My dog picks on puppies

2 minute snack

I have a very well behaved dog.

Ness, is a 4 year old German Shepherd mix who is my absolute best friend in the world.

He’s a very good boy.

He has all the basic dog obedience things down…

• Sit

• Stay

• Down

• Come

• Don’t pee in house

• Bark at Amazon delivery guy

He’s even great off leash and plays well with other dogs…

Well, most of them.

Except for puppies.

Puppies between the age of 12 weeks and about one year he’s sometimes a little aggressive…

Not always, but on several occasions at the dog park when he spots one he locks on and charges, tramples and stands over the wimpering puppy exerting his dominance.

He never bites them, never growls and the hair on his back doesn’t rise but it is a clear show of force that makes the other dog owners freak out a bit.

I correct him, apologize through the glaring eyes of the other owners and we usually leave after that.

I used to get frustrated with this behavior because of how it makes me feel being judged by other humans for my dogs behavior.

[…]

My last German Shepherd was named Logan after Marvels Wolverine.

He was a purebred Shepherd from a lineage of working and police dogs.

I had him professionally trained by a dog trainer that trained the Phoenix Police Departments K9 unit.

He was about 30 pounds larger than Ness and very aggressive.

Well trained but not the playful type.

Loyal, obedient and extremely protective.

Friendly to his owners but apprehensive with others.

He was not a dog park dog.

Something that trainer told me was that the dog park is just like Prison.

There are Alphas on the yard and Beta’s and order matters and dominance rules all.

Alpha’s eat first, mate first and protect the Beta’s.

But, protection comes through submission not rivalry.

At the dog park and the prison yard new “puppies” need to know their place in the pack.

There are limited resources in Prison and a Pack and without order there would be chaos.

And it’s the Alpha’s job to create that order.

Dominance, force and shows of aggression do this quickly so that the pack can work together as a unit rather than a bunch of Lone Wolves.

When I got Ness, I understood this so I trained him differently, I focused more attention on socialization at a young age and stayed very disciplined with remaining the Alpha in our pack.

And I am beyond happy with him, except in the rare instance he encounters a new puppy and bully’s him a bit…

But, thats my human junk putting human emotions on instinctual and primal behavior.

In pack mentality, by exerting dominance directly and forcefully once the Alpha is creating oder.

The young puppy learns when he’s young to have a healthy respect for its leaders.

It can feel unsettling when dogs act this way in our softer society but it’s a great reminder that their has to be Alphas in every pack.

And we shouldn’t shy away from a very basic instinct to discipline (sometimes forcefully) the younger parts of ourselves, families and society.

I’m not saying to go out and puff your chest and be all macho, aggressive and Alpha on every weaker person you meet…

But to Alpha yourself first, create order in your own life and not to be afraid of unleashing the animal inside.

Don’t lone wolf it, join a tribe of men and become what your pack needs you to be.

If you haven’t yet joined the FREE High Value Man Community just click the link and step inside.

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Much love,

Erin “Pack Leader” Alejandrino

PS… Join the FREE community of High Value Men and become the “Alpha Dog” that leads in his Faith, Fitness, Family and Finances.