Hey all, I was hoping to get some advice on how to handle an issue I am having with my new puppy, if it is even an issue.

He is 8 weeks old and quite the little spitfire. He is confident in new situations and loves people. I am hoping to use him as an Urban Search dog as well as wilderness, and he is showing alot of prey drive and will play with anyone and any where. The problem I think I am having is dominance. He humps everything, from toys to his food bowl to the cats. Not me though. However when I try to confine the guy, holding him still, he screams and screams, he settles down physically but still whines.

He sleeps in a crate in another room and I have him spend time in there even when I am home to get him used to it. He likes it well enough, and goes in when he wants to nap. I am in the process of teaching him to stay away form the cats and he is progressing well in that respect.

He is submissive to my older SAR female. I limit the time they spend together to about 30 minutes in the morning and the evening, she is great with him, gentle but firm (I could learn a few things from her)

Am I headed for trouble with this monster or is this normal puppy behavior? Any input or advice on handling the situation would be appreciated.

Congratulations on the new puppy GSDSAR!

It sounds much like the behavior of the Chow puppy I had for a short period of time. He behaved similar to the way you're describing. He would scream and struggle like crazy if he wanted something. When I took him to the vet, she told me to give him back, cause he was going to be trouble when he got older! I had already figured that out by this time, so I did indeed give him back. Mine was a little worse than what you're describing because he was 8 weeks old and terrorizing my older GSD. Playful, friendly with people, but very very dominant, even at that young age.

Good luck with your new boy. It sounds like you're on the right track with the dominance thing.

Lay down the law. Grab and shake method, no prisoners. Definate dominance behavior.

Probably a good idea. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Is there ever a time when it calls for something more? Like putting him in his crate?

Time out I assume isn't what many aggressive dogs always respond to. I usually do what Van Camp said if I ever had a problem. It never needed to be done past that. Of course the GSDs he's had compared to mine might be quite different. lol
=Mine weren't that tough=

What are some thoughts on this?

Tnanks for the advice. I have been doing what you said , grab and shake, and he gets pretty ticked about it, I definately get a reaction, when its over he sits and stares at me for a second then I praise him and we go back to playing. He went after one of the cats and I corrected him, maybe a bit too hard, cause he went into his crate and layed down for about 5 minutes staring at me, then came out and wanted to play. But I can see him starting to think about things. He will playing and a cat will walk past and he will stop for a second look at the cat then at me then back at his toy and then start playing with his toy. I praise him huge when that happens.

Thanks again-

I honestly don't think time out works for much of anything except to frustrate on purpose, or solidify an overall concept. "You do some work for me then I'll let you run around."

For on the spot stuff, corrections have to be swift and unmistakably associated with the dirty deed. In this case especially. JMO

I hate cats.

I like only my cats. My puppy on the other hand loooooves cats. Right now they are bigger than him- in 3 weeks, not so much. So we gotta curb it now.

Hahaha! So you're puppy's all pissed off at you now. I love that if-looks-could-kill-you'd-be-dead stare. I get it a lot too and can't help but laugh at the attitude behind it. That's when you just have to remind him that YOU have an even bigger attitude. Come here little Mr. Attitude, do you want a piece of me? Let's dance. lol <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

WARNING!!! OFF TOPIC:

I've got no problem with cats, don't especially love them, but certainly don't hate them. I really love my older one (we have 3; my daughter is a cat fanatic). He's a pretty special guy; seems to have a higher level of consciousness than most cats. He was born in our closet, all littermates died, mother died on the operating table getting spayed. Been with me for over 10 years now. Just a really wise, gentle soul. He's the kind of cat that cat haters can't help but respect, and maybe even like, just a little! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />