I have a wonderful 7 month westie. My first dog. He is doing really well with the training and no really big problems as such. However I am beginning to have some concerns regarding his attachment to me. I dont know if this is normal or not. Basically he follows me everywhere, whines and goes loopy when he can't, even when the rest of the family are around to make a fuss of him. Even at the training class when we are practicing recall and the trainer holds him until I walk to the other end of the room, he is struggling to get to me. He goes mad when I come home, my family say that other people may open and close the gate but he always knows when its me. My daughter says that she thinks he is too attached to me. I also have problems with getting him to wait and stay, he wont wait or stay for longer than 10 seconds even when he can see me. Oddly, he is fine in the house on his own, plays with his toys and sleeps in his den. Is this  behaviour normal for his age? If not what can I do about this?

I am sure you are going to get a lot of replies regarding the fact that your boy is still a baby.  Firstly it is normal for your puppy to struggle to get to you in class when you and your trainer are working on the recall.  All the good trainers I have been to would tell you this bond is the kind that is formed without treats and is very special.  When you are out and about with your puppy you will be very glad that he wants to get to you so badly if you need to call him back from a dangerous situation.

It is time, however, that you started to put a little distance between you in the house.  If you have to go through a door and shut him on the other side for a little while he needs to be comfortable with that knowing that you will come back.  The key is not to let your family make a fuss of him when he is whining on the other side of the door.  They can distract him by playing games but must try to comfort him or he will use this as a reward for his whining and do it all the more.  Practice when you are on your own, just shut the door and ignore the chaos on the other side.  It is unlikely that he will calm down for the first few times even when you reappear.  Don't pet, fuss or praise him when you get through that door.  Walk into another room then play with him.  He will get the idea that it isn't a terrible thing you shutting him out for a little while because you don't have to compensate him for leaving him for a few minutes.  The key is, and your family have to back you on this, don't reward the whining. 

Of course he is attached to you, you are his replacement pack.  This bond between you and your dog is exactly what you should have.  Now you have to work on giving him the confidence to be alone sometime.

It is important that as dog owners we encourage them to develop self control (just like children) in order for them to mature into competent and confident adults, this can only be done if we teach them how to be alone comfortably or with others comfortably, this will reduce the stress for both the dog and the owner.

Alone training should begin from Day 1 the dog comes home, and in fact started by breeders before the puppies leave the nest IMHO.

>>However I am beginning to have some concerns regarding his attachment to me.

Are you the PRIMARY or EXCLUSIVE provider for the dog?  IOW, is it usually or always you who feeds the dog, walks the dog or works with him on training issues?

Yes I guess I am the primary person. When we got him my daughter and I shared the training/settling in etc between us over the summer holidays but he quickly bonded to me (and me to him) My husband made it clear that the dog would be my responsibility. I have recently established that my daughter will take him for a walk and feed him one evening a week and my son will also do so.  They havent walked him much before because he has been difficult to walk, but he happily walks now.They also play and cuddle him a lot but as soon as I walk in he leaves them and only wants me. My daughter used to come to training classes with me but has just given up. He will only obey me during training so she got fed up. Curiously he seems quite happy when we all have to leave him ( I have videoed him) doesnt make a fuss. He gets on all right with my dog walker too.

Well if you are the one who feeds him, and dogs love to eat and you are the one who walks him, and dogs love to go for walks and you are the one who trains him, and dogs love to please, it seems natural that he would gravitate toward you.  You are the one who gives him everything he needs.  He sounds like a great dog who really likes you.  What is wrong with that?  :-)  I think you are lucky.