Who’s the leader of your pack: You or the dog? Do you need to bribe your dog with a cookie to get him in the house? Does your dog drop toys on your lap so you’ll play fetch? Does he decide the direction your walk will take? Does he growl at you when you correct him? Does your dog bark at the sound of the doorbell? If you find yourself nodding yes to one or more of these questions, then the answer to the question in the title is most likely: The Dog! In order to correct unwanted behaviours such as; attention seeking, pulling on leash, barking at the door, and jumping up on people, etc...we must first understand the cause of these behaviours. In the wild, dogs test the leader to make sure that the he or she is worthy of the job. The leader will also make demands on the subordinate dogs to maintain his or her leadership. Our family dogs are still pack animals and they follow the same law as wild dogs. They need a strong leader to ensure pack safety. However, most people do not know how to show pack leadership, there is a simple reason for this we’re humans not dogs! The behaviours that we’ve mentioned usually happen because the dog(s) feel as though they are the leader. They answer the door because the leader always controls the entrance to the den (house). They pull us on our walks because the leader is always in front of the pack. They jump up on us or our visitors to assess people and to show their dominance. Once we understand that our dogs are not misbehaving to annoy us, rather they truly feel that they must behave this way to ensure pack safety, we can begin to find solutions. We give our dogs love, shelter and food, but not what they need the most which is proper leadership. Good leadership is not established through fear or food rewards, rather through clear communication and consistency. Bark Busters...a better way to a better dog! Alana & Marco are owners of a Bark Busters franchise. They are dog behaviour therapists and trainers that specialize in behaviour issues such as: barking, jumping, pulling on lead, separation anxiety and all types of aggression. Check out their website at www.barkbusters.ca or contact them at 1-866-418-4584 email: am@barkbusters.ca