hi can anyone give me some advice? We have a 9 week old cocker spaniel boy we have had him for a week now and we do love him to bits however he is very very strong willed, I am followin all the advice and info I have red in books ie to be the pack leader eat first go threw doors first ect and to be consistent which we are all stciking to and doing well. The only thing is he becomes very aggresive if you tell him not to do something ie he was biting on my trousers and wouldnt let go i managed to get him off then he was growling showing his teeth and trying to bite my hands! he doe'snt do this all the time only when he cant do something he wants is this normal puppy behavoiur to challenge his postion and for us to break his will or should this be something i should worry about and that he may have a nasty streak? the last couple of days i have been very upset and worried does anyone have any advice would be much appreciated many thanks

Slow down and don't panic.

At nine weeks old it is very unlikely he is being aggressive.  This sounds like normal puppy behaviour.  When he does it, ignore him completely, turn your back on him, he doesn't get any attention unless he stops.  If this doesn't work, put him outside into another room, not harshly or with any vocal commands from you, just gently place him outside the area you are in.  He will get the message that if he uses his teeth he will not get your attention.

You can also try replacing yourself with a toy, so when he starts gnawing you, give him his toy instead.

Good luck
Sandra

hi Sandra
thanks ever so much I suppose I am being a little over senitive im just trying to do things right so that he grows up to be a lovely boy, I will try those things when he does it again ive just never known such a strong willed little fellow!

Best regards
ann

Hi, I so agree with Sandrah, our puppy did the very same stuff and I worried about it initially because I thought it was aggression. That was the start of my learning curve. He really just wanted to play and I found tug-of-war toys were great for him. When he did bite (usually by accident when excited and playing) I used to yelp and look at my hand and he got the message he was being too rough very quickly and stopped doing it.

I also got great results when he was being v naughty by putting him outside the room until he calmed down and behaved. He's not keen on being on his own so it was one sure way of getting him to behave himself. I'm so sure your puppy is just over-excited and not aggressive.

He sounds like a very normal puppy to me too.  Don't forget that puppies don't follow pack rules, and it's doubtful even grown dogs recognise going through doors etc. as being 'pack rules' but more likely 'those strange humans always have to go through the doors first - oh well, no skin off my nose' ;)

It's also easier to tell a puppy what you DO want them to do, and make it far more interesting than the thing you don't want them to do.

I assume you are feeding at least 3 meals a day (and possibly still 4) and that he was raised with other puppies and the mother dog, who should have taught him the first steps towards bite inhibition......

all of the litter were hand reared as mum could not feed propaly the motner had a wonderful temprement however did'nt really have much to do with the pups, the only thing that worries me is that it's not all the time when he is playing that he will be a little aggressive it's mainly when he does'nt want to stop doing something for example letting go of clothes or he was lying in the way of the fridge door so when I went down to move him he started growling it's all little things like this that worry me, and I do love him to bits because at other times he's my little boy he is just so independent

If you can, make sure you dont give him what he wants when he does this  - if he learns growling works, he may just carry it on :)
The neighbours have a lovely little BC x siberian husky called Bella and at 13 weeks she was doing this a bit - partly in this case, due to the owner who had been telling her off with tapson the nose, so no wonder she reacted in this way! But basically, if pups learn they can get what they want by being pushy, they will continue as they do what they find works for them. No malice intended, it's just pups ;)

I suspect he's very normal, nothing to worry about, but just be aware and, have you considered puppy/socialisation classes? They must be good ones, there are bad ones out there which are worse than no class! Try www.puppyschool.co.uk, you may have a tutor in your area.

Good luck
Lindsay
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It's interesting that he was hand reared - and it's possible there is a little more to it than 'normal' puppy play because of the lack of her input.  Perhaps you could get in touch with a local trainer who runs puppy classes and see if they could do a one 2 one with you to reassure you if nothing else.

thanks everybody there are alot of interesting points that everyone has made he will be going to puppy classes at 12 weeks, a thought I had as well was the fact that he was hand reared and never had any tellings off from his mum as I beleve mums tell there pups off from the age of 3 weeks so he has always been used to getting his own way but I will be consistent and we will have fun at puppy classes and teaching him right from wrong thanks guys I'll let you no how we get on wish us luck!

Hello Ann

As advised already, your puppy is not showing aggressive behaviour - pups instinctively initiate and maintain play by using their mouths among their littermates ;)   When playing too roughly these game comes to an abrupt halt as the puppy receiving a bite which is painful will yelp and more often than not remove itself from play for a while.

> am followin all the advice and info I have red in books ie to be the pack leader eat first go threw doors first ect and to be consistent which we are all stciking to and doing well.

Your puppy is a different species from you - he will no more try to dominate you than we as humans should, would or could try to dominate a pride of lions ;)  Books referencing and advising the "pack leader theory" are regarded as being old hat and based on flawed argument that the dog is similar to the wolf whereas the dog, at best, never matures psychologically beyond the mentality of the wolf cub hence cannot be measured against the adult.

Regarding dealing with perfectly normal puppy biting, please read and ideally print off the article on this
LINK   If followed diligently and consistently by the entire family, it is an excellent and safe method of not only preventing the behaviour but training the dog how to modify the behaviour :)

>only when he cant do something he wants is this normal puppy behaviour to challenge his position and for us to break his will

As explained, he is not trying to "challenge his position" - he is untrained and merely needs to be encouraged with a reward based training method how to develop the manners which you would like him to have as he develops into a mature, happy, well adjusted family friend  :)   Re. your statement "for us to break his will" - why would you want to do that?  If your child was being taught at school by a teacher who punished him verbally, physically or mentally for mistakes but had failed to give guidance and tutorship would you not be immediately removing your child from such an abhorrent position?  Domestic animals, as with any species, require us as their guardians and providers to treat them with kindness and respect - only by doing so does a mutual level of trust develop and it is by these means that we successfully manage to mould their behaviour into what we desire.

Try and find a reputable training class, preferably one which also runs a puppy training and socialising school and they will advise you on better ways to train your puppy than on what you've gathered to date from your reading material.

Regards, Teri :)

Agree; it's often best to think in terms of manners, boundaries etc, rather than anything else  - and it makes life easier too :)

For example - my dog will "wait", she will "off" the furniture, she will "come" she will "sit" before her dinner and she will walk calmly (mostly! :D) on her lead or with a harness.
I'd also add, teaching a "bring" and a "give" and, once you've taught all these, (as an example) you will be able to control him and he will be pretty well mannered and observe boundaries.

I'd also suggest "that's enough" to end interaction momentarily, and "leave" as more of an emergency measure :)

Of course there's more to it than that, but this will give you good basics! Also try reading, Joyce Stranger's How to have a sensible dog; Ian Dunbar's Good Little dog book, Gwen Bailey The Perfect Puppy, Gwen Bailey What is my dog thinking? Also, Pam Dennison's Complete Idiots Guide to Positive Dog training.

Best of luck,

Lindsay
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ps Would be cautious with the Gwen Bailey book 'The Perfect Puppy' because this does have a chapter on pack theory and does advise things like going through doors first etc - a shame because it's an otherwise good book...

Yes, I think Gwen does still, or did at the time of writing, mention some pack theory but to my mind it's very toned down in her book, and it's one of, if not the, best and most reassuring puppy book. I'd like to recommend Dunbar's Sirius Puppy Training video, now that's excellent! :P

Lindsay
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Just wanted to say - totally agree with Teri - listen to her!

Hi,Hope this all works out for you lots of pups are hand reared,and they normally end up ok.By the way what colour is your Cocker Spaniel?