16mo hitting and pulling others hair.. is this normal, how to stop it happening? HELP

[Nip]

My DS has always been somewhat boisterous however has started pulling hair. This is the second weekend that he's had another child in floods of tears because he has literally yanked out handfuls of hair.

He also hits out and other kids, pushing them over or trying to 'slap' them as such.

I dont know if he realises what he is doing or not, but i dont want this to get out of hand. I can tell him 'no' and sometimes he stops, sometimes he cries, and sometimes he laughs and does it again.

Any suggestions would be very welcome.

is it normal? Totally
you have to say no each time he does it and if necessary move him away from the child/situation

Does he know 'be gentle'? show him stroking hair or touching people nicely. Praise when he does. I think its natural to want to touch other children but maybe he doesn't know how.

We have a cat so have done the whole 'be gentle' v. yanking his tail thing already!!

I think about this age is where chn start to push the boundaries, not out of maliciousness but because they need to find out what they can and can't do.( Supernanny said something like that last week anyway!)
Just persevere with saying no. I'm sure it's normal.

Excellent thank you. He does understand 'be gentle' as we have a cat too, i'll try that from now on.