Debunking Dominance Theory

- Originally posted by me on June 9th, 2011 (edited today)

I’m going to start this post off by saying that I’m going to deal with dominance theory in general.

To really understand why I’m even going over this you need a little history on the topic. Keep in mind I’m paraphrasing quite a bit here, and I might have taken some liberty with the interpretation. Supporting links will be posted at the bottom along with more info about why Dominance Theory in general is kind of useless…IMO.

Dominance Theory came about in the 70s when a group of scientists decided they should learn more about wolves, particularly their social interactions. To do this the scientists had to study wolves. This is generally pretty difficult considering that wolves tend to try very hard to stay far away from people, especially since at the time there was a concerted effort to exterminate them throughout Canada and the US. So, rather than go into the ‘wilderness’ this group decided the logical thing to do was to get some wolves and put them in a large fenced area so that they would be easy to study.

So, they got a bunch of wolves. They couldn’t get a whole pack all at once or from one area, so they got some here and some there and they put them all together. Then they studied them and declared what they saw to be “The Way Wolves Are”.

This is a bit like if a bunch of randomly selected people from many different countries, religions, cultures, age groups, and walks of life from all around to world were put them in one big room with food and surroundings that they aren’t used to, studied and then the observers declared “This is The Way People Are”. I'm sure you can imagine how accurate that would be.

Anyways, what they ‘discovered’ was that in a group of wolves there is one who is in charge, the ‘Alpha Male’, and one who is on the bottom, the ‘Omega’. The others will all fall somewhere in between. The Alpha Male will pick his favorite female, and she will be the only one allowed to have pups. The Alpha and his female will always eat first, the Omega always last.

This theory then bled into everyday parlance as a meme (for more on meme’s click here) and into everyday life and training with our dogs. There are a few problems with this. The main concept was flawed (and has been scientifically proven to be so), dogs are not the same as wolves, and it was taken WAY too far.
When it comes to our interactions with dogs almost every incorrect behavior on the part of our pets has, at one time or another, been put on ‘dominance’.

• Your dog eats your shoes? He’s dominant and trying to show you that by destroying your things.
• A puppy pees on the floor. He doesn’t know his place in the pack and is trying to become dominant. (even worse if the animal pees on a bed/personal object/person)
• Cat scratches your couch? She thinks it’s HER couch because she’s too dominant.

In reality the dog probably ate your shoes because you left them out and he was bored; the puppy peed because he had to go (and likely isn’t house trained); and the cat scratched the couch because she doesn’t like her scratch post and needed to sharpen her claws.

The strangest thing to me is that this meme didn’t stay with it’s species of origin. What harm would it have been if Dominance Theory had stayed with wolves. Who cares if wolves are constantly trying to be dominant over each other? Instead this idea spread, and spread...and spread. Not only were dogs now to be watched for signs that they wanted to rule to home, but cats too were possible dictators! Your hamster escaped from the cage to finally put forth it’s own little bid for cheif-dom. The fish in your tropical tank weren’t too crowded, no - they ripped up each others fins in a bid to rule the watery world within your living room.

Believe it or not I have actually heard each of these things said by someone. Someone who meant it, someone who actually thought that every thought that flitted through the brain of their pet related to social status and how they could go about getting a better one.

I have seen dogs who have been so strictly controlled because of their possible dominance that they no longer feel safe in their own home. They don’t know what, if anything, they can put in their mouth for fear their ‘Alpha’ will charge up roaring and take it from them and then roll them aggressively onto their backs.

As you can tell Dominance Theory is a hot-button topic for me. It is something that pervaded my job, and therefore my day to day thoughts, for quite a while and still taunts me regularly.

How does dominance theory relate to cats? Theoretically, it shouldn't. But in many people’s homes the inappropriate  behaviors of their cats is attributed to dominance. If you consider the whole thing before you react you come to realize it has no place in cat training at all. (IMO it has no place in dog training either, but I think you may have caught that, lol.)

Dominance Theory was developed for wolves. Canids. Pack animals. Animals who live their lives requiring a set of social rules to govern their behavior.

Cats are solitary by nature. Their instincts guide them to keep clear of other cats unless their is a bounty of food great enough that they don’t have to protect every morsel, and even then they don't hunt together...their groupings are more of convenience. Dominance Theory should not apply.

This is the prevalence of Dominance Theory. It has wriggled it’s way into a corner of our mind to the extent that we don’t even think before we answer. Of course bad behavior is caused by the animal you are dealing with (no matter the species) trying to bully you, out rank you, or take one of your resources! What else could possibly explain bad behaviour!?

IMO Dominance Theory has long outlived it’s welcome. It’s time cooler heads prevailed and we showed some compassion and understanding when we interpret our pets’ behavior. I’d be willing to bet once you take dominance out and put logic in you’ll be happily surprised with your interpretations. I know I am.

Sources:

­The Wolf: Ecology and the Behavior of an Endangered Species by David Mech published in 1970 (This book helped establish Dominance Theory.)

Alpha Status, Dominance, and Division of Labor in Wolf Packs by David Mech Published in 1999 (Changing his stance.)

Whatever Happened to the Term Alpha by David Mech published in 2008 (Taking it back.)
Other good info:

Position Statement on the Use of Dominance Theory in Behavior Modification of Animals by the American Veterinary Association of Animal Behavior

Debunking the Dominance Myth by Carmen Buitrago – CPDT, CTC

-Becky