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Flappyears90
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Location: Ireland
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08-02-2012, 08:46 PM

Behaviour problems with new dog

Hello all,

I grew up with animals around me but having moved into my own place I decided to get pet dog as there is loads of space and I'm a very active person.

In a local pet store I seen an advertisement for German Shorthair Pointer pups, so I called them up! Now I have a lovely new friend and it's only 16 weeks old.

Here's where the question comes in. I've never really trained a dog before, but that's the exciting part I guess? Well anyways, first thing I've noticed about this pup, even at a very young age, it that it's very aggressive and I'd like to know the best course of action is to sort this out.

For example, I'd just be petting him and next thing you know he's attacking my hand and for a pup has a strong bite, won't be long before he draws blood. Is this normal behaviour for this breed? He is getting exercise and is being fed twice daily with Pro Plan puppy food.

I just don't want him to be biting friends and strangers! Any advice is welcome.

Thanks.
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TabithaJ
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08-02-2012, 09:08 PM
It is normal for puppies to 'mouth' and nip. Each time your pup does it, say a quiet but firm 'no' and turn your back for sixty seconds. Make sure anyone else who is in contact with the pup does the same thing. This needs to be consistent.

How much exercise are you giving the puppy? At that age it shouldn't be too much
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labradork
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08-02-2012, 09:49 PM
Does "it" have a name?

You have thrown yourself in at the deep end with this breed. GSP's are very smart dogs that require a lot of input.

Your dog isn't aggressive but if he is drawing blood, it sounds as though his bite inhibition is poor. This website has some good tips on it: http://www.clickertraining.com/node/168
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ClaireandDaisy
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09-02-2012, 08:39 AM
Shorthairs are lovely creatures - but not the easiest of dogs because they love to work. I strongly advise you to have a look at this site.
http://www.thegundogclub.co.uk/Train...FUoifAodklMYew
The `getting started` section particularly.
You may never do gundog stuff but it will help you understand the nature of your boy.
GSPs are `people` dogs. They are affectionate, strong-willed, active and huge fun. They are also sensitive souls and should never be treated harshly, so be careful when picking a training class. Only use one that promotes positive training.
Gwen Bailey has written some good puppy books and she has a website where you can get more info -
http://www.dogbehaviour.com/gwenbailey.htm
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Chris
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09-02-2012, 10:19 AM
Congratulations, you have a teething puppy!

Puppies start loosing their milk teeth and replacing with adult teeth at 16 weeks (give or take a few days either side). Their puppy mouthing can get quite intense and IT HURTS! I know because I have a 20 week old puppy who has now stopped hard mouthing for the most part

Initially, we let her mouth. While ever that mouthing was soft we carried on with stroking or playing, when it got too hard, play/stroking/etc stopped and the game ended. I don't do the 'ouch' as for a lot of dogs, this hypes them up more.

Now, she occasionally tries to mouth, but game stops (doesn't matter now whether soft or hard mouth) as training is moving on to teeth are no longer allowed to touch skin.

She was a devil for trouser grabbing when younger. Simply stopping dead and ignoring until it stopped then taking another step and repeating as necessary has stopped this now.

Puppies are puppies and puppies explore the world with their mouths. We just have to teach them what is and what isn't acceptable to explore .

Good luck and enjoy your puppy. In the blink of an eye, your puppy will be your dog and you'll wonder what all the fuss was about
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DoKhyi
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09-02-2012, 11:30 AM
I agree with everybody else. He's not aggressive at all by the sound of it - he's just a normal puppy who is teething, playing and learning his boundaries. I have very rarely seen a genuinely aggressive puppy that bites and means it. Usually it's a result of extreme fear on the pup's part and the bite is due to the pup hiding away and feeling cornered when approached. It's very different to a puppy playing as the fearful puppy would be crouching down, tail tucked between legs and it would be running away rather than approaching you. Hearing that, I bet you just have a normal, playful puppy who wants to interact with you.

Puppies bite each other and that's how they learn bite inhibition because they get bitten back. Not that I suggest you bite your puppy! My Tibetan Mastiff was a beggar for it up to being about 7 months old. If I said ouch he'd squeak and bite harder. You just have to run through the techniques of gentle training methods until you find one that works and do it consistently. Don't use force or training that advocates stuff like alpha rolling as that can make matters worse not better.

Good luck with your pup and I'm sure you'll have many happy years together once you've embraced the learning curve you're on and researched as much as you can about your breed and dog training in general. The best training methods to research are kind, reward based training methods where you are positive, fair, consistent and understanding of your dog. Has he got a name?
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Tang
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09-02-2012, 11:44 AM
I agree with the above. Bella, my mini pinscher seemed to want to do NOTHING OTHER than bite me when I got her as a puppy! Perseverance and consistency paid off.

I'd been advised to squeal or bark or whatever. As mentioned above, that did seem to excite her and certainly made her bark back and, as minpins are known for barking too - that was obviously not going to work!

I'd say in a low voice 'no biting' and take my hand away.

She still likes to lie next to me and start mouthing my hand - I say 'no biting' and she stops instantly - it's hilarious because she stops with her mouth open and stays like that looking at me as if to say 'well if i can't bite you - what else can I do?'

In fact friends and neighbours find this so funny they blimmin' encourage her to play fight just so they can say 'no biting' and then laugh at her when she instantly stops and puts her head to one side and gives them the quizzical look!

There is an easily discernible difference between 'puppy mouthing' and real biting. My dog bit me the once - so I do know the difference! She bit me when I tried to cut her belly bandage off 2 days after she was spayed. She was frightened - very - but I was surprised just HOW HARD she could bite and how lightning fast she rounded on me to do it too! That was almost 2 yrs ago and she has never bitten me since.

*I was told another factor was if they are removed from their mum and the litter too early. They miss out on a lot of the play fighting and 'mum' teaching them what is and isn't acceptable?
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