Dog Bed Bedding.com

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.