Question:

>Interesting – I have the second book which also includes alpha roll.  I had >not read this book when my last dog was a pup, and was able to enforce >discipline without these methods.  Have they written a third book which >disputes this?

I think more specifically it was Job Evans who dropped the alpha roll thing after having left the monks.  Since he was basically the monk who wrote the books, it is generally assumed that the monks have softened their stance on the alpha roll and their general training methods.   I’m not sure however that is actually the case.  It was Evans who softened his stance on the alpha roll and confrontational training methods after he was no longer affiliated with the monks. Ludwig Smith Dog FAQS http://www.k9web.com/dog-faqs/ rec.pets.dogs.info

Response:

The books by Monks of New Skete are: The Art of Raising a Puppy; and How to be Your Dog’s Best Friend – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > I disagree that you should ignore the bad behavior.  Always reinforce good > behavior with praise.  but AGGRESSIVE behavior should be reprimanded > IMMEDIATELY. > In the book by the Monks of New Skete – the name evades me – but you can > find it at amazon (something about being your dogs best friend??) – they > talk about how to discipline aggression problems.  Try picking up the front > half of the dog by the skin on the front of the neck, looking into the dogs > eyes, and shaking the dog, saying "No. Bad Dog" in a big voice.  Then roll > the dog onto its back and look into its eyes and say "No again." > Your lab thinks its the king of the roost because she dominated Toffee.  You > need to get control BACK. > I would seriously suggest buying this book!  Great book! >Hello all. >I need your help with a chocolate female lab who is developing into >something I don’t like. >Here is the background. >Her name is Yoda, and she is almost three years old. She’s been an >extremely good dog, not too submissive and not too dominant. I’d say she >had a quite good character. I got her when she was 8 weeks old and she >was raised with love and affection. >About a month ago, we adopted a Bernese Mountain dog, and Yoda is the >alpha between them. Toffee (the Bernese) accepted this without any >problems and they’ve become good friends. But that friendship kinda >developed Yoda’s behavior changes and she is getting dominant towards me >now. In the beginning it was not much, but lately she becomes possessive >of things. She was always a bit on the oral side, as she liked to carry >whatever she could find in her mouth. But it was never destructive. Now >with Toffee in the house she carries things to her as she wants to play >(yes they do have trillions of things of their own – but nothing taste as >good as socks I guess) and that end up destroying whatever they’re >playing with. The fun begins when I try to remove the article from her. >Sometimes she growls but will give up, sometimes she won’t. That’s where >the real problem begins. She won’t let go and she is trying to be the >alpha of the house I guess. Well, needless to say I don’t agree. >Before anybody asks, we were very careful of keeping Yoda at the same >status in the sense that she has few privileges over Toffee. We pay equal >attentions to both dogs, play with them, and 99 % of the time it’s a >happy family. We have no kids, but a small gentle cat. >I don’t know what to do at this stage, and I’ll end up most likely >talking to someone specialized about this. >I’ve tried the alpha roll with some success. She will growl, show teeth >and eventually she becomes submissive. But she shows a mouthful and she >growls and even barks and she does not accept it. She snapped in the air >and she tries to show she does not agree with the idea. I can see that >she his not happy on her back. >I don’t want to complicate things further and I tend to think that the >problem is either due to the new dog in the house, or it might also be >the adolescence of the dog. But I want to be on the safe side and I don’t >want this behavior to evolve any further. >Any suggestions here?  This behavior is not something that I like in a >dog, and I want to make sure that I cure it (if that is possible). Should >I keep doing the alpha roll more often to really drive the point that I’m >the alpha and not her?  But then again, does my girlfriend need to do >that to? >Anyway has you can see, I’ve got my handful at this moment and I’m kinda >lost. Yoda has been an extremely good dog and never really showed any >problems. >Thanks ahead of time and sorry for the long letter. >Fran