Hm, I don't know if I would consider him an "alpha" dog. I guess I'd really have to see him in a "pack" of dogs to determine that. Quicksilver is right - the term does get thrown around quite often and I think we lose meaning of what it really means.
For example, I for sure consider my dad's Jack Russell mix, Lily, the Alpha dog. They have two dogs over there, her and their Doxy mix, Buddy. When I bring Jackson over, it makes three. Lily ALWAYS take control. She's the first to start barking at a noise outside, gets them all to follow, if they come anywhere NEAR her bone she's after them like crazy, she's the first to bark at an unknown dog, she just totally LEADS the pack. Jackson is sooo different when he's by himself and not influenced by her. He could care less about other dogs, he doesn't bark, he just likes to watch, he loves to go up and meet the other dog but he's generally shy and waits for them to approach him first, he rolls over on his back all the time, lol, he's 100% submissive, it's so funny. |