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| Sage and Pepper in their human father's arms - John |
Sage Canine Advice, by Sage Riverdog – June 17, 2012
Dogs don’t really have much involvement with their canine fathers. They have been domesticated and bred to become part of a human pack. The pack instinct is still very strong. They look to the leader of their pack to play the traditional role of a “father”.
To a dog that leader is the alpha male. That doesn’t mean the gender of the leader of the pack needs to be male or a dog. The alpha male provides leadership, food, security, discipline and comfort. Human owners should assume the role of pack leader.
Humans have influenced the evolution of dogs to the extent that dogs never grow up to be independent, like human children. Humans provide for all the needs of a dog and in many ways keep that dog in a state of perpetual puppyhood. Humans replace the instinct to hunt and chase with fetching and walks. Human provide the food and water, so the hunting/killing instinct is seldom used.
A main challenge with this relationship is when a human doesn’t assume the role of pack leader and they confuse a dog by assuming a dog is human, too. Dogs think and act like dogs. Without a human pack leader, dogs will try to assume the pack leader role and become aggressive, which often creates problems.
To all the Father (pack leaders) out there – I wish you a Happy Father’s Day.
About Sage – Sage is an
8-year-old black Labrador retriever who lives with River District Executive
Director Edna Chirico and Edna’s husband, John Huber. Sage earned a Canine Good
Citizen award, which allows her to visit nursing homes, hospitals and schools.
Sage loves to run, fetch, swim, ride in boats, travel in the car and play with
just about anyone, especially children.
1 comment:
Thanks, Sage, for a wonderful reminder of how you fit within the human family. Could you tell me what kind of dog you are? Our Father's Day gift was a brand new puppy that looks just like you, but we have no idea what the breed is, or how big she will become.
Also, how did you become certified as a Canine Good Citizen? Our puppies would love to have that training and to be able to visit homebound friends.
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