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We are very much in a different space with regard to our understanding of dogs. I don't need to be 'helped' with outdated advice on 'pack leadership', an approach that was debunked years ago, and one that most people who love their dogs recognised as nonsense from the word go.Hello, certainly! When it comes to the way dogs communicate, they don't communicate using spoken language like us, a lot of their communication is done by eye contact and body language. When a dog looks at you and gives you eye contact, it is waiting for your guidance and cue. This is important when you want to establish that bond and relationship with your dog where he/she looks to you for guidance and support. Similarly, in a resource guarding situation, he has now established that he looks to you for guidance and leadership as a leader of his pack. I hope this helps!
Your comments on teaching eye contact using food to 'build a relationship' don't remotely stand up: let me assure you, that builds a relationship with food, and little else. Indeed, in canine body language, direct eye contact is generally avoided because it signals that a dog intends to intimidate another dog or person.
If I may offer some help of my own, I suggest you undertake some learning yourself from one of the many reputable and experienced trainers or behaviourists around - Janet Finlay, Sarah Whitehead, or Sarah Fisher at Tilley Farm would be a good place to start, and I'm sure others could recommend many more. If you are set up as a trainer or behaviourist working with members of the public, you need to do this urgently, because the general tenet of your approach could put people at risk.
I hope you take this advice in the spirit in which it is intended: for you to discover a respectful and loving friendship with dogs that does not depend on mastery or domination. You'll be surprised where that will take you.
