by Anita Galves

Created on: May 18, 2009   Last Updated: July 23, 2010

Watching Cesar Millan on the National Geographic channel's The Dog Whisperer is a weekly part of my television viewing. I am very impressed with his understanding of, and connection with, the canine species. He truly seems to have a unique understanding of the psyche of "man's best friend".

One of his main themes is that dogs are pack animals, and they follow a pack leader within the pack. There is a hierarchy, for example, in wolf packs, the wolf being a relative to the dog and part of the canine species. Wolves have an alpha male and an alpha female in the pack, and all the other members are subordinate to them. If another subordinate member challenges the leader(s) of the pack, there is temporary chaos within the pack until the leader, whether new or previous, has been determined.

There is a communication between all the members of the pack that is expressed both vocally and with body language. The alpha members, for example, are the only ones that will walk with their tails held high, indicating their dominance over the others. And the alpha male will hold his tail higher than the alpha female. The other members of the pack will show their subordinance by lying down in front of the leaders, exposing their necks and bellies. They will not give the leaders a challenging stare, unless that is their intention, which will be then be met with aggression by the reigning leader.

I have owned many dogs in the past forty-five years and I have noticed from puppyhood on that they seem to want to please man, that they are interested in what we are about, and they readily submit to our demands and leadership if we start them at a young age. I have also obtained older dogs and have been successful in obtaining allegiance and submission from many of them, as I tend to be an assertive person and demand respect.

What has been valuable to me in learning from Cesar Millan is that we need to be calm and assertive with dogs in order to be their pack leader. Dogs respect a leader that is calm and assertive. That is the trademark of a true pack leader. If one is assertive but angry, upset, nervous or fearful, the dog will pick up on that, either through the energy that is passing through the leash or just the overall energy that you are transmitting. Dogs are tuned into our energy, just like they are with other dogs. This is part of their communication ability. In the past I was always assertive and dominate, but many times, because I was also stressed out, angry or even fearful, I did not get the recognition as true pack leader and therefore would have trouble in controlling my dog. Watching and learning from Cesar in this matter has truly been an eye opener, and has merited the results desired.

Man has had a relationship with dogs for hundreds of years. He has developed many different breeds to serve in areas of herding, hunting, protection, companionship, assistance with the blind and hearing impaired...and the list goes on and on. I don't feel man could have succeeded in all those areas without the loyalty and submission and skills of our best friend.

Dogs need a pack leader. This gives them order and peace and happiness. And they interpret our connection to them and love for them by our being their pack leader. They are truly in-sync and fulfilled by our acceptance of this role that benefits us both.

Learn more about this author, Anita Galves.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.