things I've taught them, without treats as rewards, but much verbal praise.


4. I keep tennis balls, Frisbees, and other toys in my room on top of my dresser after playing or exercising with dogs/Wolf-Dogs so they are considered mine.

5. I make sure I am always the last to look away when eye contact is made between me and one of the animals, whether it was a glance I caught or a deliberate stare.

6. I put them in their kennels or have them lie down on their special rug in the house before going to bed.

7. I keep them at heel when on walks, on or off leash, and only when given an "okay" are they allowed to "mess-around."

With doing all these things the dogs and wolf/dogs know I'm Alpha of the human/animal Pack we make. All of these things I do, are things similar to what an Alpha wolf does in the wild, with its pack. Though dogs don't have as high of a sense for the strict Pack configuration, and you can do certain things and not do certain things and still be considered Alpha, with large breeds, you want to MAKE sure the animal knows who's boss. Hormone driven male dogs, even intact females are the most likely to want to dominate everything they can. Some won't go down without a fight of some sort, either one of wills or of strength.

My Rottweiler is an intact (not neutered) 5 year old, who, as I mentioned on the first page, weighs 165 pounds plus, and can be very intimidating if you don't know him. I got him less than 3 years ago, and it took me 3 months to prepare myself and actually let him know I was the dominant member of the house hold. It was not easy, I hadn't expected it to be, but doing this with a wolf or high content wolf/dog of the same age, would have been MUCH harder.

There is a lot you have to do if you are going to be a wolf/dog 'owner' be sure to take a look at The Wolf Dunn, and Candy Kitchen before you decide you really really want a wolf/dog as a companion. Following are quotes from members of the Hybrid Wolf E-mailing List, AKA the wolfdoglist.

"This wolfdog who has been allowed to set its own rules is suddenly going to be brought under control. I doubt that he will give up the alpha position without a fight.

In wolves, it is not unusual for members of the pack to want to move up in rank. By not establishing and maintaining the dominant or alpha position within the pack, others may consider this a weakness and challenge you for that position. The challenge is settled by who wins the fight. In instances where one does not submit to the other, then the outcome can be death to the loser of the fight.

High content animals need to be owned by those who know and understand wolf behavior." -Pam Thompson

"The "fight" for dominance is a never ending thing.

Any and every submission, however slight is remembered by domestic dogs, wolf/dogs and wolves. They're all the same and they generalize to the whole human race. One person backs off at a slight growl so the whole human race slides a little in their estimation.

Provided the owner keeps the pressure on and the gradient pointing the other way there should be no problems. With most domestic dogs the dominance drive is weak enough that almost any owner can easily maintain their status, unlike wolves; even when the owner has lost status it can usually be recovered with domestic dogs." -Phil (last name unknown)

"The challenges (for dominance) actually begin much earlier than people often recognize. Some tend to slack off in the beginning and then only attend to the challenges when they become serious. Some hypothetical examples, you go to take something from say your 4-month old pup and it growls. You back off and say to yourself oh this isn't important and you ignore the behavior. Next thing might be more important (the canine's older now) and now the little critter has learned that if he growls at you he gets his way. So then with a bigger challenge before you, you can decide how to handle it, many will back off yet again. And so on...you get the idea. So, the animal has won over and over and you then start to fear it, or at least think you know longer are in control. A challenge to your authority can be as subtle as ignoring a command, you out of laziness or whatever, don't follow through. I try to never tell mine to do anything that I'm not going to enforce. You tell him to get off the couch or whatever and he ignores you, then is the time to enforce.

My point to this is, be firm (but kind) and don't ignore those little infractions that are probably already happening. I'm not saying you need to alpha roll the guy for normal canine behavior, but don't ignore it. There are many creative and kind ways to get your way and keep the peace...that's a whole other thread. Consistency is of the utmost importance." -Laura (last name unknown)

Domestic Dogs do this just as wolf/dogs and wolves, and though they might not be as set upon dominating you, many times dogs, especially intact males, tend to challenged you, test you, to see where there limits lie. I've seen cases like that go bad, where the dog was given a lot of slack for things the owner thought were "just little nothings" and one day the dog decided to see just how far it could push. As it ended the own was bitten fairly badly and the dog was put down.

Being the Alpha of the household is a very important thing, it can save lives, money (from vet/doctor bills), and make your life with your four-legged friend a lot more enjoyable.

From Jenn Marshall, of Sixth Sensory Overload.

by Jenn Marshall - 07/12/08

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Source: http://www.practical-pet-care.com