Stubborn puppy

Hi all,
I just want to ask you about my puppy Loki, he is 11 weeks old.
I am worried he will be really stubborn- sometimes he simply ignores me when I give him any command. He snaps at me when I correct him and I think he keeps biting the furniture on purpose to get attention, eventhough he knows that I will eventually scould him (I am trying to distract him with toys first, but that doesn't work every time). And the worst thing is him bitting and attacking me when I try to get something out of his mouth outside. He's not possesive or aggresive with toys or food, but when we are outside and he eats something he shouldn't (e.g. bottle cap), he get really aggressive - he bites, growls and it can get really scary. He doesn't even let me touch his mouth - which sucks, because I was hoping we could attend dogs exhibitions and they are checking their teeth.

I just want to hear your experiece with staffy puppies. Is he maybe trying to be the alfa? Or is it just a puppy phase and grows out of it? Or maybe do you have any tips and tricks that could help me?

Thank you.

P.S. sorry for my English, I am not a native speaker

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Hello, welcome and congratulations on your new family member.

Firstly, please remember that your pup at 11 weeks is still a baby.
Is this your first dog/puppy ?
You speak of correction and scoulding which can give the impression that you have a hard education technique.

Make sure you always apply positive training methods, especially with staffies which are very intelligent and sensitive souls. You always need to highly praise good behaviour rather than just scould negative.

Gotta go to work, will continue later

Hello & welcome to the forum.

Staffords are, despite what some people think, very sensitive dogs. Try to keep your training firm but fair. No harsh voices or physical punishment.

At 11 weeks your pup will still not know what is right & wrong from your perspective. It can take a while to get them to realise that although their behaviour is normal/natural to them, it's unacceptable to you. The biting is normal & will hopefully start to subside when teething finishes, although you may look like a pin cushion in the meantime.

Distraction is great, but it won't always work. You could try the ignore method - if your pup nips you say "No skin", finish all play/interaction and stand up. Turn away from your pup & cross your arms. If he continues, keep turning away. If, after a couple of turns, he still keeps on nipping, say "No skin" again and walk out of the room & close the door behind you. Wait 30 seconds & go back in.

Repeat, repeat, repeat!

He's not trying to be Alpha, he just doesn't have acceptable boundaries in place at the moment.

With his mouth, is it just outside that you can't touch him or inside as well? His gums may be sore from teething & it may hurt him when you touch his mouth. Try wetting an old tea towel, knot it & put it in the freezer. Once it's frozen, let him chew on it - it will keep him busy, and the coolness will soothe his gums.

How often do you do any training with him? Maybe during training sessions you could gently touch his muzzle with your finger & use a trigger word ("teeth" or "mouth" or something like that). Then immediately give him praise & a tasty treat. Once he's happy with that, progress on to lifting a lip, then lifting both lips etc. He should begin to understand that you're not trying to hurt him!

Thanks Caryll