Puppy biting hands and feet!

blondy24

Hello,

We have an 8 week old lab puppy. I appreciate that puppies try to bite people as they are very young however our puppy always wants to bite us on our arms, hands or feet when walking. Does anyone know any good ideas to stop this? I know that she is teething but it hurts both OH and I and ruins play time.

We have tried;

• Spraying her with water, after a while she thinks this is a game, so stopped.
• Saying ouch very loudly, she completely ignores this.
• Saying No and if she does it three times then she goes in her crate for 5-10 mins (if crys then longer). Then when she comes out she soon starts again so like a vicious circle.

Any help or knowledge would be great.

liliesnlace85

My mum's dog (English bull dog) was very naughty when he was a puppy and simply didn't understand the word 'no'. She was advised by someone to put a handful of small stones into a plastic bottle and to shake it when he's naughty. The sudden noise stopped him in his tracks (although she still combined it with saying 'no' loudly - presumably so he links the horrible distracting noise with the word).

Person_one

liliesnlace85 wrote: »

My mum's dog (English bull dog) was very naughty when he was a puppy and simply didn't understand the word 'no'. She was advised by someone to put a handful of small stones into a plastic bottle and to shake it when he's naughty. The sudden noise stopped him in his tracks (although she still combined it with saying 'no' loudly - presumably so he links the horrible distracting noise with the word).

Why would anybody expect a puppy to understand the word 'no'? When do you think they learn English?

OP, aversive techniques like the rattling bottle and the water are not the best idea for a pup, you'll just make him fearful of you and nervy.

Its not teething, its part of the socialisation process. A litter of pups will play fight and 'mouth' at each other to learn the power of their teeth and to learn bite inhibition. You need to mimic what his littermates would do, so when he mouths make a loud high pitched squeal like a hurt puppy would and withdraw the foot/hand quickly. (No point saying ouch, same as with 'no', nobody's taught them English!)

How long has pup been with you? This is often a problem when they leave their mum and siblings too young.

lynnemcf

If you have a kind friend or neighbour with a gentle dog get them together. Its a horrible squeal noise that the "hurt" dog makes and the pup will stop what it is doing immediately.

phill99

My first pup did this but soon grew out of it. It's part of socialising.

krlyr

Dogs explore their world with their teeth, until they learn that it's inappropriate to mouth people. The best way to teach a dog how to behave is to teach them what to do, rather than expect them to understand what not to do. So carry rope tuggies or other chewable toys with you at all times and every time the puppy goes to mouth, redirect her onto the toy and praise her for chewing on the right thing. If she mouths you, just remove yourself, or her, from the situation, then redirect again onto a toy.

You could also do some specific training with pup - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c77--cCHPyU (kikopup's other videos are fab too, loads for new puppies)

tuttifruiti20

try to bring in lots of toys for your pup to play with and just persevere. Like others have said it is a part of your dog learning to socialise and learn what is right and wrong. Unfortunately it can take time.

Mojisola

Person_one wrote: »

Why would anybody expect a puppy to understand the word 'no'? When do you think they learn English?

It's not the word - it's the tone of voice. You have to say it like you really mean it so that it's the equivalent of the noise the puppy's Mum would make if he bit her.

Practice it in private until your "No!" can stop a passer-by in their tracks - it will work for the dog then as well.:)

Person_one

Mojisola wrote: »

Practice it in private until your "No!" can stop a passer-by in their tracks - it will work for the dog then as well.:)

That's ok, I prefer to use positive reinforcement with mine, unless its an emergency!

Mojisola

Person_one wrote: »

You need to mimic what his littermates would do, so when he mouths make a loud high pitched squeal like a hurt puppy would and withdraw the foot/hand quickly.

Mojisola wrote: »

It's not the word - it's the tone of voice. You have to say it like you really mean it so that it's the equivalent of the noise the puppy's Mum would make if he bit her.

Practice it in private until your "No!" can stop a passer-by in their tracks - it will work for the dog then as well.:)

Person_one wrote: »

That's ok, I prefer to use positive reinforcement with mine, unless its an emergency!

I think your version would probably stop a passer-by in their tracks as well.:)

moonbabe58

With our lab pup the best way we found of getting her to stop nibbling on us like she would naturally do to her siblings is to mimic the noise she would make if something hurt. It stops her right away and we then introduce a toy for her to chew on instead. Our pup also loves cuddly toys, she will nibble on those in the same way she would with another dog.