Our Approach
Dogs are pack animals, like their wild relative the wolf. The pack instinct is very strong, even in domestic dogs. Your dog will consider you and your human family—as well as other domestic pets in your household—to be his pack. He sees you as another dog, and doesn't understand your behavior except in dog terms.
We work with this basic fact of a dog's nature, not against it. We will teach you to communicate with your dog in a way he understands: as a dog, not as a person.
In order to maintain order and harmony, packs follow a strict Alpha, Beta, Omega hierarchy. The order is as follows:
Alpha — The Top Dog: YOU (there may be more than one human alpha but no dog alphas!)
Beta — If there is more than one dog, they may both be beta or one will be omega (they'll work it out between themselves)
Omega — The bottom dog, the new kid on the block, the most submissive dog
In your household, either you will be Alpha, or your dog will. It's that simple!
Being alpha in your family pack doesn't require you to be cruel to your dog. People put many conditions on dogs. Alpha dogs only have one condition: Submit.
Watch the video below of a mama dog disciplining her puppies. It’s not pretty but it’s effective and she doesn’t hurt any of them. She means it and puts them all in their place without negotiating with them. They submit to her and all recognize her as “Alpha”. Steve will teach you to be the “mama dog”.
You have to give commands in such a way that your dog understands that you are talking “dog”. If a dog doesn't submit, you correct him. The way an alpha dog corrects another dog actually looks more ferocious than it really is. But non-Alpha dogs expect and understand these corrections.
If you do not establish that you are Alpha in your household, your dog will not respect you. He may like you, but he won't respect you. He will do what he wants, when he wants to. He may be very nice most of the time, but if he obeys your commands, it will be because he wants to, not because he is submitting to you.
This may cause problems in your relationship with your dog. Many dogs have the urge to hunt, to fight, to roam, and to be aggressive around food, their toys, and possibly humans. Without your dominance, a dog will give in to such urges, with possibly disastrous consequences.
Both you and your dog will be happier once you are established as the Alpha of the pack by bridging the communication gap…. And that's where Steve Miles' One Day Dog Training comes in!