by: Robin Sockness
MyBestBuddyDogTraining.com
While it won't
heal those punctures on your hands and ankles any faster, it may be comforting
to know that if your puppy is biting, you're not alone. In fact, mouthing and
biting are normal (but not desirable) behaviors and essentially all puppies
will bite. The good news is that as your puppy gets older much of the nipping
and mouthing will disappear, particularly it you don't encourage it through
aggressive play. Fortunately, most biting done by puppies is playful and there
are several ways you can discourage your puppy from choosing you as a target.
Avoid aggressive
play. Wrestling, "boxing" at the puppy's mouth with your hands, and
tug-of-war can get your puppy over excited and teach him/her that hands are
appropriate chew toys. If you do play these games, the game should be over as
soon as the puppy begins to get over stimulated.
Redirect the puppy
to appropriate toys. Virtually all puppies will need to chew on something, so
make sure there are plenty of acceptable chew toys available. If your puppy
attacks your hand, ankle, or clothing, offer him a favorite toy instead. When
he goes for the toy, give him lots of praise and attention.
Practice the high
yip (“Ouch!”). When play between puppies gets too rough, the one being bitten
will give a high-pitched, piercing yip. This will startle most puppies and
cause them to stop biting for a moment.
You can mimic the high yip, then withdraw your hand and substitute
something else.
Keep your fingers
curled. Many puppies will not bite at a closed hand as they will an open hand
Use time-out. If
your puppy gets too riled up, won't listen to you, and immediately starts to
bite again after you've tried some other approaches, then isolating her for a
brief period may be needed. Or leave the
room for 30 seconds, then resume play upon return.
DO NOT punish the
puppy in an attempt to get it to stop biting!
At best, the puppy no longer bites those family members who can have
punished it but instead directs his biting toward those who have no control,
for instance, children!
Supervise play
between kids and puppies. Many children are not able to use these techniques on
their own and will need your help. Puppies learn quickly and may discover that
young children can be intimidated by rough play and biting. Kids also like to
do things that get puppies overexcited. Adult supervision will be needed until
the puppy and the child learn how to play appropriately.
After all the puppy socialization and handling exercises, your dog will be unlikely to want to bite because it likes people. However, should your dog snap or bite because it has been frightened or hurt, one hopes that it causes little if any damage because it developed good bite inhibition during puppy hood.
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