Considering Pack Mentality

NOTE - this is a reprint of an earlier article that was deleted due to technical issues...

A great deal has been written about dogs as descendants of wolves. For many, it seems popular in today's culture to focus on this heritage and discuss dog behavior in relation to pack behavior. Recently, I read a comment on a trainer's list that caught my eye. To paraphrase, one trainer stated that those working with dogs using pack mentality/hierarchy may be effective in spite of their approach - not because of it.

While dogs may have descended from wolves, they are not wolves. They are domestic animals, and over the past 10k years have evolved in ways that should be respected and appreciated. One key difference is the dog's desire to work and be with humans. This important trait no doubt developed gradually over time. Early transitional animals (pre-dogs) likely found it easier to scavenge food from humans vs hunting. Over time they became more comfortable sharing space and interacting with humans. Our ancestors benefited as friendlier dogs eventually helped with work and provided alert/protection.

Because pack discussions often focus on concepts of dominance and submission, I have always been a bit uncomfortable with this terminology when applied to dogs. Dogs are pre-wired to work with humans, and such outlooks diminish a predisposition for a strong partnership. While leadership and structure (also pack components) are important, dominance and submission is usually counter-productive IMO. In fact, I would argue it misses a key element of what makes dogs the wonderful companions into which they have evolved.