Alpha dog and dominance theory has largely been disproven. That shaggy little fella was probably the oldest in the crew.
Actually it was proven to be false in the wild. It does occur in wolves kept in captivity or zoos. Basically in reality you can always leave but if kept in a “kingdom” or fixed place like in a country, or a jail you see a hierarchy develop. I think it’s related to scarcity of resources but also indoctrination.
Honestly makes you question the inherent idea of nations, citizenship, and how that falsehood creates unneeded competition and stress.
I don’t think it’s ironic at all that in what looks like a pound or a kennel one dog becomes the “alpha” but that is due to the environment and not due to nature.