Jane Fink's Training and behavior modification - Tips, Tricks and approaches from 30 years of terrier training.
Alpha Roll, Separation Anxiety - What, Why and How? And much much more.
The alpha roll is used to express to the dog in terms it can understand that you WILL NOT tolerate threats such as snapping, biting, growling, or any other warning type behaviors. In a pack of dogs, an alpha, the leader, may at some point roll a subordinate dog on its side or back to indicate that he or she is still head honcho. You will notice that young puppies will automatically do this to an adult dog, it is not a sign of being a sissy but a brilliant safety mechanism mother nature has given puppies, no adult dog in it's right mind (or of stable temperament) will attack a puppy in a submissive position. When we practice it on young puppies, it is to test their willingness to accept authority.
By observing my four Westie litters over the years, I learned how a litter's mother teaches her offspring the ability to cope in her absence at a very young age. By four weeks of age, mother dog begins leaving the whelping box for longer periods of time since the puppies don't need to feed as often, can eliminate by themselves, and after being on duty 24/7 for a month mother desires some alone time.