Gold Lab Retriever Pup: Mouthing , Barking, Sleeping

Question
We have a 13 week female gold lab x retriever which I have four queries about, hope that's ok....

1)she was a very calm, quiet and placid little pup when we brought her home at 7 weeks,over the last maybe 2 - 3 weeks she's begun barking like crazy at us (just if we're watching tv or around the home) and biting our hands/feet when we walk, clothing/shoes and just about everything else. Her bites are sometimes very hard and break the skin. we yell 'ah ah' or 'no' and this seems to encourage her (she'll wag her tail and jump up on us to bite again, or she'll run away as if it's a game of tag)the 'yelping like a pup' technique doesn't work, nor does ignoring as this just ends up with another bite harder then the first one- we have been picking her up and putting her in the laundry as a 'time out' which can sometimes calm her down, but usually she's barking and biting 2 mins after letting her out. Any guidance with this would be great.  

2) She's in the laundry (approx 4 meters x 4 meters) for 9-10 hours a day, alone (with kongs, chew toys, bed, water, radio etc) because we're worried she'll destroy the house while we're not there, and as it's winter time I think it's too cold for her to be outside all da. Is this ok ? or should I give her a bigger space ?

2) sleeping in the bed - she sleeps on our bed at night - what are you feelings on this ? is it a bad idea which will create behavioural problems ? or is it ok ?

3) what are some simple techniqies/strategies we can use to ensure we are the 'pack leaders'

Answer
Thanks for the questions.  

1) The barking/biting is her way of playing.  It's also a way to get attention.  Putting her in time out usually doesn't work unless you can guess that her extra energy is maybe due to being too tired.  Unfortunately the best methods to stop it are ones you mentioned already.  You can also stick your finger down their throat to make them gag, as this will create an unpleasant experience and should help stop the behavior.  You can also pinch their lip against their teeth.  You can also keep soft toys around and try to redirect attention to a toy.

2) The laundry is a sufficient safe place for the time being.  Smaller is typically better as it helps housebreak them as they don't want to potty where they sleep.  We used crates and ex-pens for that instead of small rooms.  But the idea is the same.  I would probably opt for a crate though because in the future when the dog is older, maybe has to go to the vet overnight or if you have to travel, the dog will then be used to being confined in a crate.  

3) I personally don't think sleeping in the bed causes problems but we have had no problems with having our dogs understand that we run the show.  However, we typically choose to keep the pups crated until they are full house-broken and trained (usually about 1 year of age) because as the pup gets older and more curious, you could easily find the dog on the floor, having chewed up the carpet, the corner of your dresser or the baseboards.  

4) For us, we find that being consistent with commands and taking a no nonsense approach with our dogs has helped confirm that we run the show.  There are many methods to do this, and unfortunately (or fortunately) my husband and I have just naturally been able to accomplish this.  Dogs are dogs, and treat them as such.  You can love them and spoil them, but they ARE still dogs, and sometimes knowing that helps.

You can find MANY articles on line with training methods if you good terms like "stopping puppy from biting" or "establishing myself as pack leader" and you should find a method that works for you and your pup.

Good luck.