Dogs are pack animals; we all know this. As decendents of the wolf; pack life is the norm for dogs. Although our dogs of today lead a far different life than their decendents do. In a pack of dogs it is not a member of the pack that rules. No; to have a good pack of dogs the human must be the reigning leader, no question. And how we achieve that leadership role is not how a wolf pack leader would be established. We use our brains to be the leader and really great leader do alot of leading.
If a human family has one dog; then that one dog is a member of your pack. If you have two or more dogs then you have created a canine pack that fits within your human pack as well. Each member has a status within the pack; both human and canine. All humans should be above the dogs in the pack, this is a must. You do not want any member of the canine pack disciplining the humans, this is never a good idea.
As most of you know I am a big "canine pack" fan; I believe in having more than one dog. But only if you want more than one dog; don't get a second dog just to keep the first dog company if you don't want the extra work. I think it is important for dogs to have canine companionship; obviously dogs get dogs. Often a dog who is the only dog in a human family is treated as a human; never really getting to be the dog that they really are. Dogs need dog outlets; they need to run and chase and do the things that dogs are meant to do. Having a canine buddy to chill with, a dog can have an outlet for many of their canine behaviors.
As the leader of a pack of dogs it is important to make sure that the pack is running smoothly; that goes for packs of 2 or packs of 5 or more. It is also important to know when to say enough. Often people start with a small pack and before they know it their tiny pack has grown into a huge pack; maybe too huge. Very experienced dog people can successfully run a large pack of dogs but are those dogs receiving what they need as a dog and not a wolf. Dogs need more than wolves if we want them to live well within a human pack.
If you are strictly interested in having a pack of dogs that run wild; a pack that resorts back to many of the behaviors that are just beneath the surface then a large pack will do. But if you want a pack of well adjust dogs that can live in our human world with little conflict this takes hours of work, man hours. Do you have the time to give to each dog as they require? Amazingly enough not all dogs are okay with being a member of a large pack of dogs. Within a pack of wolves there are alpha members, beta members, juveniles and omega members. When a member of the pack is unhappy with their position they will 1. attempt to get a higher ranking or 2. leave the pack; which is risky and attempt to start their own pack.
What if a dog within our pack is not happy? What if they are not fitting in? It is our job as leader of the pack to see this; unlike wolves where it is up to the individual member to fix it we need to do the fixing. Often when rivalry starts between two members you may be able to solve squabbles but if it escalates to a dangerous level then rehoming a dog is the best and safest option. I am not a believer of revolving dogs; people who have dogs that don't get along so they are in a constant state of revolving from room to room. This solves only the human issue and deals nothing with the dogs issues. Infact it causes more resentment in each dog.
Then there are dogs who just seem to melt into the background; becoming part of the furniture around when in a pack. When you have a large pack of dogs or even a small pack of dogs it is very important that each dog thrive on it's own. A dog cannot fully become the dog they were meant to be by always being within the pack. Take a dog out of it's pack and it can tell you alot. Are they fine going out on their own? Or it is visually obvious that they cannot function without the pack? This is a huge difference with our dogs and wolves.
I remember doing a shoot once; it was for a breed that is cookie cutter like. There are dogs in certain breeds that because of coloring look very different. Then there are breeds that are so similar looking that only the guardian can tell them apart. It was one of these "they all look the same" shoots. I had shot many of the dogs and coming to the end of the shoot I asked and pointed to one dog standing near the doorway. "Did I shoot her yet? What is her name?" The couple both looked at the dog, there was a far too long silence which became uncomfortable. I knew then that neither of them knew who this dog was. She was a no body in this pack and needed to be a somebody, she needed to be in a home where she was someone's adored dog.
Some dogs are just meant to be in small packs where each dogs recieves more attention. Sometimes it can be breed related; and that is not meant to prefer or put down any one breed but breeds all have different heritages; some were meant to be alone dogs, some were large pack animals. I have heard of many dogs being taken from one pack and put into a smaller pack and having that dog do a complete 360. A dog who may be a nobody in one pack can change simply by being in the right pack. All dogs deserve to be truly happy, and it is our job as guardians to make sure of that.
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