Why Dogs Push

[jodylp1]

Mine loves to do the lean, Sometimes he baffles my other older dog who has never quite fully adapted to the lean. I also do the walkthru if he tries to guide me. I have never let him heard me & I do this in preparation of him being with children when they come along.

[lblax]

Originally Posted by Dawter

Yes....My rott will push on me when I am walking like a bully. What does this mean when he does this? He also walks directly in front of me sometimes in the house. What does this all mean? thanks

it means you havent effectively trained your dog

[Obelix]

Originally Posted by Dawter;773673 [QUOTE

He also walks directly in front of me sometimes in the house. What does this all mean?

In dog- language it means:I am the leader and I go first.Try to correct this behaviour before it get's out of control.When the dog knows he can dominate, he sure will do so.

[Dawter]

Of course I am teaching him not to walk in front of me, etc.
Larry, you may have missed something here I was only wanting to know why they do it.
Thank you for all the good answers.

[poohbearsmom]

In addition to this being a rather dominant behavior, many times there is also the "oppositional reflex" at work.... we do it, dogs do it, even my cats do it.... if you push your dog, your dog will push back.

It's better to use your body, rather than your hands to push the dog off of you and out of your way. Take up the space your dog occupied, and keep going.

Dogs are masters at body language and knowing/understanding what space they take up in any given environment. Use that to your advantage whether your dog is leaning on you, sneaking across the kitchen threshold while you're cooking, breaking an obedience behavior (put the dog back in the exact place), or simply walking down the street and moving into your space. This doesn't mean yell at the dog or get emotional, simply put your body where YOU want it, and make the dog move. No big deal.

Now, all this being said, if I invite my dog in for a head scratch and he leans into me, I don't mind that a bit. I want to take into account everything that's going on at the time. Dominance is not a black and white issue, and leaning is a very subtle form.

[Dawter]

Well said. Thank you!

[dbbear]

I admit, I'm much more likely to run over someone standing in the middle of a Walmart aisle than I am to try to knock my "gotta be around me rotty" out of the way when I'm heading into the kitchen. If I get to within a couple of feet of my guy and I just say "lookout" or "move it" he immediately does it. Unfortunately, your average Walmart shopper just makes me hostile anyway.

[sheena]

i read a book about dogs body language and about leaning, it was something like that:
The book says: (as far as i remember, i dont have it right now)
A dog which wishes to express its dominance will move next to the other dog and then will lean its weight against it. If the other dog accommodates him by moving slightly away, then the message of the leaning dog (dominance) will be accepted. But this should not be viewed as a conflict, this is a way of communication, like when a person bows his head in front of a higher authority.
If a person changes his position when his dog leans over him, he loses his status. If this action repeats frequently the dog may try other ways of showing his dominance, like not obeying to commands or being aggressive.
The reason for this is in wolves or other wild dogs, if a wolf or a wild dog is accepted as a leader of a pack, all the other animals are supposed to give him way when he approaches. A leaning dog says i am dominant over you and you will give your way whenever i come. This shows that the dog is confident about his leadership.

[Dawter]

Applaud, applaud. Makes sense to me. I like the part where it doesn't contribute it to aggression.

[webangel2b]

Dixie trys to get away with leaning on me instead of sitting. It's like "I'm right here, do I really have to SIT?"

Other sit/lay problem is that there are some places that she just won't; wet grass, hot road, etc. I think it's just uncomfortable for her and she refuses.

So instead of sitting in these unfavorable areas she either leans on me or she moves to a place that she will be comfee sitting or laying.