However, the alpha roll itself is probably not so great.

Is it really cruel to perform an ‘alpha roll’ on your dog?

A Great Day to be a Dog Trainer

There’s a lot to this post, and it’s a great read, but I wanted to quote the paragraph that relates to what I’ve been talking about recently.

In reviewing Sasha’s history I’d learned that a few simple things were doing a lot to provoke Sasha’s aggression. Sasha’s family, following advice from friends and the internet, had been responding to Sasha’s growls either with “alpha rolls” (forcing the dog over on her back and staring into her face until she “submits”) or by grabbing her mouth, holding it closed, and sternly saying “No!” They had also been allowing Sasha to continue coming to the door when guests arrived, holding her collar and scolding her for barking. This predictably increased Sasha’s nervousness and her aggressive behavior. They also had an electric fence with the boundary running right alongside the sidewalk, where Sasha regularly practiced aggressive displays towards passing pedestrians. I see many dogs who – after a few months of such frustration – burst through the boundary to bite someone, even though they had never demonstrated aggression before an electric fence was installed. Sasha’s problems had definitely been created by her owners.

Interesting, huh? If you look at online dog forums for questions about how to deal with aggression you will see many people answer with advice promoting alpha rolls and this very physical human aggressive “no” that causes stress for the dog and eventually more dog aggression. It’s sad and ironic that people looking for help dealing with dog aggression on internet forums almost always get the worst advice possible.