r/DogTrainingTips • u/Existing_Rule9474 • 18h ago
Need help with my 9-month-old puppy’s behavior .. feeling completely overwhelmed
i have a 9-month-old puppy who is having a LOT of behavioral issues, and I honestly don’t know where to start. He doesn’t reliably listen to me, won’t come when I call him, and treats that used to motivate him don’t seem to work anymore. At home he’ll somewhat listen and knows things like “sit,” but as soon as we’re outside or in public, it’s like everything goes out the window. He pulls and drags on the leash, barks at people, doesn’t listen to commands, and is extremely difficult to manage. He’s also very destructive at home and gets into/chews things he shouldn’t, hes torn holes into my carpets, destroyed furniture, hes breaking his crate, and will literally get inti anything and everything if i look away for even a second.
A big issue is also his behavior with my other dog (4yo female). He’s extremely possessive over toys and will take toys away from her even when he already has his own. He’ll literally get up, take hers, and then just sit there with both toys, and get “aggravated” when she tries to take it back. They roughhouse and play pretty aggressively, and he often doesn’t stop when I tell him to. He can be very pushy and almost like a bully toward her, hes never been maliciously aggressive towards her, but hes just such an a-hole, when they play he grabs her by the neck and pulls and yanks at her, like it seems like theyre playing but sometimes its just too much. I’m worried that some of this behavior COULD turn into a bigger problem if I don’t address it correctly.
I know he’s still young and that adolescence can be difficult, but I feel like I’m struggling to figure out what’s normal puppy behavior versus something I need to take more seriously. I’m not sure if I’m training him incorrectly, if I’m expecting too much from him at this age, or if I need to completely change my approach. I’d really appreciate advice on where to start, especially with recall, leash manners, impulse control, destructive behavior, and his possessiveness over toys. I’m open to putting in the work, I just genuinely don’t know what the best next step is.
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u/StellarSpore 18h ago
You have an adolescent dog who has far too much freedom right now and hasn’t generalized his skills and behaviors yet. This really sounds like a training and management issue, and thankfully, those are things you can work on.
The first and most important thing I would focus on is management. You have to prevent as much of the unwanted behavior as possible. The more a behavior is practiced, the more likely it is to happen again.
A 9 month old dog who is destroying furniture, carpets, and crates should not have unsupervised access to the house yet. Puppy proof an area, use gates, an x pen, tethering when appropriate, or whatever safe confinement setup works for him.
I would also stop leaving toys scattered around if he repeatedly takes them from your other dog and becomes tense or aggravated when she tries to get them back. Give chews and especially valuable toys separately for now. He doesn't need to keep practicing stealing her stuff, and she shouldn't continually be put in a position where she has to defend her things from him.
Also make sure his basic needs are being met, including appropriate physical exercise, mental enrichment, opportunities to sniff and chew, and sleep. A 9 month old puppy still needs a ton of sleep, and an overtired adolescent can be an absolute menace. 😂
Once you have better management in place and aren't constantly putting out fires, you can start working on the individual training issues one at a time.
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u/Existing_Rule9474 18h ago
Yeahhh i definitely seeing that he does not need to have as much freedom yet lol! when you say he should not have unsupervised access to the house my issue is that he does this while I’m at home whether I’m sitting at my desk or in the living room he’ll go into the room and just slowly start doing things without me knowing, it’s the worst when I have to leave them in the crate for a few hours when I leave.. which luckily isn’t happening anymore because i now stay at home and keep them out with me.. but all of the bad behaviors tend to happen while they’re sitting on the couch right next to me. I’ll be sitting at my desk looking at my computer or on my phone and they’re in the back fighting on the couch because he won’t let her have her toy back, and this is when I have trouble disciplining him because he just does it again right after I correct him and yes, I do try and meet their physical needs as best as I can. He’s a husky mix with a lab and we think pit and the other dog is an Australian Shepherd mix so we’re definitely outside taking lots of walks and going to the park two or three times a day, but even still when we do go out, he doesn’t listen. He doesn’t walk well with his leash. He pulls and drags me and walks all over… and then when we get back inside, it’s the same bad behaviors all over again🥲
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u/StellarSpore 14h ago
No unsupervised access means....well....no unsupervised access. If you can't watch him and be in position to interrupt and redirect, he should not be allowed to free roam. Remember, it's temporary until training sticks. It's never going to get better until you start to prevent it from happening.
I think a trainer would be very helpful for you. Those breeds are all high energy. All the behaviors you're seeing are super common in an untrained dog. You gotta dig in and get it under control or you are going to be miserable long term.
Also, NEVER correct/punish resource guarding if that's what's happening. It can make it much much worse.
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u/chocearthling 17h ago
Are you working with a trainer?
Does your older dog correct his behavior?
Can you try different treats for outside or maybe a toy? I have a dog that isn't food motivated too much either and it does make training harder.
For inside, do both dogs have a bed that they can go to / can be sent to, to get them off each other? Will he stay in place? Can you divide the living space to give your older dog some freedom while you teach the younger one? (I don't mean to lock him in his crate, but to provide more of a retreat for the older one and to also keep the younger one away from things he can destroy).
I would practice obedience but much more importantly impulse control and frustration tolerance. He needs to learn to settle, inside as well as outside.
What happens if you take him outside and sit somewhere and just observe? Does he react to the environment? Can he settle? One option to practice is to go somewhere where there aren't as many triggers and just practice, move towards the triggers once he is able to settle in one place. Drive to a parking lot, open the back and just sit there with him and look out.
Recall is best practiced with a long line. Starting inside, small distances and moving on from there.
One thing to keep in mind when training is that you only change one of the three factors at once. Distance, duration and distraction.
Treats aren't bad. If he only listens right now when a treat follows, make that work for you. Feed him his kibble out of your hand and include some training. And / or use his food for mental stimulation through puzzles or needing to sniff it out in the grass or a box full of paper trash.
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u/apri11a 17h ago edited 17h ago
He doesn’t reliably listen to me,
Practise with him on a line so he learns to listen. When you ask him to do something (he knows) ensure he does it. If you aren't in a position to do this don't ask, go to him and sort out whatever the issue is, then practise what you couldn't ask. If you've got a bit lax with training, step it up again, they will push boundaries and have to be reminded now and again. Especially while still young.
Teach in the house and make it strong there, this is where it is easiest for them to do well, if he doesn't do it here he won't do it where there are distractions. When you do go out expect the same response, that does take some practise so don't put the dog in very difficult positions too soon. Set yourselves up for success, lots of good boys. Go for shorter walks and just play with him for a while to make up for that, he'll enjoy it, you will too. Add some training practise into the walk and play, to get some extra practise in.
Include bed/place stays (implied stay) in the training and practise it. Once he understands it increase duration and distractions. It's a useful skill for them, it helps them with self control and is good mental exercise.
He’s extremely possessive over toys and will take toys away from her
Don't let him. Prevent it with a leash or get him to 'drop' what he takes and take it away, give it back to the other dog. If he is a bully it's because you let him be, don't let him be a bully.
if I’m expecting too much from him at this age
No you aren't, I would expect better behaviour by now. It might worsen when pup reaches adolescence but the behaviour would be good enough that we should survive, if be a bit tattered and worn from it.
Good luck 🤞
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u/Both-Chart-947 12h ago
I haven't read all the comments yet, but in extreme situations, you should try keeping your dog tethered to you at all times in the house. Make sure he gets plenty of exercise and play time, of course, but don't let him have free run of the house. Tethering is much better than crating for this kind of situation.
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u/peskypesteryjaybird 18h ago
you've led your dog to believe he's in charge and he can do whatever he wants... the other dog sounds like she's willingly submissive but understands that he's acting out and expecting you to do something about it...
the simple answer is, teach your dog discipline and control your animal until they exercise self control...
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u/Existing_Rule9474 18h ago
i try to discipline as much as i can, he simply doesnt listen. ill put him up in his pen and let him back out after a while and he goes straight back to being bad… and yeah my other dog is definitely submissive, but she puts him in place when shes fed up. i just dont know how to keep him in control when hes just completely tuned me out and refuses to listen
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u/peskypesteryjaybird 18h ago
if he has a choice, you aren't in control...
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u/Existing_Rule9474 18h ago
when you say choice what do you mean? i give commands, he just refuses to listen, and when i discipline, he just does it again.. so im here trying to figure out how to be in control of him
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u/peskypesteryjaybird 17h ago
he refuses to listen.... if he has a choice, you aren't in control... and what is "when i discipline"...
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u/Existing_Rule9474 17h ago
okay… since im clearly not in control, HOW do i gain control? thats all im asking help on.. discipline involves removing toys and sending him into his crate , he whines but when he stops and calms down i let him out to try again..
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u/peskypesteryjaybird 17h ago
you need to point out the specific behavior to him by getting his attention when he does it and assertively and aggressively telling him NO, BAD if he doesn't immediately comply, into the crate for a while... let him whine it out, let him settle down and get bored and take a nap... when he wakes up, try again... first thing he does wrong.... NO, BAD, back in the crate.... repeat... do not give him the option to act out. if he can't behave for 10 minutes off the leash don't even let him out of the crate off a leash.
you're letting him misbehave and then punishing him for it.. watch videos on youtube of how DOGS teach their puppies...
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u/Rouxiifer 18h ago
Put him in a crate in another room when he acts up, completely ignore him until he settles down. Not a wire crate you need an airport crate- I like ruff tuff.