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A great way to establish your pack leader status with your dominant dog is to take control of the door’s in your home. The pack leader always goes first and if your dog is rushing ahead of you to get in or out then you are losing a huge advantage over getting control of your dominant dog.

First off, start in your home. If your dog is lying in front of doorways (mine used to like lying in front of the entrance to the kitchen) you must make them move, do not step over them - in their minds they are controlling that door by making you go around or over them. I used a simple “move” command in a stern voice and clapped my hands to get my dogs attention. I also found that stamping my foot was a good way to get them moving. Dogs don’t like sudden loud noises so this is effective. If they refuse to move then walk into them until they do - no kicking, just gentle force using your forward momentum.

Now the front door is a big deal. In the pack the dominant alpha dog controls the entrance and exit to the den, you must make sure that your dog is not lying across the front door all the time. Once again, use the “move” command and if they still refuse to move then take the collar and move them while saying “move” so they understand exactly what you want. Dogs are very smart and will pick up new commands almost immediately, if they are not moving after you have done this several times then you must persist as they are just testing you to see if you will give up. Notice we are not rewarding their behavior with treats, personally I don’t think you should reward your dog for every little thing with treats, especially a dominant dog, they must understand clearly what is expected from them and they will respect you more if you just give them a little “good girl/boy”.

You must be the leader, so when taking your dog out for a walk you should make them sit and stay until you’re outside the front door and then invite them out by giving the command “come”. Obviously this should be done while you are holding the leash so you will need one that is at least 4′ - 5′ long. If your dog rushes past you then take them back inside and repeat. Trust me, your dog will obey after a couple of times of doing this as they will want that walk more than anything else.

When you return home, once again you must enter the home first, making them wait until you are inside and then giving them permission to enter your home. This also translates into making sure your dog is not trying to lead you in the home. Does she get up when she sees you getting ready to go upstairs or into another a room? Does she “lead the way”? You must always walk ahead of your dog, you are the leader and she is the follower.

Having a dominant dog is hard work, you must gain their respect and be the Alpha pack leader. On the plus side is that these ‘free thinking’ dogs are very intelligent and are therefore easy to train but you must always be consistent.

My passive dominant dog now moves away from doorways or any other place where I might need to step over her when she see’s me coming. I also have control over my back door. Make your dog sit and stay while you open the door, wait a few seconds or until they look at you for direction, and say your release command (mine is “OK”). Once again you need to do the same when they are coming back in, make them sit and stay outside the door the give them permission to come in. This took me about two days of work to achieve but I am always consistent with what I expect from her.

Using various techniques like “door control” you can live a happy and rewarding life with your dominant dog.

Leave a comment if you’re interested in learning more of these simple ways to get your dog listening to you and I will be happy to share what I’ve learned works with you.

Training your dog is the most important part of owning a dog. Here are some useful sites that offer free dog training advice.

Dogs are pack animals and will follow a natural hierarchy within your family. If they don’t perceive you as the leader of your pack (family) they will take over as a natural survival instinct to defend their pack. Most dogs don’t want this responsibility and will gladly defer to you if they feel confident in your ability to lead.

As the owner of a passive dominant female lab mix I have learned quite a few tricks to get control of my ‘wannabe’ pack leader and have her toeing my line for a change! She is now two years old and we are all happier for the change in her behavior.

So, how is he or she establishing themselves as pack leader? There are subtle ways like leaning against you, stopping a few feet away from you and making you come to them and of course the obvious like ignoring your commands to come, sit, stay etc. The one behavior that we were unaware of and perhaps made the biggest difference was the fact that she liked to lie across the front door. Your dog views the front door as the entrance to their den and if they are not confident in your ability to protect the den they will take over. The leader of the pack always has control of the entrance and considers it their duty to determine who enters. Take control of your door! We ended up putting a child safety gate across the entrance to our little foyer so she couldn’t get near the front door.

5 Ways to get control of your Dominant Dog

1. Get control of your front door – we can’t stress this enough, it made a huge difference.
2. Ignore your dog when you come home – 10 minutes is the general rule until they calm down.
3. Control the food – make your dog sit and wait until you give the command they can eat. Doing this for just 30 seconds will make your dog respect you like you wouldn’t believe.
4. Leash walk your dog everyday. Never let them go ahead of you, keep them besides you or slightly behind you. You’re the boss, you go first.
5. When coming in or going out of your home with your dog make sure to have them sit and wait until you go first, then invite them in or out. This also applies in your home, you always go first, don’t let them lead you!

These tips are not hard to implement. My dog responded immediately and started to look at me for direction within a matter of minutes. Repetition is the key. Once you start to do these exercises with your dog you can never stop. They must become a habit for you to maintain control. Keep your voice firm when you give them a command and praise them when they do something exactly the way you asked. Never over-praise, it becomes meaningless to them. Finally, joining a basic dog training course in your area is a must and will make both you and your dog much happier.