# 9 Month Old - Behaviour Issues



## tan24 (Sep 7, 2020)

-duplicate threads merged-


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## tan24 (Sep 7, 2020)

My puppy is suddenly going crazy and turning so rebellious. He was always so well behaved, since the day I picked him up. He knew where to go toilet after 1 day and learnt around 20 tricks by the time he was 12 weeks, he also understood not to bite us as well really quickly too. But since 2 weeks ago, his behaviour is quite erratic. This would include:

-He would try to hump everyone in our family and when we push him off he would continue to try to hump, however when my big sister pushes him off he would get aggressive and bark.
-He also started to bite a lot and this would result in bruises as well.
-When he does something bad and I would just look at him for like 1 second he would just bark at me.
We tried everything, such as screaming when he bit or leaving the room immediately when he does something bad. And he would be good for a while and then goes crazy again. Another piece of information that may impact this, was this behaviour started when he went to the dog park and got chased by another dog and they had a scuffle. It wasn't that serious and my dog brushed it off pretty fast and I took him to the vet for a check up, in case he got injured.
Is this just puberty or would you just recommend continuous behavioural training until he grows up and understands what he is doing is bad? Or what should I do?


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## cwag (Apr 25, 2017)

There is definitely an adolescent period around 9 months where they push the limits but this sounds a little extreme to me. Does he get good exercise every day where he really gets to run? Walks, even long ones, will not really get the energy out. For the humping as soon as he even looks like he's thinking about it redirect his attention with a short training session or some other activity. Definitely continue training! If you can, you might want to consult with a trainer because biting should not be tolerated and you want to handle it effectively to keep from making it worse. I don't really know about the dog park's effect on him but I would avoid taking him there. It sounds like you started well and need just push on with training him.


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

Keep your puppy on a leash, you can get a cheap one and cut it off to maybe about 2 or 3 feet long, and let him drag it around in the house at all times when you're home to supervise. Use that leash to gain control of him anytime the nonsense starts. The humping, jumping and biting must not continue. Don't yell at him but use a stern voice to let him know you're not happy. "EH-EH" in a PaPa Bear tone is what I use at my house.

1) No more dog parks until he's much, much older. I am not a fan. What happened to your dog is not positive experience.
2) Your puppy needs obedience training every day. Spend time practicing things he already knows and teaching him new tricks. Kikopup on Youtube has a million great ideas. This is very important, it has to be every day.
3) Your puppy needs more exercise outdoors running around every single day, at least 30 minutes. Leash walks are not enough at his age, but they are good if you use them to do some training as well and take him new places to sniff and explore. If you don't have a fenced yard, find a school play ground or athletic fields or large grounds like a church yard. Purchase a 30 foot long nylon rope from a hardware store and a metal clip to put on the end and use that to give him some room to run and just get out and chase a soccer ball or play frisbee or have a friend or family member go with you and call him back and forth between you so that he has to run back and forth and get a treat for coming. If you do this when he's hungry he will be very motivated. NOTE: be careful to wear shoes that protect your feet and ankles, don't let the rope wrap around your foot or it will leave a bad burn on your skin.

Your puppy is just full of himself, too much energy and naughtiness and he needs to learn how to burn it off properly.


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## tan24 (Sep 7, 2020)

Thank you so much for the advice. May I ask also ask for some other advice:
- He is becoming a bit more hesitant with dogs now, after the incident in the park and another recent incident when we were walking and an owner couldn't control her dog and he got off the leash and was about to attack him, but we got inside our house gate just seconds before he was about to attack. My dog doesn't bark or show any aggression, however will cower when he hears any barking or tries to run away in the opposite direction if a dog walks past him. How do I get him to become a bit more comfortable when he is so hesitant to be with even near another dog now? Thank you


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

They key to this will be to teach him to focus on you when there is another dog near. Don't try to have interact with the other dog, just keep him focused on you and responding to you. Basically so he learns to ignore the other dog and just keep moving on his way. Take treats, toys, lots of praise, high pitch talking to him to keep his attention on you while walking and passing other dogs.


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## KK Taos (Mar 19, 2020)

Man oh man these are very difficult challenges. My boy was 5 years old, loved every dog. We went to many a dog park (I no longer like them). When an aggressive dog approached and challenged him he would stop, not move, let the other dog sniff all around. No problems. No challenges.
But one time a neighborhood Rottie attacked him. My boy Lucca was such a gentle soul that I was completely surprised he fought back. And fought back full throttle. Cuts, blood, Vet visits for both dogs. From then on he was ready to fight any dog that gave him a challenging glance. It was quite a transformation and made life much more difficult and limiting for me. He was a large powerful boy and if he was going to pull off leash and go to another dog I was physically incapable of hanging on to the leash. 

He died 3 years ago and you know, I'd gladly deal with that problem if I could have him back for just one day!

So persevere if you can.


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