I saw an interesting quote the other day: "Character is not made in a crisis but shown in a crisis."
I thought it was rather fitting when describing the relationship between a dog and its owner, specifically the degree of leadership present in a human-canine pack.
When the environment around a dog is safe, predictable and stable a dog is always a good dog. It is obedient, reliable, social and generally easy to be around. This is because the dog has learned that when in those stable situations the owner displays the level of leadership (because the owner feels secure) that allows for the dog to feel safe and secure, so it can be obedient and reliable. That is why most dogs are really good at home.
But when situations present themselves outside of that stable environment, the leadership in the pack often comes into question due to the unpredictability of the new environment. That's when cracks in the human leadership become evident and the true nature of the relationship between the owner and dog is seen.
Sometimes these cracks are a small hairline fracture, sometimes they are as large as the San Andreas Fault.
In any case the owner is typically unaware of them since the dog displays such good behaviour in safe predictable situations; but the dog is certainly aware and is expressing these faults with its inappropriate behaviour.
In a solid leadershipbased relationship a dog will remain predictable, stable and obedient even when the environment is not because it does not have to rely on the stability of its surroundings to allow it to feel safe. It trusts its owner completely and whatever the owner asks, the dog will willingly comply.
Conversely, in a weak leadership-based relationship a dog becomes anxious, nervous, fearful or even aggressive in situations that are unpredictable.
What is an unpredictable environment?
To a dog, that is anything that does not resemble the environment that allows it to be 100 per cent calm and peaceful.
But it's not about geography. Dog owners needn't create stability within an environment to have a calm and relaxed dog. Rather they must strive to be the strong leader the dog needs in order to feel calm and relaxed wherever they are.
They trust in their owner's leadership to handle anything unpredictable that may arise in any given situation.
If you "don't believe" in the necessity of maintaining a leadership role for your dog - meaning you don't agree with the alpha dog (wolf) concept, it's time to get your head out of the sand. Seriously. Every single life force on the planet follows the role of the strongest (be it mentally, emotionally or physically) rules the roost. Dogs - being 98 per cent wolf - are no exception.
Why do we have to be a strong leader to our dogs?
Why can't we just let them be? Because we share this world with humans other than ourselves. Dogs do not understand human rules of social conduct, they understand dog rules of social conduct. So a dog chasing after a child, jogger, or another dog is not considered socially acceptable for humans regardless of whether the dog is gaining some level of enjoyment out of it or not.
We must teach our dogs to be obedient in all situations and be good leaders to them. We must be responsible for our dog's actions, not make excuses for them. Making excuses for your dog's behaviour may get you out of a tight spot when speaking to another human but your dog doesn't respect you for it. You allowed that inappropriate behaviour in the first place which - to your dog - showed your lack of leadership ability, and frankly, your lack of character.
Remember: "Character is not made in a crisis, but shown in a crisis."
Be the leader your dog needs you to be.
