[TrishB]

One technique I saw Dr. Stanley Coren do on his show, Good Dog was this:

Sit down on your knees beside your puppy. Pick her up, underneath her belly so that her legs hang. This position will also have you 'over her'. If the puppy reacts, keep holding her until she goes limp and accepts that you are in control.

This simulates the bitch picking up her puppy but states beyond a doubt that you are in control. Do this with every family member a couple of times a day for a couple of weeks. Therefore, every family member will be 'alpha'.

Obviously, you cannot do this with an older dog - it is purely a puppy technique.

Another I like is 'tying' your pup to yourself. Loop the leash through itself and place that around your waist. Attach the other end to your pup. The pup is then obligated to follow, which places you in an alpha position.

If the puppy begins to fight the leash, bite your pants, etc. Stand on the leash at a length where the puppy can lay down comfortably, but not sit up. By standing on the leash and making her lay down you are in a dominant position while she is in a submissive position. The added bonus is that by standing on the leash, you don't react to her struggling. Your dead weight on the leash stops any reaction that may have been caused if you were holding it in your hand.

Another one that I saw on Good Dog was placing the food bowl on a table. Place crackers behind the bowl. Take some crackers and eat them (everyone in the family should do this). From your puppy's view, you took food out of her bowl. Once everyone is done their crackers, the puppy is fed last. Eating last = bottom of the totem pole. :)

I'll be very interested in all the techniques that people will bring to this discussion! :D