My 7 months old Stafford biting to get attention.

Hi There I wondered if anyone can help me out,we have recentley been given a male staffordshire dog its white with a black patch eye hes georgeus and he is 7 months old,he keeps on biteing me to get attention,and i do have to use a newspaper sometimes to make him aware that i'm the boss of the house. I do have kids one is a 3 year old son and the other is 4 year old boy. What can i do to stop the dog from biteing me,only i'm afraid he might bite my kids you just dont know,is it because he wants to play or is it because hes teething. please advise me, I could do with some advise and help?[/B]

First of all, stop using the newspaper to 'tell him who's boss'.

Who gave you the dog? Do you know his history? Has he been to the vets to be checked out?

You must remember, at 7 months, he is still a puppy, and puppies are teething, and tend to bite things.
Give him toys etc he is allowed to chew/bite, and if he bites you, give him a toy to bite instead.

I Dont no the dogs history,but i know that the dog was left a flat balcony why the people went to work all day, but he has had hes injections,and i do need to worm him soon.I have bought him a big chew bone and he likes that,he also trys to make love to pillars,what sort of toys should i buy him,and if he was a visious dog he would of gone for me buy now,I have only had him 2 days,but he does sleep at the bottom of our bed. If i was to get hes bulls cut of would this carm him down,and what food should i feed him,he dont like biscuit much. what food would he like would you no.

So what should i do first then.

He is only playing, you must tell him off STRAIGHT AWAY when he does it and make him aware you dislike it.
By saying something short and sharp like "uh uh" loudly and clearly, then praising STRAIGHT AWAY should tell him it is wrong.
Castrating maybe needed to stop the "humping".
Good luck!

Anyway, these excellent articles may be worth reading:

Dogs and young Children

And

Basic Puppy Taining

Can you post pics of this dog please? Would like to see him

Never never never hit a dog (puppy or adult) with anything. It is NOT the way to teach an animal right from wrong. The correct way is to IGNORE bad behaviour and PRAISE to the hilt any good behaviour.

Is this your first puppy? Please don't be offended, but you don't sound prepared at all. You need to read this article on bite inhibition

http://www.canineconcepts.co.uk/ccp5...hibition.shtml

and get yourself a book on owning a puppy straight away.

Sorry if I sound a bit harsh, but as this pup hasn't had the best start in life with his previous owners, I am sure you want the absolute best for him.

Good luck and keep us all posted - we will all advise where we can.

hi samy when i got my first pup (staff cross) i was very inexperienced 2 and came accross this website and the people here are lovely and very helpful and will do the best to help and advise you, they are all very experienced and friendly and will do there best to help you so pls do not feel they are being harsh in anyway. my pup used to bite and i swear by making noises each time he does it, my baby is 1 now and it still works when playing.

Buster is right - the best sound is a loud "Ah, Ah" - nice and sharp - it's stops my 15month old pup immediately. Another way, although a little harsher, is to get a squirty water bottle and every time pup bites, spray his face with a fine mist of cold water.

Get him a kong, these are great toys, and can also be filled with food, and even frozen, to make playing more fun.

One thing though - You have only had him 2 days, and you don't know his past, and EVERY dog has the potential to bite, so please don't be complacent, and ALWAYS watch him around your children.