My lab wont listen or even look at me when there are guests in my house

My lab is only 8 months old at the moment so I guess I shouldn't expect much of him. When there are guests in my house he starts jumping at them and when they sit at the table he just won't leave them alone and it's very hard for them to eat, he also tries to steal food from the table, that's another issue we are dealing with...I tried talking my mom into buying a crate but she thinks of it as a "dog torture"...when my dog sees a new person it's like im not even there, he won't even look at me, unless I have something in my hand like a toy or a treat. Today I drove out for to a store and I left the gates opened because I knew I wouldn't be there very long, my grandma was still sleeping and I thought she wouldn't let the dog outside, but she did of course. There was a group of children walking past my house and my dog started playing with them. I told him to come to me so I could hold him and close the gates but he wouldn't listen to me because he was WAYYYY too excited. I got picked up a stone to my hand and then I was able to get his atention, as I said he only listens when I have something in my hand. I guess that's just how labs are but is there anyway I could make him think of me as his "master" so that I could get his attention when there are other people around?

Two things. First Do get a crate because it will save your puppy some day. There are plenty of crate training videos on youtube. The crate will become his safehouse or den as dogs are pack animals that live in dens, hence the crate.

Next you NEED to get him in a puppy obedience class as soon as you can. Again at some time the commands he and you learn may save his life, plus they will make him a more pleasant dog to be around as he gets older. Also, he needs a lot of exercise to use up that puppy energy he has.

Good luck and we would love to see some pictures of him.

Dogs only listen when they are trained to listen. It's not about being "master" it's about being a "teacher". If the dog is not trained, they need to be maintained so that a) they are not self-rewarding and reinforcing bad habits and b) so that the dog is safe. You have to choose to train your dog and if you opt to not train your dog or try hard at training your dog, because it is work, you have to find ways to keep the dog safe and out of trouble.

Take the dog to obedience school and get some advice and direction from a professional and then work hard between classes to train your dog. There are also lots of books you can get to help you train your dog as well as YouTube videos. A good pet trainer to look up on YouTube is Dr. Ian Dunbar. For training, work on sit, down, stay and ESPECIALLY your recall. Then, once you train your dog in your home, your driveway, your yard, take it out into the public, on a leash. When you are ready to do that, a great book is Beyond the Backyard: How to Get Your Dog to Listen Anytime, Anywhere.

For maintenance, get a crate. Put the dog in the crate with something to do (Kong, etc.) if people are over. Same goes when you are eating or cooking. If the dog is not supervised, either keep food off the counter or put the dog in a crate. If you are in a home with lots of people who you are unable to control, make sure the gate is always closed.

Dogs don't come trained. An untrained dog is not being alpha, he is not being bad, he is not ignoring you. He is just not trained and does not understand what you want. And, sometimes a dog is trained, in your home, but is not trained to maintain that training and focus in the face of extreme distractions, like people, squirrels, a darting cat, other dogs, etc. You can't blame your dog for something that wasn't taught.

Because your dog is not trained (right now) he has to be restrained. For his safety. This is a dog that would (were he mine) never leave the house or fenced yard. Even the fenced yard is iffy if you can't control when the gate is open and closed. If he were my responsibility, he would always be dragging some length of line, even in the house. If I were eating, and he was trying to take food, he would be restrained to a counter or heavy furniture. (A crate is much, much better, but if you can't convince mom... then you have to settle for restraining him with a length of rope or leash.)

You could make a kinda-crate (again, if you canNOT convince mom) by finding a good corner to tie him, putting down his blanket/pad/bed... giving him a kong with frozen peanut butter (or something) in it, a chew toy... and telling him to stay there while you eat.

He will probably tug, whine and bark. But that wouldn't be much worse in my view than fighting my dog for the food on the table. Eventually, he will learn that he gets something good AFTER you're done eating.

None of what I've described is training. It's simply coping with his problems until you can train him toward better behavior.

If in an emergency like you described, pick up a stick or anything he might think is a potential toy and run AWAY from your dog. Chances are he will chase you because that's what dogs do. Grab his collar as he runs past you.

Again, none of this is training. It's just coping.

first labs are not always like that .

He needs training. even with all the training 8 months is a tough. when we have big parties in the house, i usually take her to the dog park for a good 1 1/2 hr of play. then she is extremely well behaved and calm. no jumping or nothing. Also when she is tired she actually listens better. again mine just turned 1 and now as long as she gets a good 3 mile walk or some dog play time she can be in the house with out being overly simulated. She listens alot better after we a did training in distraction management. you know screaming people , squeaking toys , dog cookies on the floor , loud noises and still taking hand signals with people and other dogs in the way.
she when young i have to give her a treat to leash in a big dog park to walk to car, now she just walks to the gate and wait when i TELL her to go to the car.
we have a crate and she does sleep in it .

but training is every thing. you are alot of training ahead of you especially every day kind. the tough part is he is bigger .you need to start working every day for a few weeks and months,