hi! i'm new here, anyway i have this problem with my 1+ YO dal. i can't seem to know if she's being dominant or not. she sometimes show signs commong to dominant dogs.. at the same time she can be quite obd. i red in some of ed's articles that a dominant dog would refuse to do the down command.. but my dog doesn't. the only problem that i see is that she would sometimes bark at me if i try to touch her head or if e go too close to her mouth. just a few days ago she escaped her collar as I did'nt notice that it was kindda loose.. but when i tried to put it back on she suddenly barked at me. i had to back of. what do you guys think of this behaviour? any suggestions on a way to put the collar on without the risk of being bitten? i'm actually thingking of wraping her head in a thick towel then put the collar while holding her head.

First thing I would do is take her to a Vet to check her out. She may have a ear infection or sore tooth, it seems she does not want you to touch her head.

Next how do expect to get a towel around her if you can't place the collar?

Was she barking or was she growling, barking is not always a sign of aggression but it could be a warning of don't touch my head or don't hurt me or stay away, I don't trust you. Sometimes dogs bark and lower their head when they want to play.

Growling is more of if you don't stay away I'm gonna bite you. Both you need to shut down with an Ob command.

The another question is how often do you work obedience you need to practice this 5-10 minutes a day, with good Ob you could sit her and place the collar back on. While in sit make a habit of touching all over there body to exam for lumps, which could be ticks and fleas. This will also aid youin grooming her.

Along with the Ob you need to make putting the collar on a good thing. It means were going walking, training, or going to find some treats.

All but the prong collar my dogs will slip there head in if I show it. The thick leather or nylon collars mean we are going to work and they almost jump into them.

So what I'm saying is she may have a physical problem and don't want you touching her head, or she does not see you as alpha, lack of trust and obedience training. When she barks at you, you should tell her "quite" or "stop" and then sit her. Walk around back and place the collar on.

See your Vet as soon as possible. Because of a back yard breeding a lot people have problems with some Dalmations. Thanks to Disney's 101 ...

I am by no means an expert, but here is my opinion. Hard to tell about the bark, but if you backed off, then it must have been threatening (nasty sounding, maybe showing teeth ect..). Never allowed (or attempted) by my dog.

Read Ed's articles on how to establish you dominance. You walk upstairs first, go through doors first, ect.. There are a lot of things you can do without physical punishment to express your dominance. You need to establish yourself a THE leader first, then maybe later you can pull off some heavier compulsion (if you wish) without getting bit.