Step 2
Dr. Karen Overall has outlined deference protocols that can be practiced with all dogs regardless of their behavior. Essentially, the dog must sit, be calm and look to his owner for anything it wants. It is the equivalent of saying please.
It is similar but must not be confused with the traditional view of NILIF (Nothing in Life is Free), or Learn to Earn, or any of the exercises that assume the only requirement is that the dog does something he is asked to do. In fact some suggest that is the dog tries to second guess and perform a task before he is asked, the owner should ask the dog to do something else. This is fine for obedience training and works on the dog paying attention to the cue or command. However, in the case of aggressive dogs, it is highly desirable dog to second guess its owner by sitting calmly and waiting for his owner to give him information about what it next.
Sitting is how a dog naturally defers to others. The emphasis on the deference protocols is that that the dog is calm.
- Teaching your aggressive dog deferential behavior
Dominance aggression in dogs: part 1, Karen L. Overall, MA, VMD. Phd, Dipl. - Changing the Owner-Pet Relationship
includes potential problems and pitfalls with deference program