The Alpha Roll
From LoveToKnow Dogs
What is an alpha roll? An alpha roll is the act of flipping your dog onto his back and holding his throat. The idea for the alpha rollover technique was born from short-term studies done of wolf packs in the 1940s. Supposedly this training method will teach him that YOU are alpha and he will respect you for this act. This training method is now thought to be obsolete because it is dangerous for both the human performing the alpha roll and the dog being rolled.
Your Dog's View
Here is the alpha roll from your dog's point of view: I am a truly happy puppy playing with my human. We are rolling on the floor, tails and butts wagging, laughing, running to and from each other. Then, suddenly, my human lets out a loud yell, glares at me, grabs me by the shoulder, and yanks me on my back. Terrified, I allow her to roll me on my back in the hopes that it will calm her down. But she continues to tower over me, glaring, and I desperately look away to defuse the situation. Finally she pulls herself together and lets me go. She actually wants to play again! I have lost all desire to play—it triggers bad behavior in my human, and I don’t trust her anymore.
After the incident, I spoke to other canines at the park, who told me that this behavior is what humans call an “alpha roll,” and it was my human’s attempt at letting me know I had done something wrong during playtime. I missed the point entirely. I thought my human had lost his mind. Apparently humans think that canines alpha roll other canines to correct an unwanted behavior and “show who is boss.” Dogs who roll over actually do so quite willingly. If they are not willing, a true dog fight then occurs. Luckily for my human, I am a good boy and chose to roll over.
The Alpha Roll Facts
Alpha rolling is dangerous and unnecessary. By performing what seems like an attack to a dog, humans leave themselves vulnerable to a bite to the face and lower the trust and respect their dogs have for them. An alpha roll can have dire consequences for dominant or fear aggressive canines. An alpha roll can increase aggression in an already dominant dog. In a submissive dog, the alpha roll will add more feat to the dog's psyche and can lead to submissive urination, loss of trust and possible fear biting. The alpha roll is not a good way to build a sound, healthy relationship. A stable leader shows his dog the rules in a fair, gentle, and firm manner, built on clear communications and mutual respect.In the dog world, the only reason one dog will forcefully flip another dog on its back is to kill it. In the alpha roll over, physical force is used. We see many dogs flip over on their backs of their own accord to show submission, but this action is not the same as the alpha roll. It is completely voluntary. Confusing the two acts is like comparing apples and oranges.
"Alpha" does not mean physically dominant. It means "in control of resources." Many, many alpha dogs are too small or too physically frail to physically dominate. They have earned the right to control the valued resources in their domain without using physical prowess. You can be the alpha in your house without using the alpha roll.
Comments
i think the views were a bit bias.... i view the "holding a dog LIGHTLY from its chest (not actually its neck to choke), making it immovable, without hurting it" as a part of play, not a technique created to be used on dogs to train them..... , i used to play like that with my dog... not because i had the intention to train him and correct him.... for me, it was only a part of a game like of playing hide & seek with my friends.... we played a lot, and ran around chasing, and i would catch him down and then his turn would come and he would catch me too.. with his fangs of course, but when dog knows its a play he can never hurt anybody...... i would hold him down on his back sometimes if i had to get my socks from his mouth.....hold him with a little more strength when he was reluctant to go to the vet… i was never hurt… we had the trust between us …….i'm not saying that i used "alpha roll" to build the trust, but i would play with him a lot... because he was the only dog in my house, i would try to play like a dog with him, to try to act like his dog play mate and to understand him... and i would hold him down from his chest or tickle him as a part of our play… sometimes, whole of my wrist would be in his mouth but i never got a bruise… i think that is how dogs love to play, showing off their skills, strength and cunningness..….we never played the ball fetching game….... i know it sounds weird but i don't think there's anything wrong with playing with a dog in a a dog's way, and as his playmate, not just as a human owner... therefore, i don't view "alpha roll" as a bad thing.....as i think that that's the way dogs play, understand, learn and start rethinking, having new opinions..... if an example is needed, then we can look at any dog moms... they don't always groom their pups out of love, to show their worth or so that they can teach them things easily.... when time comes to discipline their pups, they can do anything from, growling, yanking or biting legs or holding other from their neck or chest..... this isn't necessarily a bad thing just because we, humans don't act that way to our children......... it's just the way dogs communicate, from the BODY LANGUAGE, not always the words........ only thing is that it should not be taken as a TECHNIQUE created for a human..... and use just because you think its a technique to train/ tame your dog...... the way i view it is as a part of how you communicate with your dog...... not as a technique or a punishment for dogs.... and i don't think it necessarily means to choke dogs with killing intent whether it's to communicate or correct or train... i don't think it is necessarily an attack……. it's a good thing that "alpha roll" is called dangerous because otherwise, people would just try to do it calling it a technique and would just create a lot of casualties.... but i couldn't really understand some of the points you made............ maybe i'm just totally wrong or stupid or just childish...
-- Contributed by: ikchhaYou make an error on your explanation. You say "Your Dog's View" and you give a human emotional description of events. Do not confuse your assumption of an event with a dogs. I can't say I agree with an alpha roll, but do not humanize the event.
-- Contributed by: WillHi Angie,
Biting is a serious problem. This could be a bigger issue than your dog just wanting to assert her dominance over you. I recommend you have your dog temperament tested by a canine behaviorist to determine whether the problem can be corrected. If you can't locate a behaviorist, ask your vet to perform the evaluation.
Thanks for sharing your situation, and I do hope there is a way to rehabilitate this dog.
-- Contributed by: KellyThis page has been accessed 3,495 times. This page was last modified 02:13, 27 March 2008.
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