You're Being Lied To About Dog Hierarchy — See for Yourself
Many critics, including the AVSAB, claim that dominating a dog creates fear and anxiety and damages its bond with its owner. After 30 years of working with dogs, I see the exact opposite, and you can see it for yourself on camera. Here are three dogs I dominated, and how they behave toward me today.
You're being misled about hierarchy: about its effects on your dog, and on your relationship with him.
The AVSAB (American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior) advises veterinarians not to refer their clients to trainers or behavior consultants who teach or promote dominance hierarchy theory. Why? Because, according to them, trying to dominate a dog, or using dominance-based training techniques, creates or worsens serious behavioral and emotional problems, such as fear and anxiety, and damages the human–animal bond, destroying the trust and sense of safety between a dog and its owner. Interestingly, the AVSAB's own statement defines dominance as a relationship between individuals — yet it tells owners not to take it into account.
Whoever the critics of hierarchy in dogs are, they keep repeating the same two things: that hierarchy is just a theory and doesn't exist, and that it creates fear and anxiety in dogs and harms our relationship with them. These are two recurring, widely spread falsehoods. I could cite canine behavior researchers who say the opposite (they're quoted on my site), but once again, I'll let you see for yourself, on camera.
First falsehood: you're told hierarchy doesn't exist? Then watch the interactions between dogs that I filmed myself — over food, territory and physical contact. Watch the footage →
Second falsehood: that dominance creates fear and damages your relationship. Ruby, Molly and Jody are just three examples among the more than 2,000 dogs I've trained in 30 years of private lessons — plus countless others in workshops, training clinics, “Ask a Trainer” events in New York, shelters, rescue associations, prison pet-therapy programs, explosive-detection training, my own pack of up to 20 dogs, and in the wild. I dominated them, and I used a form of discomfort in their training.
Ruby
Before that, Ruby was fearful and anxious around me, and she didn't trust me. You can clearly see it in the video, and that was before I dominated her. What was the effect of dominance, and of the method that goes with it? Look at the pictures.
Molly
I dominated Molly when I trained her. Look at how she behaves toward me when I run into her by chance on the beach, after her training sessions: the opposite of fear and anxiety, the opposite of mistrust and insecurity.
Jody
Jody's case is even more telling. After a one-hour lesson in which I explained and showed his owner how to dominate him (you can see it in the footage), he followed me and tried everything he could to get into my car. He left his owner, who didn't dominate him, to follow a stranger who had just dominated him.
What dominance really does
The effects of dominance are not what you're told, and you're being misled about it. For 30 years, I've seen its immense benefits for dogs and for the relationship between owners and their dogs.
Stephan MairesseProfessional dog trainer & canine behaviorist, 30 years of experience across 16 countries, more than 2,000 dogs trained. Certificat de capacité N°750108. Read his full background →
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