I have a 3 month old puppy who tries to bite me whenever I take her food bowl or any object she may have in her mouth or near her. Can anyone please give me some advise on how I may be able to stop this? I have children and I don't want them to get bitten.
By ELIZABETH BARNES from Clacton
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One method I've always used and had a lot of success with is this. Whenever the pup tried to bite I'd let it grab hold, then with my other hand I would tap it's nose with my pointer finger and shake the same finger at it saying over and over again "Don't bite" in a very firm voice until it let go. Then I would praise the puppy A LOT and give it a treat. It took a while but almost every dog I've ever had responded well to this and stopped biting for this type reason.
Granted they are dogs and they do like to grab hold in play. But by doing this, and if they grab too hard I stop the play immediately and say "easy!" and they immediately let loose and want to like my hand to say they are sorry. But most times in play all they do is put their mouths ON my hand without biting down. This way they are still allowed to be dogs and play like dogs do, but they know the limits too.
My 2 yr old daschund was bitting me bad; up until about 6 months ago. I wear my house shoes most of the time when I'm home and the last time he grawled at me like he was going to bite, I took off my house shoe and swatted him in the face. Didn't do any damage but some would say that is cruel. Now when I say "drop it", he immediately drops what I don't want him to have. Sometimes he runs after he drops it and sometimes he just drops and sits.
I took him to training when he was six months old using the treat method. Only way I could get him to mind was a treat; that got old. It was like reinforcing the bad habit. My vet recommended me to a trainer who said he trained like the military. I didn't use him because he was way too expensive but I had to do something and he convinced me that I had to get tough. I think training with treats don't work with dachshunds; they're too stubborn. He's not abused; doesn''t act cowardly and knows I love him. So far the house shoe things is working.
Oh I hope I can help. Always hand feed your pup until he stops biting you while he is eating. Make him sit and feed him one or two kibbles at a time, that way he knows you control his food. Everyone in the family should do it, making him sit first that way he knows everyone is the alpha dog.
If you take a toy away from your pup and he growls and doesn't let go of the toy, do not let go of it very slowly inch your hand up the toy so you are holding most of the toy every time the pup starts to release a bit of the toy you inch your hand up the toy more and more until you are holding the toy.
Make him sit for his toys too keep doing these excercises until he releases on his own. It is very important that you and your family become alpha dog. Cesar Millan has some great books check your library or his web site. Oh make sure you walk out of the house first then the dog, people first dog last. Hope this is a start Let me know if it helps.
After reading your other advice tips let me say never hit your dog you could make your dog very fearful, then one day you might go to pet your dog but the dog thinks you are going to hit him and end up bitting you in defense. This all takes time keep working at it training is an ongoing thing my pup is 8 months. I always expect her to behave a certain way, i still make her sit or lie down for things and she know i mean it so she listens. I also keep her out of the kitchen while we eat either with a gate or i crate her.
Puppies need lots and lots of toys. They get bored easily, so change them out and rotate them frequently.
Thanks all of you for this information. We just got a puppy too and he'll be going into his 3rd month. I will keep all this in mind. Yes Cesar is the best!
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I have a German Shepherd / Pit Bull mix, he is 3 months old, but he is biting everything, like our hands and legs. We give him toys to chew on he will, but goes back to biting our fingers. I don't know if it's a puppy stage or is it signs of aggression. I'm scared because we have little ones which he has bit already.
Christina from El Paso, TX
You need to find a good trainer in your area and go to puppy classes. Some biting at that stage is normal. You have to ignore him or say "oww" when he bites you. Then give him a few seconds to think about it and then hand him a toy and play with him using only the toy. If he uses his teeth on you stop the playing again. Everyone in the house has to be doing the same thing. A lot of times some people like to "rough house" play and wrestle with the pup. The pup won't know the difference between an adult or the child playing with them.
Here is a website from the Humane Society. hsus.org/petsMaybe it will help. (01/09/2008)
By Candy
I have a Shep mix (we are really not sure what else is in her). One thing that we did when she would bite that was very effective is to "yelp" loudly when they bite you. They learn from their siblings when they are too rough by their yelp. It is annoying for the first few times, but it sure did prove to be effective. (01/10/2008)
By Michael
The only thing I can think of having had many puppies in the past is to use a spray bottle of water and spritz him and say "no" at the same time and do this for every bad behavior. Also reward him for good behavior with a treat and lots of love. I have trained my dogs to sit and wait to be given their dinner and water. This also works if you don't want him to jump. It's never too early to start training for good behavior. Never bad puppies, just uninformed owners. Good luck. (01/10/2008)
By Lisa
You are right to ask how to differentiate between "playfulness" and beginnings of aggression. It is important to start dogs off correctly; I suggest going to a dog trainer or reading all you can on puppy training. Having always raised large dog breeds (German Shepherds), here is what I do.
Be sure pup gets lots of exercise. At least 30 minutes twice a day (we do 60 minutes twice a day). Dogs have a lot of energy some biting may be frustration, pent-up energy, or negative demand for attention. Pay attention when pup is being good. A settled dog is a happy dog.
Teach pup to focus attention on you by saying "watch me" and directing them to your eyes. This focuses their attention. When they do stop what they are doing and focus on you, reward them. This is a basic command that can help if they get distracted and takes their minds off being bad.
Use commands consistently. We use "leave it" when we want dogs to leave something alone, "off" when they should not jump up and "wait" when we want them to be patient. We also use "easy" for being gentle. We reserve "no" for the really important stuff, and when we say it (since we do not abuse it) they know it is very serious. Do not dilute commands by using them inconsistently or interchangeably.
Always reward good behavior, even if pup shows small improvement. Keep puppy training sessions short, no more than 15-20 minutes.
Immediately correct bad behavior, you do not have to be mean about this, just precise, timely, and consistent. I suggest you work with a lead and leash for training sessions and if pup misbehaves, say "eh" loudly, and immediately use leash to have dog sit and wait. This is not fun for them so they learn biting or misbehaving results in doggie time outs. They learn amazingly well.
Good Luck. (01/10/2008)
By Susan
Pups usually do go through this biting stage. I use to train and show dogs, so I had to also deal with this problem. Every time he even starts chewing or biting, thump him on the nose and say "no bite". Always use the same words, never change the words "no bite" and the thump (not hitting) on the nose. You just have to keep doing it over and over, every time he starts the biting. It may take as long as a month to stop, and then in some dogs gets the message in a week. Kay (01/10/2008)
By Kay
Get on top of this behavior ASAP. Use these good suggestions which ever seem to work for you. Dog must be taught not to be mouthy, ever. Pups play bite each other naturally. Human skin is like tissue compared to puppy hide. Everyone in the family needs to correct immediately, redirect, and praise for good behavior.
Set the dog up. Elicit the behavior you don't want, without using the dog's name. Do this when you are alone with the dog (no distractions). Be standing up. Give the correction you decide to use. When the dog complies, take him a few steps on the lead or by the collar, have him sit and then praise that good calm behavior.
Start out with a level 1 correction, escalate correction as needed. Use a 7 seven level if needed without going back to a 1. If you are repeatedly using a level 1 correction with no result, that is called nagging and never works with any species, including people. Be direct, clear and above all, consistent while you make sure the whole family is on the same page with this.
As you work to train your dog, you will be able to tell if this is puppy nonsense or aggressive behavior. If you feel it is aggression get professional help. You are working with a blend of dog that needs strong leadership. Decide now who the pack leader is in your home. The dog must learn to respect even the youngest child.
All this training, praise, and correction must be done clearly and consistently without anger or cruelty. Get a good crate and crate train the dog. Crate training speaks to the denning instinct present in all canines. Until you have trained good behavior the dog must be supervised or contained (crated).
When you put your dog in the crate, which should be out in the family area, toss in a cookie or toy and happily say, "crate" as you put the dog in. It will be a positive, not negative experience. Never throw him in the crate for punishment. Separate bad behavior and going in the crate by correcting the dog for misbehaving and redirecting the dog to something he knows how to do, so you can praise him. Then put him in the crate as directed above.
This dog sounds like he's already animated so you want to use calm, slow handling for training. Always have a proper fitting collar on the dog, it's like their steering wheel. Wear this puppy out with play twice a day. Tug toy, is great, but since you own all the toys, take it away at games' end. After play, relieve, then crate time. Always relieve dog after being in the crate.
The most important learning takes place in a dogs brain between the 6th or 8th to 16th week of life. Good Luck.
(01/11/2008)
By Ruth Counter
