Alfie (biting/snarling 8 week old puppy)

hi ive just got a 8week old sprocker spaniel but he is snapping and snarling at times and other times he very cuddly and loving-----------------any suggestions on what i can do ????

Hi Anne welcome to Dogsey. You have told us very little about yourself and your puppy. Have you had dogs before?

The behaviour you describe , snapping/snarling/biting is normal behaviour in puppies, if a puppy doesn't bite there is something wrong with it . Puppies bite for a number of reasons, to explore the world around them/during play/and when teething. Teething puppies need lots of safe things to chew just as a teething baby does.

Your puppy is attempting to play with you just as it would with its siblings.
Watch any litter of puppies playing, they bite each other in turn/yelp/run away, this is 'play biting' and they soon learn how much they can bite each other without inflicting pain and bringing play to an end.

When we take on a puppy we need to continue the learning process which was interrupted when the puppy left its litter mates . We need to curbed and channelled the play biting in the right direction ideally before the age of 4 month. The puppy should be encouraged to bite ever more gently until no pressure is exerted at all , this is called 'bite inhibition'.

Teaching bite inhibition ensures that as the puppy grows up and develops powerful jaws, should he bite for any reason (say he is in in pain/at the vets being treated /gets accidentally hurt) he will have learnt never to sink his teeth into human skin.

Bite inhibition, learning to developer a 'soft mouth' is one of the most important lessons you can teach your puppy, however teaching it takes time and patience and success won't be achieved in just a few days . Also everyone in the household needs to adopt the same approach.


Link to teaching bite inhibition ..click here

hi there, no alfie is not my first dog he's my 3rd. its been over 12yrs since ive had a puppy , i lost my 12yr old border collie 5 wweks ago,her name was bonnie and she was an amazing dog. i'm sure alfie will turn out to be a good wee dog too (i hope) its just trying to adjust to puppy ways again.

Hi, I just wanted to say that you're not alone in forgetting what a puppy's like. I guess it's like childbirth: if you remembered it warts 'n' all, you'd think twice about going through it all again! When we first got Bongo, I remember feeling like we'd just adopted a tasmanian devil. She was all teeth and claws, and there was no sense of sympathy between us. Now she's a lovely, well adjusted, fairly well behaved 3.5-year-old, but a real terrier nonetheless!

The biting and snarling is the only way your pup knows how to interact with you, so it's up to you show him/her how you'd prefer it to happen. Make sure you know what you will and won't tolerate, and cut off contact the second it goes beyond that. Your pup will gradually go from a wild animal, to the dog that you imagined, but it won't happen overnight. Enjoy!

Hi, we have a 10week old springer x cocker spaniel and I know exactly what you mean! So while we are on the subject can anone help me!?

We have been following the general advice for biting since we got him and he is definately getting better and is usually gentler.

Sometimes he goes a bit nuts though, and just bites/snaps repeatedly going for hands/feet/faces. When that happens and the usual yelp/distractions don't work, we put him in his little room to calm down. He instantly calms down and sits in his bed but as soon as we let him out he goes to bite again. How do we stop him when he's in this mood? I'm worried he is getting aggressive as he really growls and throws himself at any bit of us he can reach, sometimes he's really biting down too.

The other problem is how to walk away from him when he's attached to my leg/arm? should I be forcing him to let go or just waiting?

Play with him, just play, play, play, and if he goes to bite YOU, then immediately give him a soft chewy tug rope to chew on instead! Worked for me! When you play with them, it's the only way you get to teach them what you do and don't like, not by swiping them of course, but by giving them something else to chew on as soon as they go to chew on YOU! Awwwww, I loove puppies! p.s. don't forget the cuddle times too of course!

Hey guys i have no puppy advices but i'm sure you'll get lots of advices on here from the experts, but i do want pics of your little pups so i can get broody for another one.

A number of my puppies have been like that. I take no nonsense, starting obedience on my way out of the kennel the day I pick up a 7 week old.

As for biting, I have zero tolerance for it, no soft mouth. Every time the puppy bites, yelp, pull your hand away and leave.

The keeper of the kibble is a powerful position. Insist the puppy sits quietly until you put the food down and tell it ''Free dog.'' That helps establish your position.

Here are some more things to do:

''Elevation for small puppies: Sit on the floor and gently put your hands around your pup's middle, below his front legs, and lift him up. He is facing you. Hold him for 15 seconds. Repeat until he no longer struggles. If he is past 10-12 weeks, lift his front feet off the ground, but don't pick him up.

Cradling for small puppies: Hold your puppy gently on his back, as you would cradle a small baby. If he struggles, hold him firmly until he quiets for 10-15 seconds. With larger pups, you can do this as your sit on the floor, with your pup between your legs.

Quiet lying down: Place your pup on the floor on his side, with all 4 legs pointing away from you. Use your hands on his neck/shoulder area and middle, to hold him in this position. When he is quiet, praise him. Lengthen the time that you keep him quietly in this position. When he accepts this position well, handle his paws and muzzle, while keeping him quiet.''

The quotes mean this isn't my original work. It is copied from my Puppy Raising Manual. I have long used these or minor variations of them, and they are very effective. You may want to give him a belly rub while he is on his back too. Helps bonding. There is a big difference between him rolling over and demanding a belly rub, and you choosing a time to roll him over and rub his belly. The latter cements your place as pack leader.

That book sounds quite old though Labman
In the Uk reputable behaviourists would not be writing that sort of advice, all about how to force the pup to accept you dominating it as the leader (mainly because it is now known that dogs are more likely to live in family groups, not packs; and the original pack leader view was based on flawed wolf studies which were then extrapolated to dogs, not taking into account the years and years of domestication).

To the OP, here's some more advice, this works very well - it is important not to stop a pup straight away, because you want an understanding of bite inhibition to develop:

http://www.apdt.co.uk/dog_training_tips.asp

check out the article, two thirds of the way down...


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