Our newly adopted dog

Question
Hi there,

We recently adopted a 3yr old lab/dalmation cross dog, who is as daft as a brush and great with the kids, but he comes from a family that has 3 other dogs & a large human family who have people in the house all the time. He has been pining & whimpering alot but this is subsiding slowly, but he still seems really down & not eating properly. He also had s funny turn today when my wife had a friend over & Jc became aggressive towards the friend, I spoke to the prev owner who said he has never done that before & if we were not happy they would have him back, the thing is, we don't want to but are worried that if he is left on his own all day, he will either become more aggressive or start damaging things, or, is this behavior normal for a newly adopted dog?? & do you think he will get used to being on his own all day when my wife starts her job?? I think he was just protective over my wife today, but we also have two young daughters & don't want to put them at risk. Apart from all that when he is with us he truly is a wonderful dog whom we have already fallen in love with.
I look forward to your advice.
many thanks
Phil

Answer
This is really hard to say.  He is neutered?  I would give him plenty of attention and perhaps obedience training.  With somebody the right age in the family, 4-H dog training is a great idea. In my area, clubs form soon after the first of the year. Even many urban areas have 4-H. For info look in your phone book under government listings for extension or cooperative extension offices. Ask specifically about a dog or canine club. The dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands a treat. Start at http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/ For more on being top dog, see http://www.dogbreedinfo.com./topdogrules.htm