Sounds like the pup has someone willing to put in the time with him thats great, but you may want to watch the amount of exercise he is getting, From what you wrote, all that walking may have not been so good for such a young pup, his hips are very fragile right now. To much exercise can cause him to have hip problems. He may have the energy but you have to restrict him a little, Mals will run themselves in the ground if you let them.

Originally posted by Chris Duhon:
Sounds like the pup has someone willing to put in the time with him thats great, but you may want to watch the amount of exercise he is getting, From what you wrote, all that walking may have not been so good for such a young pup, his hips are very fragile right now. To much exercise can cause him to have hip problems. He may have the energy but you have to restrict him a little, Mals will run themselves in the ground if you let them. b/c I feel like I am doing him no justice by him having so much energy. Normally, I'll break out the bicycle about 9 mos and start riding it as he run along side but not too much as it'll caus bones to bow.

But this dog has so much energy its not even funny.From what your describing its almost like you have to save him from himself.

So how much exercise is sufficient per day?

Sorry, I can't offer any websites, but a few years ago I found during research that at 12weeks you want no more than 30 min of walking a day at most, because you have to realize that the pup will exercise himself also, by the running and jumping when he is playing. Mals have more energy than their bodies can handle at his age. To much will eat away, and discourage growth of the cartlige in his hips and elbows

You can "tire" out your pup by providing him with some mental stimulation. Get him started on footstep tracking. You can also play other scent games with him by hiding his toys or food around the house for him to find. Teaching obedience commands using motivational techniques will help as well.

As for the barking at people, mine did that too. She would stop if people said hello to her. When people were afraid to say hello to her, I asked them to stay where they were and I would move her away from them. I don't know if my reasoning was sound but I didn't want her to get the idea that she could control people by barking at them (she is in training for SAR and I do not do any bite work with her). By 10 or 11 months of age the behaviour was no longer existant.

Natalie
http://alikamalinois.tripod.com

Have to say I'm with David Allen Gomme's comments about socialization and doing alot of it. I also have no issue with the people I LET IN THE HOUSE reaching out for the treats to give them to my pup to re-afirm they are friendly and ok. Since I am NOT going to be letting the robber into the house, not going to be happily greeting the robber, and not going to be showing him the treats to give to my dog, I think it's a different circumstance entirely. And since I AM going to welcome my friends/relatives/workmen into the house, and AM going to want them to be accepted and greeted by my dogs, I think the treats are a good idea if they are needed to help 'strangers' be more acceptable to my pups.

As far as the exercise goes, there is a real split on this for many people. I personally believe that genetics (and diet) are the main qualifiers for hip and other bone joint problems. Now if your pup has the genetic predisposition for the bone/joint problems, then obviously a 'normal' amount of exercise will be too much. What's normal?

http://www.showdogsupersite.com/hips.html states:

Over the years, our observations of the kennel populations of giant breeds and their siblings living in private homes have led to the conclusion that there is no such thing as congenital unilateral hip dysplasia, but only acquired unilateral hip dysplasia. The kennel dogs, whose exercise opportunities are maximized, with several dogs of a similar age free to run and play all day and night in large paddocks, show us some interesting things.

-They grow much more slowly, because much of their food intake goes into play and running.

-They rarely (almost never) suffer an injury.

-They always have symmetrical hip sockets,even if they are very shallow.

Their litter mates in private homes, where exercise is confined to an hour or two of intense play or jogging when their owners return from work, provide us with a different set of observations.

-They grow very large, very fast.

-They often suffer injury.

-They frequently have hip sockets of different depths.

The implications of these observations are enormous, but very simple to understand. These large breeds grow much too quickly for their biology to keep up. They frequently show some degree of clinical rickets with some bowing of the forelegs, and have large soft joints due to the inability of the body to deposit calcium in the bone at a rate equal to the rate of growth. They often show uneven growth, with the rear end growing over a few weeks, then the front end trying to catch up. As the rear leg assembly grows disproportionately, and the puppy is 'high in the rear', the mechanical leverage that the muscles are able to exert across these straighter angles is much reduced. The result of this is a decreased ability of muscle to protect joints from injury.

http://www.thedogscene.co.uk/articles/health/hd.htm

and

http://www.atlanticstates.org/dysplasa.htm

I look at it kind of like what you've been doing. As long as there is no 'force' involved (as in, dog on leash and me on bike and here we go for the day) and no constant repetition (let's do the high jump again and again and again and again) or high impact (chasing a ball continuously on pavement), I watch my pup. I think of it as if I had acres of land that an entire litter of pups could play on AS THEY WANT TO all day. A HEALTHY litter of pups/wolves/foxes/whatever will play/run/chase until they drop. Take a nap, and then be back for more. The adult dogs aren't regulating them and tossing them into the den.