dog park questions

Question
Is it normal for my puppy to be "roughly" playing with some other dogs, like jumping over each other, pinning each other to ground, and play biting?

Also, when my puppy steals something like a sock, he runs around like crazy and then pees on the floor for some reason ( a little amount). What does this mean?

Answer
Hi Jeff,

Yes, it's perfectly natural for dogs and puppies to play roughly. Some dogs go a step further and make fierce sounds while playing, which makes it sound like world war three might be breaking out, but it's still pure play!

Dogs and puppies can play as roughly as they want, as long as nobody is getting hurt.  What you don't want to do, is play rough games or games of strength (such as tug of war) with your puppy, and let him win. Though cute, it pits you against your puppy and, at some point, you invariably allow him to win, giving him the idea he can best you in a battle of strength. For some dogs, this could lead to behavioral problems, as the dog will learn he can dominate you.  
You can preserve your control of playtime by adding a couple of elements to games of tug-of-war. The way to do this is to teach your puppy to give you a toy when you ask. Nicely say "Drop It" and offer to exchange a treat for the toy. Repeat this until your puppy learns to trade the toy for a treat whenever you ask. Now you have a way to end a tug-of-war game in a draw, simply by asking your dog to give you the toy. You also have a way to start the game by using a special tug toy that you bring out just for this game. Tell him "tug time!" and entice him to hold on by starting with gentle, quick small tugs.

Your puppy will also be learning the "Drop It" command, which is very handy thing to have him obey. You also should avoid playing all  games where you actively encourage your puppy to bite a person.

You didn't say how old your puppy is, but it sounds like the peeing after running around like crazy in active play is just "excitement urination".  Excitement urination usually occurs in puppies and is caused by lack of bladder control. Puppies under the age of 4 months do not yet have total bladder control. As your puppy gets older he'll be better able to control himself.
Do not discipline your puppy for excitement urination, as it is something he cannot control. Simply ignore it and clean up the mess. If you do not overreact, he'll outgrow this behavior.

Best of luck!
Patti