My Darling Littl' Puppy

[Mil]

I'm so glad we're not alone! It seems like nearly all puppies do this. We have had lots of problems with it. I think it is slowly finally improving though. The water bottle is quite effective for our puppy. It has actually now made our ah ahs generally more effective too. He is even now starting to look sorry sometimes when he has hurt me. It still continues though...can't wait til it stops completely...

[KOE]

Puppies being puppies always try to have hard chew type toys or items close by and let then chew that or buy a ball and turn the biting into fun by chasing a ball instead. I wouldnt spray him with a squirt bottle, they are only babies.

Pigs ears are the best thing for those teething puppies.

[peaceful]

It sounds to me like your puppy needs to be put into his bed for a nap when the biting gets out of control like you are describing.

Pups are just like toddlers. When they get overtired nothing you do will make any difference. To protect the puppies temperaments they need plenty of nap time otherwise they can get very silly just like kids do.

Have you tried holding the puppies muzzle with you hands and looking him in the eye and in a loud gruff voice saying "NO".

This always works for me.

Dont ya just love puppies!!!!

[ILFC]

Grover would do this a lot. I distracted him by making him follow commands such as sit, come, on your bed. Believe it or not- it worked. The minute he started getting worked up- out came the lead and we did about 5mins of commands. This could distract your pup?????

[badboyz]

I would have to agree with Vicki here. If you watch a dam with her pups, if one keeps bothering her she will first give a warning growl. If the pup is persistant she will grab the scruff with her mouth and give a much harsher growl. Puppies usually will be very submissive and walk away and find something else to play with. When puppy backs off it is a good time to give him/her a toy and then walk away for a while.

Edited April 22, 2007 by badboyz

[Vickie]

If you watch a dam with her pups, if one keeps bothering her she will first give a warning growl. If the pup is persistant she will grab the scruff with her mouth and give a much harsher growl.

and once it is over it is over. This is where people can make mistakes, they put emotion into it & hold on to it. A pup will not understand 10 minutes later why you are still unhappy. They have already forgotten the incident. It's hard for us to do that.

[First Time Puppy Owner]

Hey Rooster

I let Rhi & Jak know about what the puppy school guy told us if the biting you is getting to much and too hard - spray yourself with aeroguard. It seems to have worked for Rhi & Jak, good luck :rolleyes:

Susan & Benson

[flycow]

I don't remember exactly when my lab stopped nipping but it was fairly early, perhaps around 3 or 4 months old. Water bottle, yelping and ignoring didn't work, so I combined yelping and total ignore and she got the message.

Everytime she nipped I yelped really loud and leave the room or backyard. She hates to be alone. That did it in about a week. I set her up for correction during meal times as well. Handfed a few kibble one by one, if she bite, I yelped then try again. 3 nips I'm out of there, no dinner (for 10mins). Then try again.

You need to find what works for your dog, and loads of patience and consistancy I think, gotta try everything.

BTW I made sure she knew I was angry, when I left the room I slammed the door. A little harsh I know but that's me. She was a very stubborn dog.

Edited April 28, 2007 by flycow

[Tatelina]

My gosh I don't think I've ever experienced this puppy biting! Are you all talking about a puppy thats teething and needing to practising using thier teeth so when playing uses teeth? Or coming up to you for whatever reason and biting you from out of no where?

[Tatelina]

I am pretty firm with this one. I don't let puppies bite me from Day One & they learn really quickly.

My first option is to scream "ouch" & be upset. This will shock most pups, it's pretty similar to what puppies do to each other. But if the pup is already in a habit of biting it may not be as effective.

If that doesn't work, I push my hand into their mouth when they bite. Not hard & I don't hurt them, but it is unpleasant & makes them think twice about it the next time. I would do this a number of times before I would move to the next stage.

If that doesn't work, I scruff them, look into their eyes & say NO! I have only ever done it to one pup who was extremely persistent. This is about the harshest I would get with anything but I am consistent & they do learn quickly. I can't afford to have pups biting with children around...and I don't like it much either.

Pups that bite can turn into dogs that bite.

I like the sounds of your methods.

[Christina77]

There are plenty of good articles that will help train your puppies , I used the method in the article and started using a clicker from the day my pup ACD came home.

You must be consistant , start training yourself that this is a dog and not a toy and be firm , plenty of time for play and reward but set boundaries immediately.

Our ACD was the first dog we spend time on training and the more you do the more she laps it up , she knows her position , knows the boundaries and is a joy to own.

Read the article as the advice given really does work .

http://www.clickertraining.com/node/725