Hello, I was wondering how to become Pack Leader in regards to everyday interactions? I know of the "you go out or in a doorway" before the dog but I am just wondering about everyday interactions like you have with a normal housedog. An example you going up to the dog to pet him type thing. I am just a beginner handler so I appreciate all the advice I can get. I just don't feel that my dog has truly submitted to me yet.
Thanks

Hey Mark-
How old is the dog?
I wouldnt make a dog "truly submit" to me unless it was truly necessary, but that is another issue (and something you have to be very careful with if an adult). Most of the time you become the alpha by just doing the normal stuff from day 1 with a pup and even with an older dog that you just got. Such as you feed him, you take him outside, you hold the leash, you let him in and out of his crate, you correct him(housebreaking), you train the obedience. Most, not all, but for most dogs this is all you need to do to establish yourself as the leader.
You also want to do little things as you raise a pup such as not let him sleep on the bed or on the furniture because the alpha is the one who gets the best area to sleep, etc. You eat before him because the alpha always eats first in the pack. Also the doorway thing as you mentioned. Reading books and watching documentaries on wolves would help you understand the pack mentality and dominance better too. There are alot of little things that you learn as you go.....body language, etc.
As far as the petting thing I wouldnt worry about that. Some dogs don't love to be pet alot.....With that being said you want to be able to handle him when needed so get him used to that (for nail clipping, etc).
I hope I helped a little...
I dont know the age or breed of this dog or your intentions with it but Ed has alot of puppy videos that may be beneficial for you.

Good Luck,

Pat

How dominant is your dog? If he's a very dominant dog then read Ed's article on dealing with dominant dogs.

That said - if your dog is like mine then alot of those steps, in my opinion anyway, just aren't neccesary. If you are raising a whole buncha dogs, then having a universal "game plan" for how you intend to raise and treat your dogs may be the way to go, but if it's your first dog and you only have one, then I think it's just as important to read your dog and raise him/her based on the way your individual dog is acting, not neccesarily following every rule that "covers all bases" when some of the bases don't apply to your individual dog. I compare this to treating a new born baby for Jaundice because it's a common thing for new born's, even though the symptoms aren't there. My dog has a spot on the bed he's allowed to sleep on at night, he sleeps on there for about an hour, then he jumps off n goes to his couch. He never waits for me to walk thru a door (I never enforced this) because if I open a door I usually intend for him to come with me, and if I don't, I tell him to stay. Would I treat him this way if he had dominant tendencies toward me? Heck no! But it doesn't apply to my dog. Now if I were writing an article on raising dogs, sure I'd probably go with a cookie cutter method that covers all bases, because I don't know who's reading the article, I don't know how well the reader can read their dogs, so it's safer to tell them to take the yellow brick road than to stray off into the corn fields <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I'm sure there's a ton of people who're going to disagree with my take on this - but what can I say? It worked for me. There's more than one way to raise a dog, and my dog damn well knows who's the boss <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I think it's more important to be consistent and not let a dog get away with things because you're too lazy to correct the behavior, rather than concentrating on the small "tips & tricks" for how to avoid or control a behavior that isn't there.

Like I said, if you HAVE a dominant dog, read Ed's article on it, it's filled with excellent information, otherwise - live with your dog and learn his routine, learn his body language, learn which situations you need to work on, but don't focus too much on getting everything 100% perfect, it's never gonna happen <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />