We have a six year old poodle/cocker spaniel/bichon cross, Emma Valentine, and adopted Sophie (who is now 11 months) when she was 8-weeks old (she's a poodle/havanese/shih tzu cross). Emma is 25 pound, Sophie 9 pounds. When she hears Emma bark or get excited, Sophie will jump on Emma and bite at her ears and bark at her. And when Sophie wants to play, she will bark shrilly and nip at Emma's ears and back legs. They both respect that I am the Alpha in our house and Sophie will stop jumping on Emma when I tell her to but will not stop with the shrill barking when she's in the mood to play, even if Emma and I ignore her. Will Sophie outgrow the jumping behavior? Should I just let the two of them sort it out? And how do I stop the barking when Sophie has a full head of steam? She's very responsive when I ask her to be quiet if she barks at a noise or something of the like but 'quiet' doesn't work when she's wound up. Thanks.
This sounds like normal pack behaviour and they will sort it out, it is good that she listens to you though. I think the best way to resolve your problems is to grab sophies attention when she is all wound up and excited. Sometimes leaving a lead on her and pulling that sharply and then saying "NO" can work quite well. Also a water pistol or a can of rocks that you shake when you want to tell her off can work well.
