Wont stop biting us!!

[porticelli]

My puppy is about 7 months and since he was born, he always bites us. He's not being mean, or aggressive. I think he does it to play, or when he's bored, he just jumps up on the couch (that a different problem which i allowed ) and he'll just start biting... He'll bite my ankles when he wants to go outside, or when he's hungry or looking for a treat... its the way he communicates, but he goes after our hands (me and my boyfriend) EVERY night. HE LOVES it... he gets a big kick out it. We've done everything to "deter" him, but he won't stop until he gets tired, or we physically remove him. How do we make it stop!!! We had company over, and he starting going after his friends hands...it was embarrassing!

 

[Adrienne]

What exactly have you tried to deter the behavior? First of all puppies explore with their mouths so it is very common for them to be mouthy although at seven months he should have started to wean himself of this but he must be getting some sort of payoff or he wouldn't still be doing it.

Easiest ways to work with this issue...Every time the puppy bites something unacceptable replace with something ok to chew on, make sure it is something the puppy likes more than your body parts.

Other is to just remove yourself and ignore the puppy whenever he is biting you.

 

[Happy]

porticelli, i'm having da same problem. my new puppy seems to bite when he is excited or someone getting close to him. well, not those aggresive bite, but somehow it hurts. i've been trying to say 'NO'...but only works 1 out of 10times. hope to hear some great advise and solutions here. meantime, i will try to replace with something to chew on.

 

[Herschel]

I wish someone would have sent this to me when Herschel went through the shark phase.

http://www.shirleychong.com/keepers/archives/bite.txt

 

[killerz298]

I am having the exact same problem with my 7 month old lab. He WILL NOT stop biting and it isn't cute anymore. No matter what I do I cannot make him understand that it isn't acceptable for him to put his mouth on people/sleaves. He isn't as bad as he once was but he is still doing it daily almost like he can't help himself.

 

[Buddy'sParents]

You need to redirect the behavior to something that can chew on.

 

[killerz298]

You need to redirect the behavior to something that can chew on.

I do redirect his attention most of the time but he just doesn't understand or doesn't want to bite what I give him.

 

[Caren+Bailey]

I do redirect his attention most of the time but he just doesn't understand or doesn't want to bite what I give him.

I noticed that you stated in your other post that "it isn't cute anymore"....am i right in thinking that when it was "cute" that you allowed it to happen?
If i am reading into this right, then it will take a little longer to re-direct and have him understand that it isn't acceptable behaviour.

 

[Herschel]

Did anyone read the article that I posted? It's called bite inhibition. You need to teach it. Please read it!

http://www.shirleychong.com/keepers/archives/bite.txt

 

[Mayasmydobe]

I read that...
Hi my name is Jennifer and I have a dog that likes to bite me!

so anyways I read that and It confused me... are they really saying that to teach a dog NOT to bite you have to teach him to bite?

 

[Herschel]

Teach him that he has to be gentle. If he bites too hard or causing you pain he gets ignored.

 

[killerz298]

I noticed that you stated in your other post that "it isn't cute anymore"....am i right in thinking that when it was "cute" that you allowed it to happen?
If i am reading into this right, then it will take a little longer to re-direct and have him understand that it isn't acceptable behaviour.

No I never let him do it, but before his adult teeth grew in it wasn't as dangerous. Now that he has his adult teeth he can really do some damage.

 

[Gracie's Mom]

I read the article, and I think I get it, but the thought of allowing Gracie to play bite really scares me. She is going to be so big so fast I think it could be dangerous.

When she starts chewing on us we simply tell her off and give her one of her toys. I am going to try the treat idea for the command "leave it", I really like that idea.

Whey they talk about a "click" they are talking about one of those little clickers right? I am unsure if I want to use one of those because I know my kids will not use one all the time, are there any other suggestions for what I could use? A verbal command?

 

[Doberluv]

You can trust Shirley Chong and that excellent article. My Doberman knows how to mouth gently and regulates his bite when he plays with me or with my Chihuahuas.

Yes, you can use a cue word rather than a clicker, although the clicker is a much more distinctive sound. You wouldn't have your kids training her with the clicker. You'd be using it. Once the behavior is learned, you don't need the clicker anymore. You can look up online about clicker training. It's very effective.