[iheartcooking]

Hi all! I'm new to the dog forums and new dog owner. Have to say that although our dog, whom we have been raising since she was a puppy, is not without behavior issues, has turned out pretty awesome due to the family effort. She responds very well to commands from me and I have been able to teach her a handful of tricks. Having a dog is not only as great as I thought it would be, it's not as hard as I feared.

I'm always second guessing myself on her body language though. I'm never sure if I'm the alpha dog or if she believes I am her property. She obeys me and never ever jumps on me, even after I come home from work (this took a lot of work!) but when I do finally greet her when I think she is calm, she sits on her haunches very gently grasps my arm in her two paws, to get her kisses. Is this a dominant position? She will also bump her head and neck into my husband and myself and push her body against us quite firmly, but with her head all the way down. Is this just affectionate or is it subtle dominance?

Dog body language has much more meaning than I thought when I first got into this. I find it very helpful but can also be confusing. I have more signals I'd like to ask about but I don't want to overdo it on my first post... Thanks all!

[StarfishSaving]

Originally Posted by iheartcooking

I'm always second guessing myself on her body language though. I'm never sure if I'm the alpha dog or if she believes I am her property. She obeys me and never ever jumps on me, even after I come home from work (this took a lot of work!) but when I do finally greet her when I think she is calm, she sits on her haunches very gently grasps my arm in her two paws, to get her kisses. Is this a dominant position? She will also bump her head and neck into my husband and myself and push her body against us quite firmly, but with her head all the way down. Is this just affectionate or is it subtle dominance?

Let me help you feel better. Forget everything you've ever heard about dominance and set yourself- and your dog- free of this second guessing and worry. Dogs don't see people as property, they don't "dominate" them, don't treat them like they're dogs, and your dog is not a sneaky dictator bent on taking over your world. Doesn't that feel better?

The fact is that your dog is being affectionate and while in some of these situations she is being pushy, it's not because she's dominating you. Maybe she's being pushy in some of those situations, but it's probably just because it works and she gets petted when she does that.

There are some great books on understanding dogs out there and if you are a reader, I would be happy to make some suggestions.

[DaneDreaming]

I totally second what starfish said. If you find certain behaviors a bit rude, or something you don't want to live with, then by all means, work with your pup in a positive way to show her how you DO want her to behave, and you will fix the problem. But to worry about who's the boss and if she's trying to "take over" by walking in front of you, getting on the couch, sitting on your feet, all of those "dominance related, 'my dog is trying to rule me'" things we hear spouted all over the tv, is a waste of valuable time with your pup, and in many cases can do a lot of damage to your relationship with that pup. The best thing you can do is use every experience as a learning one, don't just rely on "training times". Every new situation you encounter with your pup is a chance for both of you to learn new and cement wanted behaviors, in a fun and happy way. Always praise and reward the behaviors you Do want, especially if they're offering them on their own..not every behavior needs a cue before hand (at least in my opinion...most of what Luke learned in his first months was learned by being praised and reinforced when he was doing the behavior naturally)

[iheartcooking]

Thanks all! That's really what I was hoping
Everyone would say, and I just figured that I might be reading way too much into all the conflicting information! Plus I LOVE the way she gives me affection in the ways I described above so I'm glad it's okay to let her. She always backs off when I give her a little push, so I think it's fine.