Dominance Aggression: I own this house!

A dog who is fearful and submissive will illustrate this behavior with pinned back ears and a tucked tail. Such dogs avoid sustained eye contact and may crouch. Another symptom is known as "approach-avoidance;" where a dog continuously runs toward the person and then away from person, toward and away. The posture of a fearful dog also may illustrate fear, and often the hair on the dog's back will stand on end.

A dominant dog stands taller and often may exhibit this behavior with only one other person or animal. One case involved a dog named Ornery (a fox terrier) who mistakenly thought this his position in the family was higher than the adult female human (the wife) in the household. In Ornery's view, the husband was the alpha male, and Ornery's position in in the pack was between him and his wife. Ornery's dominance behavior included trying to prevent the wife from ascending the stairs. In the morning, as soon as he was let out of his cage, Ornery would race to the top of the stairs and growl, bark, and snap at her when she tried to ascend them. Ornery was really bad.

When the alpha husband left on weekends, sometimes Ornery would growl at her from within his crate as she walked by. She would open the door but he would not come out until "Mr. Ornery" came home.

In aggressive dogs, physical punishment does not work. It does not change the dog's behavior, and can be dangerous because it may actually elicit even more aggression from the dog. Always teach with praise and/or treats.

The treatment that successfully altered Ornery's behavior is known as deference training. Nothing in Ornery's life is free anymore. Ornery now has to sit before being fed or in order to get anything else that he wants. If Ornery wants to go outside he has to sit. If Ornery wants treats he has to sit. If Ornery wants to be petted, he has to sit. Consequently, Ornery has come to understand that his place in the household order (pack) is one level lower than he previously thought, so now he behaves himself.

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