Dogs in the City: Episode 2 - Alpha Dogs and Bulldog Ballerinas
By Cindy Ludwig, M.A., KPA-CTP
Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner
Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner
Introduction
After watching Episode 2 I have to wonder, where have the producers and writers of this show been for the last few years while veterinary behaviorists and professional organizations such as the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior have been flooding the internet and print communications with information to dispel the myth of "the pack" and dominance as it has been applied by popular dog trainer personalities. Perhaps they are aware of the inaccuracies but they know that dominance sells. One can only guess.
In this week's episode of Dogs in the City with Justin Silver, Silver takes on a case of severe aggression, a pampered pooch and a retiring police dog. To the untrained eye and the uneducated mind this all might make interesting television, but too many people fail to see the fallacy of authority here and believe what is conveyed without question. To add a twist of danger to the concoction of these solved mysteries, network television has ended each of the three stories with an illusory conclusion that all are better now. What a great opportunity is missed to educate the public in safe dog handling and concepts of proper training.
In this week's episode of Dogs in the City with Justin Silver, Silver takes on a case of severe aggression, a pampered pooch and a retiring police dog. To the untrained eye and the uneducated mind this all might make interesting television, but too many people fail to see the fallacy of authority here and believe what is conveyed without question. To add a twist of danger to the concoction of these solved mysteries, network television has ended each of the three stories with an illusory conclusion that all are better now. What a great opportunity is missed to educate the public in safe dog handling and concepts of proper training.
Oreo, the Aggressive Terrier Mix

Lip Retraction With Tooth Display - Source: Anton Ferreira
Oreo has some serious aggression. When professional trainers and behaviorists evaluate aggression they take into consideration not only the situations in which the aggression occurs, but the bite history. The bite history includes not only the number of bites, but the severity of those bites.
Veterinarian, Ian Dunbar has developed a rating scale for bites that some would be surprised to learn includes not only bites but threat displays at the lowest level. The reason bite history is important is that it gives the evaluator an idea not only of a dog's level of aggression but also its bite inhibition, in other words the amount of control the dog exhibits when under stress. We also look at the circumstances under which the bite occurred and the body part afflicted if skin was broken.
A lot of information must be taken into account before coming up with a diagnosis of aggression and an appropriate treatment plan. Aggression that involves multiple bites under various circumstances needs to be evaluated by a licensed veterinarian. There are many underlying medical causes of aggression and thes need to be ruled out before it can be assumed that the aggression is what we call a learned behavior, or behavior that is learned as a response to the animal's environment as opposed to being caused by a disorder of physiology.
Veterinarian, Ian Dunbar has developed a rating scale for bites that some would be surprised to learn includes not only bites but threat displays at the lowest level. The reason bite history is important is that it gives the evaluator an idea not only of a dog's level of aggression but also its bite inhibition, in other words the amount of control the dog exhibits when under stress. We also look at the circumstances under which the bite occurred and the body part afflicted if skin was broken.
A lot of information must be taken into account before coming up with a diagnosis of aggression and an appropriate treatment plan. Aggression that involves multiple bites under various circumstances needs to be evaluated by a licensed veterinarian. There are many underlying medical causes of aggression and thes need to be ruled out before it can be assumed that the aggression is what we call a learned behavior, or behavior that is learned as a response to the animal's environment as opposed to being caused by a disorder of physiology.
Vallentina the Ballerina

Princess Dog - Source: Willee Cole
I have to wonder how much of this was real and how much was staged. Does Valentina's owner really dress her up in a tutu on a regular basis? English bulldogs are not the usual breed of choice for playing dress-up, at least in my experience.
Silver asserts that Valentina wants to be a dog but doesn't know how to be a dog. How can that be? Surely Valentina does not think she is a human. Regardless of Valentina's attire, the important issue here is not what the dog wears but safety around the baby.
I think Silver totally missed the boat here when he insisted on taking Valentina to play with his dogs at the Fetch.
What Valentina needs is some one on one time with her owner, Jessica. It doesn't matter what she wears for their quality time together.
There are excellent resources available to teach dogs and their owners how to prepare for a new baby and to ease the transition to the home. One of these resources is Living With Kids and Dogs. Additional resources are provided at the end of this article.
Silver asserts that Valentina wants to be a dog but doesn't know how to be a dog. How can that be? Surely Valentina does not think she is a human. Regardless of Valentina's attire, the important issue here is not what the dog wears but safety around the baby.
I think Silver totally missed the boat here when he insisted on taking Valentina to play with his dogs at the Fetch.
What Valentina needs is some one on one time with her owner, Jessica. It doesn't matter what she wears for their quality time together.
There are excellent resources available to teach dogs and their owners how to prepare for a new baby and to ease the transition to the home. One of these resources is Living With Kids and Dogs. Additional resources are provided at the end of this article.
Retiring Riley

Police Dog With Handler - Source: Kellyplz
Riley is a German Shepherd police dog who is retiring due to back problems. Nicki is his replacement, and Silver refers to these dogs as "alpha" dogs. I do not know why and I wonder if he calls them that because of their breeds (one is a German Shepherd Dog and the other a Malinois), their sex or some other quality.
First of all, for an animal to be an "alpha" it has to be an alpha in relation to another animal or animals. Relationships are dynamic and not static, so while either one of these dogs might be dominant over another in certain situations at certain times it is incorrect use of the term "alpha" or dominant to describe an animals personality.
Dominance refers to the quality of a relationship between two animals and it is not constant. While some animals may tend to assume a dominant role with certain other animals, they cannot be said to be dominant except with regard to that specific animal in specific situations where that relationship remains fairly constant over a period of time.
The same goes for the term, "alpha." An animal is not an "alpha," but it is possible for an animal to assume the top position in an unnatural pack or group of animals where that animal maintains that top-ranking position in a social hierarchy of the group over a period of time.
Silver states he has "trained lots of working dogs" but there is no mention of any training experience on his website. Working dogs include service dogs, police dogs and search and rescue (SAR) dogs. These are dogs that are trained, to one degree or another to perform specific work. Training each type of working dog is a specialty. Dogs undergo extensive training and must be temperamentally sound and physically healthy.
It is unclear why a police K9 handler would not have had guidance from the trainer(s) who trained his dogs and police force on how to properly integrate Nicki into the family while retiring Riley. It is also unclear as to why Silver felt he needed to bring one of his own dogs into the picture to facilitate the introduction of the two dogs. As it was the introduction was pretty uneventful and all dogs and handlers successfully did some parallel walking. Parallel walking is a technique that dog trainers use when working with dogs that are aroused or aggressive toward other dogs to put them in a less threatening position relative to each other to help them learn to feel safe in the presence of other dogs.
Undoubtedly the best part of the whole show was the end where Riley walked down the steps with his handler between tow rows of uniformed policemen who saluted his retirement. Very touching and a good ending to an otherwise not so good "reality show" about a "dog guru" in New York City.
First of all, for an animal to be an "alpha" it has to be an alpha in relation to another animal or animals. Relationships are dynamic and not static, so while either one of these dogs might be dominant over another in certain situations at certain times it is incorrect use of the term "alpha" or dominant to describe an animals personality.
Dominance refers to the quality of a relationship between two animals and it is not constant. While some animals may tend to assume a dominant role with certain other animals, they cannot be said to be dominant except with regard to that specific animal in specific situations where that relationship remains fairly constant over a period of time.
The same goes for the term, "alpha." An animal is not an "alpha," but it is possible for an animal to assume the top position in an unnatural pack or group of animals where that animal maintains that top-ranking position in a social hierarchy of the group over a period of time.
Silver states he has "trained lots of working dogs" but there is no mention of any training experience on his website. Working dogs include service dogs, police dogs and search and rescue (SAR) dogs. These are dogs that are trained, to one degree or another to perform specific work. Training each type of working dog is a specialty. Dogs undergo extensive training and must be temperamentally sound and physically healthy.
It is unclear why a police K9 handler would not have had guidance from the trainer(s) who trained his dogs and police force on how to properly integrate Nicki into the family while retiring Riley. It is also unclear as to why Silver felt he needed to bring one of his own dogs into the picture to facilitate the introduction of the two dogs. As it was the introduction was pretty uneventful and all dogs and handlers successfully did some parallel walking. Parallel walking is a technique that dog trainers use when working with dogs that are aroused or aggressive toward other dogs to put them in a less threatening position relative to each other to help them learn to feel safe in the presence of other dogs.
Undoubtedly the best part of the whole show was the end where Riley walked down the steps with his handler between tow rows of uniformed policemen who saluted his retirement. Very touching and a good ending to an otherwise not so good "reality show" about a "dog guru" in New York City.