our 10 week old puppy has just started to try and ride everything from toys to me. He does not do this to my husband. He also nips me a lot more than my husband.Is this a male dominance thing as his behavoir has also deteriorated since he has been riding, he does not listen to "no" and if you move him from ripping up the carpet he fights to continue, if you ignore him he bites quite hard, if you puthim in other room he forces out a wee (i have watched him). A very strong willed dog. Any ideas?

Hi Stann,
Good news is he's normal :D  He's not "randy", "male dominant" nor forcing himself to pee because he's "strong willed".  Remember he is a puppy and a VERY young one at that.  Distract him from humping by offering a toy - actively playing a game with him & said toy.  As for biting - they ALL do it - they have to learn not to but can only do so by realising that it's unacceptable to you because it's painful!  I sqeal loudly and immediately ignore a puppy that does this - they quickly learn that they've not only hurt you but in so doing have cost themself valuable enjoyment of interaction :)  The weeing "on purpose" is far more likely to be over excitement or an anxious response to you isolating him.  This little baby dog may be quite the reverse of strong willed and possibly desperately seeking your approval.  Be patient, kind and consistent - ALWAYS ignore inappropriate behaviour (by distraction if necessary) and ALWAYS reward every sign of desired behaviour - our dogs love, adore and desperately try to please us.  The best training is to always remember to let them know when they have done just that.   Good luck, Teri :)   

Always try to ignore the bad things he does (dont make an issue) just casually stop him or take something you dont want him to touch and replace it for something he is allowed and when he does the good things praise him like mad! He will soon get the picture! They will do alot of it because they learn they get attention, they dont really care if its good or bad just as long as its attention. Make time a few times a day to play with your pup with his certain toys and then take all but 1 away. On your chosen play time bring them all back out and have a good ole game. if it is a  "DOMINANCE THING" he will soon pick up that you are boss and you say when. If when you are playing he gets too rough and nippy, when he nips a loud "ouch" turn away and whimper and dont look at him, he will probably come up and lick you as if to say sorry. He is still learning the How Hard rule, you need to play doggy mum as this is what his mother would do to teach him. When he humps something take it away without any issue, dont say anything, if he humps you walk away out of the room for a minute, he will learn that the unappropriate behaviour makes you go away or the object of his attention will dissappear. Make sure to always praise the good behaviour, you really want to encourage that.
I do go on a bit, but i hope this helps, let us know how you get on;)
Jodi

1 more thing, as for the carpet and fighting when you remove him, dont remove him, go into a different room not too far from him and pretend to make a big fuss over something! I mean a "REAL BIG FUSS" ooohhs aaahhs, do it really loud and exitable, he is bound to come running to investigate, when he comes keep on playing for a second or 2 then turn and praise him and have a game.
Jodi

He's only 10 weeks, and all pups get over excited, mouth, grab, and have funny turns! ;) I doubt if any 10 week old pup understands the word No as such. They don't know what it means, even if owners think they do.

Do yourself a good turn and get hold of "The Perfect Puppy" by Gwen Bailey which explains a lot of this and how to deal with issues that may arise from bringing a pup home, to adolescence and beyond. I would also suggest a good puppy socialisation class - be wary of some that allow pups to race around playing; that's OK up to a point, but can teach some pups to be bullies and some to be defensive.

Ideally, you need a school that allows SOME supervised free play with selected pups so that experiences for all the pups are good ones. Don't be afraid to ask to have a look before you commit yourself.

Lindsay
X

Cheers for that advice, we have only had rescue dogs before and they were already past puppy and understood no and a change of voice tone, so this pup was a bit of a shock. I have been following your advice and fingers crossed it seems to be working. It is early days so i will keep you informed. Thanks