actually, i have not experienced this in my dogs, LOL -
nor in my clients, as i said i have *never ever* seen any fixed hierarchy.
i have however seen my CLIENTS allow a young pup to torment the life out of a senior-dog out of sheer boredom, and the clients were so ignorant as to allow this by the hour...
that is not *aggression* or fighting, but it is miserable for the target-dog, is it not?
as i see humans in the same relation to dogs as parents to children, MINDING the kids and interrupting rough play, teasing, nasty interactions of all sorts, that is MY duty as recess monitor, LOL - not as so-called pack-leader.
i
Lead! thru doors, between parked cars, or in any other narrow space, because i want to recon before the dog sticks their head in there... not out of fear that the dog will see me as a subordinate, LOL, but to prevent any accidents or avoid nasty little surprises -
like the escaped PARROT who punctured the ear on my friends Golden as her DOG entered the vet-clinic off-leash ahead of her,
just as she had done with that dog since he was a puppy!, bad idea... and the poor dog ended up crashing thru the surgical suite, screaming bloody murder with a parrot clamped to his tender, bleeding ear, while the parrot also screamed madly...
he had stitches and a net-bandage after, to keep the ear from a haemotoma.
it was bedlam!, poor dog, and the aftermath was a dog who did not even want to get out of the car, for fear some shrieking maniac would get him.
i have also seen this type of conflict arise among very-pushy dogs who are Not family nor in the same household; a group of SAR dogs were all in one small area on a bus, going to an educational event, and these dogs are typically very confident, eager, a bit frustrated at close confinement, and ready for anything to interrupt the boredom.
yet, amazingly, these Bolshy dogs were lying very pointedly with their FACES away from all the nearby dogs... Why? to minimize their own battering with stimuli, and to also present the least possible potential for any conflict.
it was a specific problem, brilliantly solved by the dogs themselves.
exercising manners is a simple thing; i have very high expectations, i teach what i want, and i follow-thru; dogs who comply can go virtually anywhere, and do amazing things. dogs who are problematic need much more management and oversight, and of necessity, cannot go as many places, or at least, not as freely.
i expect CIVIL behavior of other dogs and their handlers, too - manners are the lubricant of the social interface, n'est pas?
but MANNERS are not hierarchy, nor are they wolf behavior - they are MY imposition of MY preferences on MY dogs, and my request of other humans and dogs in public. i want everybody safe first, and having fun, second!
typical camp-counselor, eh?
cheers,
--- terry