Pack structure revisted

Sometimes you have to go back to basics. I think we need to do this with Maya, with whom we are having some pack structure issues, most notably over her getting up on the furniture. Unfortunately, we've lapsed in keeping Maya off the couches and the other day we had a problem with that when some friends were over.

We tired to keep Maya off the couches, though allowed an exception in the basement family area, while trying to keep the main living room for us. The problem is that while the daycare is in session in the basement, Maya is alone upstairs in the living room and dining room area. For a while we laid baby gates across the sofa and love seat to keep her off, but somehow that practice lapsed, in part because it meant removing them to sit down ourselves and they were unsightly. Besides, Maya is such a good dog and generally got down without much resistance. We even put a blanket there to keep the couch clean while she was on it.

Well, when DV was over the other night with his wife and kids, he was sitting on the couch and Maya kept jumping up. He pushed her off and for a while she found something else to entertain herself, but later she returned and was much more insistent. DV was much rougher in pushing her than I am with her and in fairness to Maya, I think that was provoking her. She may have thought it was a game. I ended up putting her in her crate. DV—whose pup Sibirius is in the same dog training that Maya is—reminded me that the trainers aren't in favor of letting dogs on the furniture, except when invited and then only briefly, and that it was a key part of maintaining pack structure. Because Sibirius is in puppy class, when a lot of the basics are explained, he is hearing these things now, while we've passed that and are into more advanced training. Obviously, he was right. I can't have Maya insisting on her right to the couch!

Basically, dogs respond to pack structure by nature—they innately understand the rules—and this applies to dogs living with human families, which become their pack. They expect to follow the leader of the pack—the alpha—and will either try to take leadership if it's not clear or will become confused and insecure, leading to behavior problems, particularly if they're basically a submissive follower.

The incident with Maya and the couch has forced me to rethink how we're handling this. Meche and I agree we have to reassert this and I just reread the whole section on pack structure on our trainer's web site: www.k9-1.com

Access to the details of the web site is limited to those who are members, but the following is an excerpt from the portion on pack structure that deals with furniture.

 

Resting areas are considered prized possessions in dog society, so the subject of allowing your dog use of furniture and human beds is closely related to the rules used for other possessions. ...

 

Not letting the tail wagging members of the family on the furniture and beds will help clarify that it is not the dog’s possession. In a nutshell, we need to create boundaries for our dogs. If we treat our dogs like people they are prone to treat us like dogs. When Skippy growls and snips at another dog for going on his little dog bed it is considered normal, but when he does this to the face of a toddler on the family couch it is unacceptable. If dogs are not allowed to share our resting places there can’t be any ownership disputes with humans involving furniture. ... Thousands of dog bites can be avoided per year if dog owners just followed this rule. There are countless documented cases ranging from a tiny Pomeranian killing a baby to a Pit Bull killing an adult—all the result of dogs with no boundaries having disputes as to who owns the furniture. ...

 

Some of you reading this rule will find it conflicting with your desires to endlessly stroke your soft coated pooch as you sit back on your couch and watch “Gone with the Wind”. This is normal for us since we are primates and that’s what primates do, sit around and groom and stroke. If this is what you must do, just know it does nothing for the dog but create an unnatural addiction, and make it almost impossible to create the leadership and mental balance that the dogs needs to excel in a human world.

 

It is not an impossibility to have a well balanced dog that will go on furniture and beds—strictly when invited as a privilege—but you would never want to do this unless you have a dog that is not having any behavioral problems and is used to living as a follower of humans. To give that privilege prematurely, will make it almost impossible to troubleshoot any problems and train your dog easily. For dogs with a history of aggression toward humans or of a breed that is capable of causing serious harm to a human I would recommend a permanent ban from these places.

 

So, back to basics, Maya. Now, to figure out the logistics of that ...