ABSTRACT

This chapter explores the question, “How do a changing environment and the triangles that develop within it affect pack behavior and physical health in canines and people?” To answer this question, I will use observations of my two dogs, my husband, and myself over a four-year period during which there were significant environmental changes. Research on the social behavior of wolves (Canis lupus), domestic dogs (Canis familiaris; Thomas, 1993), and other species (Candleland, Bryan, Nazar, Kopf, and Sendor, 1970) helped to predict which member(s) of the pack became symptomatic during particular conditions. Change in residence was not related to behavioral or physiological symptoms in the dogs; however, change in pack membership was followed by increased symptoms in the dogs and humans. Drawing from Bowen family systems theory as a conceptual guide, these findings will be discussed in terms of triangles and how they function in the family emotional system. Observable changes in physical health and behavior followed environmental changes that modified the member’s position in the triangle. Observations suggested that when one member of the triangle managed his or her own anxiety and provided a more consistent role within the triangle, stability and decreased symptoms in its members followed. The ability of the leader to see the pack as an emotional unit was essential to help pack members function more effectively.