Puppy biting/mouthing? (threads merged)

hey everyone, i need help to stop jake being so mouthy. i know puppies are all mouthy cause they are teething but jake is starting to do it really painfully. ive read of ways to stop but none of them seem to work. ive tried whining whenever he does it to show it hurts, cause thats what his mother and littermates would have done, but it just makes him worse. he gets really excited and does it more. ive also tried to just ignore him. at first when i ignore him he tries really hard to get my attention and then after a minute, he happily toddles off to play with a toy and it doesnt seem to bother him in the slightest so a while later he will come back and do it all again. sometimes he just doesnt give in and even if he is getting ignored he will still trying and chew on me. ive also tried giving him one of his toys whenever he does it but he is only interested in it for a whole 10 seconds and then is back to finding my hands and arms more tasty. its driving me mad and is getting really painful, any suggestions on what i can do? im worried he wont grow out of it and will continue as an adult, by which time it will be a lot more painful than it is just now.

lauren

Hi Lauren 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. I think your puppy is 'play biting' trying to instigate play just as he would with his litter mates or another dog.

This kind of behaviour should really curbed and channelled in the right direction when a puppy is quite small . Puppies should be encouraged to bite ever more gently until no pressure is exerted at all, this is 'bite inhibition', learning to developer a soft mouth and one of the most important lessons you can teach a puppy. Once BI is taught, as the puppy grows up and develops powerful jaws should she bite for any reason (say she is in pain/at the vets being treated /gets accidentally hurt) she will have learns never to sink her teeth into human skin.
Teaching a puppy bite inhibition takes time and patience and 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

Don't expect instant success, it takes time to teach this.

Teach your puppy to sit (I will post a link below to another article which teaches this) .and ask it to sit before you stroke it. If it jumps up fold your arms/ turn you back/no word/no eye contact, do not reward the behaviour with your attention. . As soon as the puppy has four feet on the ground turn/ask it to sit bend down so that it is not encouraged to jump up and praise in a calm voice

article on basic puppy training
http://www.dogsey.com/dog-articles.php?t=14526

We tried all the things you have too and none of them worked, we had a total shark that bit anything that moved. Only thing that worked for us was as soon as he opened his mouth to bite he got Time Out in the kitchen on his own for about a minute (without any telling off) and he soon got the message. Had to repeat it quite a lot to start with but it only took a couple of days to sink in because he didn't like being on his own and it calmed him down at the same time.

The only thing that really works is zero tolerance and the sooner it is started the better. Yes, it will take time, and the more it has been allowed to bite, the longer.

Young Labs, which I know best, and other puppies tend to very bad about biting. You see a litter of them, and all the ones that are awake are biting another one or themselves. I am not even sure they realize that when they are alone, if they quit biting, they would quit being bitten. At 3 to 4 months they are getting their adult teeth, and it seems they spend every waking moment biting or chewing. One thing you can do at that stage is to knot and wet a piece of cloth. Then freeze it. The cooling will soothe the gums. Only let the puppy have it when you are there to watch it. I maintain a Lab's favorite chew toy is another Lab. Otherwise they settle for any person they can. They keep hoping to find one that won't yelp, jerk their hand away, and leave.

You just have to keep on correcting them, hundreds of times, not dozens. Provide sturdy, safe toys such as Kongs and Nylabones. Avoid things they can chew pieces off and choke on them. Keep them away from electrical cords. Crates are essential for most young Labs and other dogs.

Not sure if this is the right thing to do but it worked for us - we first taught Tilly to take a toy gently, eventually she would take it so gently it was like slow motion. Then when she was biting hands we told her "gently" and she did the same, it didn't take long for her to catch on & lots of treats for reward.
She was actually much better when she lost her puppy needle teeth & big ones came through.

Thanks for these tips everyone, my 4 month old Cocker Spaniel puppy has been chewing my hand to bits, and I am definitely going to try these tips. I have been trying to find a toy that has the same texture as skin to chew on, but still haven't found one. I have tried soaking his toy in bovril and will see how that works...

But I am hoping he will grow out of it too.
xx

hey, i was just wondering how i can tell if jakes mouthing/biting is in an aggressive way? he is only 11 weeks and sometimes i know he is definately playing, but sometimes he gets really snappy and i worry he is being aggressive. if he is, how can i stop it? ive tried saying ouch when it hurts to get bite inhibitation but it doesnt bother him and he just carries on. its early days but i do worry coz i dont want an aggressive adult dog. he is a lovely dog and gives lots of doggy kisses he just has his wee moments lol

lauren

with my spinger/cocker pup poppy, she bites alot but not too painfully at the mo, we have got her a teething ring which she seems to love alot and i think it helps, i tend to try to give her that when she tries to bite, and also do the whole OWW!! thing when it does hurt and saying NO etc.
also tried the whimper noise, sometimes it works and sometimes she thinks im playing and tries to bite my beard!
(which hurts like hell by the way!)lol but well keep plodding on, i think she will grow out of it to be honest, the ring is helping and she just needs something to take out that teething anxt on!

What it did with Ben was standing tall, my back to him and my arms folded... He still mouths, but very gently..

Misty used to chew on my hands, gradually she has grown out of it, and only Gracie's legs and ears are fun to hang off of now!
Misty started to chew on my hands less and less, as I was teaching her 'dead' to let go of toys. As she started to understand what 'dead' was, then when she decided she was going to have a chew, I'd just say 'dead' and she left my hands alone!!