I got a 4 month old puppy back when his new owner said he was too rough with her 4 year old girl. After a week, I could easily understand the problem. This puppy is a real roughneck. A friend brought her puppy over to play with him to wear off some of that energy. Turned out my friend's puppy just got beat up and we had to separate them.

I have been working with him for several weeks and he is smart and learns quickly. But I do not think his basic personality will change. I wonder if there is a service organization that would like to have a puppy like this. I sure would appreciate some leads or suggestions. TIA

Do you own the pups mother? I sure hope so.

I would let her put this pup in his place (within reason). Most bitches will grab a rough pup by the neck and put them down immediately and most pups will respect this and learn quite quickly that they are not the boss.

I had this years ago when a friend took a pup and he was relentless toward her very senior Lab (one of ours as well). I told her to bring him back here one night (he was around 12 or so weeks old). That pup walked in here like he was the king of the house. The minute he jumped on his mother and tried to be the alpha, she put him down by the neck and growled at him. He went home that night and my friend never had another problem. We laughed the night she was here when I said "any time he needs an "attitude adjustment" bring him back for a session with his mamma".

No service organization is going to take a pup like this.

For instance Police K-9 pups are never chosen from the litter as being the most aggressive pup. They want the docile ones that will train easier. My DH was a K-9 cop so I know this for a fact.

You need to work with this pup to get him settled. You bred him. He is your responsibility, especially since he was returned to you.

You can't dump this problem on someone else.

Please do what is right by this pup so he does end up in a shelter after you place him a second time.

Do you have friends with older dogs that are the boss so to speak or alpha of their dog family.... that would be the dog I want to introduce your pup too. Supervised of course.

If you lived near me my girl would put him in his place in a second. And a dog that does that is by no means bad temperament, they are just the alpha and don't take any crap. My girls daughter on the other hand would take the abuse and not get the job done.

Not trying to be nasty, but as I said you bred this pup, you need to find the solution and not place this pup with an organization that you "hope" will correct his attitude. For all you know they will dump him in a shelter if they can not work with him.

This pup is only 16 weeks old. This can be corrected but you need to do it sooner than later.

Good luck

Dump him? Yes, you are being nasty. I am searching for a good placement for this pup. And no, his mother has no interest in correcting him. She just wants him to go away.

I have one of those. Everyone calls her the crazy one. When she was a pup she wouldn't stop nipping so I couldn't place her. A year and a half later she is still here raising havoc and will most likely always be here.

As for putting the pup with the mother this wouldn't and hasn't worked with this tornado. She will bite the mothers ears and mom will just cry. The mother is so gentle as her mother was that she would never bite a puppy. My oldest female will get after her though.

The father of this litter though a Champion was a big mistake because he was wound up. I think this is where this came from. Don't think that a calm female will pass on her traits to her pups like I did. This was a horrible litter.

Her nickname is "Groundhog Day" "Down", "Don't Bite", "Stop That", "Hush", "Quiet". Leave for five minutes and it's jump with excitement and a tail wag that even moves her front legs, like she's never seen me before. No biting but the running of the teeth across your hand and go, go, go!

We retrain every day and she is my forever problem child.

I used to work for a handler years ago. We had a chocolate bitch that we handled. She was the perfect dog when she was sleeping or in her crate! She was one of those dogs that you teach something to and the next day she had totally forgotten! Eventually was getting thing, but you had to be patient, be consistent and be persistent.

As for your pup, be prepared to keep it for as long as necessary. Whether the former owners just let him do what ever he wanted or he has a naughty personality, it will be your responsibility to curb some of the unwanted behavior. You can do it, but it's a long process. If you find someone who is willing to take on a dog like this, great, but in reality, he is your responsibility. I'm sure you will figure him out, but take him to classes and be prepared to put a lot of time in on this pup!

What about trying to place him in a home with experienced owners or owner without kids? Maybe a single guy that would take the time to train and work with him. My boy is a bit crazy too but I keep him busy with training, swimming, anything to burn off the energy. He is definitely a challenge but I am enjoying it!

How old is your holy terror. I may be interesting working with him if you'd like. I could foster him until you find him a forever home. I'm pretty busy running a lot, he would have to catch up. Tucker the ol boy out :) just an offer or suggestion

He sounds like a perfect candidate for field training - light training because of his age - light e-collar, nothing mean, just a light application as he learns to please you and not himself. I love a excited puppy or dog - jumping with excitement, not on you, but just with excitement. JMO

Please don't take a 4 month old puppy running. You will both regret the orthopedic problems that follow. Exercise is great but not forced exercise.