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I have read the section on pinning however I am not sure when and at what age I should start this exercise. My puppy is 8 weeks and I am obviously seen as the parental, dominant figure however he already has started to test me at times; I don’t know if this is purely my puppy's short attention span or playing though rather than trying to push his boundaries. I tried the exercise with him gently and he just saw it as play time, and being that playing still means nipping and chewing it did not go well- he flopped himself onto his side and nipped, played and kicked. Can anyone give me any training advice? Am I getting ahead of myself?

All those reactions you mentioned above are normal. Also, your puppy is still very young and for a little while everything is going to be playing. Your puppy will test you over and over again, and it's your job to "win" or show them the proper way to behave and have manners. Pinning, umbilical, no talking, going through doors and up and down stairs first, are all examples of "alpha training". I'm not sure if Brad has rules about age for the pinning, but I do know that the other alpha exercises are not age specific and you can do them whether your dog is 8 weeks or 8 years. Your best bet would be to go through the puppy chapters and the activity booklet, and continue with the alpha exercises. You're in a great position, because your puppy is still young and you're starting the training right away, so don't worry about getting ahead of yourself. Did you recently bring your puppy home, or did you get him when he was younger than 8 weeks?

Thanks for the advice. I got him just shy of 7 weeks. I think he was separated from his mom around 5 though, as the person we got him from started sending the litter to their new homes at 6 weeks.

He is a Border Collie Lab cross and he is a handful, but good when he gets lots of exercise. He has not had his booster shots yet so I am limited as to where I am able to take him, but when I play with him in the backyard (off leash) he gets distracted and leaves me to lay and eat rocks / moss / leaves. This is not great as he is not getting rid of his extra energy, and also he is eating stuff and ignoring me. I have started the umbilical training in the front yard (away from his running free space) however I am afraid of hurting his neck and this is the first week he has been on a leash. I have been walking during the umbilical training, with my hand on the leash to soften the turns. Am I starting this too early?

It's never too early to start training, and if the martingale collar is sized properly, he should be fine (with the collar on, pull the ring on the chain till the collar is snug. There should be one to two fingerspaces between the two rings attached to the material). If you're worried, just put the collar around your own neck or arm, and you can see what it feels like. They always seem so fragile as puppies, but you'd be surprised at what they can handle. Holding onto the leash to "soften the turns" actually defeats the purpose of the training, as they wouldn't be corrected properly. It's called handsfree for a reason Don't worry, if he's pulling, he's more than capable of stopping the pulling to keep up with you and ease the tension on the leash and collar. And above all, enjoy your new puppy and the time you get to spend together training!

alright, i will go home and give it a shot! THANKS!