Alpha Dog

One of the real bonuses of having two dogs, especially if the oldest is well behaved, is that the older dog helps in the training of the younger dog.

When we got our first Chessie, we were a little anxious. We were used to a placid Cocker Spaniel who was not aggressive (She did snap at a neighbor boy who tried to crawl into her kennel while she was sleeping in it, but you really couldn't blame her.) Everything we read about Chessie's indicated they were hard to socialize and could be aggressive. If properly socialized, they could be great family pets and companions.

My plan to socialize our puppy, Nikki, was to have her around Ryan's friends when they came to the house and to take her everywhere I could. Mostly I took her to high school soccer games and track meets. She was very friendly and everyone loved her.

Ron's plan to make sure she wasn't aggressive was submission training. A friend of his had a Vizsla and he was training the dog to know who was the alpha dog through submission training. Ron took his advice and most evenings he would put Nikki on her back and he would crouch over her. I'm not saying that it had anything to do with her fear of thunder, her penchant for eating trash, or any of her other crazy behaviors. I am just saying.

She is the only dog with whom Ron has used this submission method. It may be that he didn't have to use it with our other dogs because the older dogs did it for him. Yesterday when it finally stopped raining and I could take the dogs outside, I watched them play. Much of their play centered around Rosie lying on her back and acting like a wet rag while Daisy stood over her. Thank goodness, Ron does not have to put Rosie on her back and crouch (That would be hard on his new knee.)over her because Daisy is doing it for him.