8 wk old pup bites CONSTANTLY

[lexismommy]

Hello, looking for some advice. I know all puppies are going to bite but I am looking for ideas on how to teach my pup not to bite me! She bites my boyfriend and I ALL the time. I have heard that you should just walk away when she starts biting so she will learn that the game is over when she bites. I've tried that except she follows me and bites my pants or feet or what ever she can catch! She has lots of toys to chew and I try to get her to play with one of those when she starts biting. Also, when she plays with her "cousin," another female boxer pup-2 wks older, they bite each other and the play is very rough and I often have to separate them. Any ideas on how to control this? Her little teeth hurt!

Adrianne

 

[dieselhound]

Hi Adrianne. My wife is on here all the time. I learn from her readings. One thing we have tried is Time Out. If he just don't seem to want to quit biting and we are at the end of the rope theres alot of things to try. We put Tyler in a seperate room for a few minutes. He hates that. It seemed to work though. Today we got some Bitter Apple for chewing. That stuff really works. Its all natural and no additives. All I know is he chewed on our rug,I sprayed, and now he doesn't. Good luck.

 

[hanley]

This is all normal Boxer puppy play, & they do play rough, let her play with her cousin, they will both learn & its good for them. Hanley

 

[lexismommy]

Thank you - at least I know that it is normal! The good news is that since we just bought the house and are finishing the painting and stuff so there is not a lot of new furniture for her to chew on yet! So I would rather her do it now than later. I will try putting her in a separate room. I know she will not like that. I did not want to put her in her crate for a time out because she is just getting used to it and I don't want her to associate the crate with punishment. As long as I know she will not grow up to be a meanie! Thank you again.

 

[boxer]

Time-outs can certainly work, but there's a range of techniques you should try first. Exclusion (time-out) is actually a very serious punishment for a dog.

When she bites, she is trying to play and simply needs to learn that she has to play more gently and moderate the strength of her bite. That's why puppies have such sharp baby teeth in the first place - relatively little pressure will cause pain, so they learn from their littermates who squeal and won't play how much pressure they can exert. So you should try to emulate that and the first technique to try is a loud shrill "OUCH", followed by retiring "injured" from the game.

Of course, your pup will pounce upon you again within minutes, but if her game is constantly ended when she puts pressure into that bite, then she will learn (in time) not to exert pressure.

Now some puppies are more determined than others, and if she won't let you retire in peace for even a few moments, then you can "actively" ignore her by following your "yelp" with getting up and leaving the room for a few minutes, shutting the door so she can't follow. Bear in mind that that is a more serious consequence for your pup - because she's just been excluded from her 'pack'.

And then, of course, there is time-out where you put her in another room or in a pen for a few minutes. That is useful when she simply won't give up, or if you getting up and leaving isn't really ideal.

Other things you can try are distraction - to a different sort of game or training session that does not include the use of her mouth; and also replacing your hand (or whatever body part she's after) with a chew toy.

So there's really a reasonable range of techniques you can use to get your pup to stop biting. No single one of them will be successful all of the time with a really determined biter, but all of the time one of those techniques will help. You could find a lot more information on puppy biting, including the experiences and advice given to others who've had determined puppies, by doing a search of the forums using the term "puppy biting" or just "biting". There is also some useful information in this short article: http://www.boxerworld.com/puppy/biting/

 

[GinsMomma]

I think everyone already gave you great advice but I also wanted to add, when our pup starts chewing/nipping at us & doesn't stop after a few stern "NO's" then she gets put into time out ASAP, just for a little time though, enought itl she calms down. I think the time outs is what is really helping with her. She is definitely chewing/nipping alot less when she plays with anyone. Good luck to you!

 

[myroxygirl]

Have you tried a tie down? I have heard that this helps as well. If they are in a tie down and they start to bite you can get up and walk away. Since they are in a tie down they can not follow you. Wait a few seconds then go back. If they continue to bite do the same thing.

Fortunately "NO" works well for our pup.

Good luck

 

[Bolivian_Box]

hang in there

our 8 mos. old Oscar bit us all the time. He also growled at us, barked at us and generally behaved like a little devil (not all the time -- a few times a day, every day)

But it really was never out of aggression. We saw an advanced improvement when he started playing with other pups and they started biting him. Theh he got it! (We also saw improvement as he just got older)

We also ALWAYS have on hand 20 toys to REDIRECT his biting towards the toy.

Also a trainer told us that teething dogs sometimes become so frustrated by their gums that they get ornery -- again, NOT aggression.

hang in there.

 

[Joey's mom]

Oh gosh, I can so relate! I was seriously considering getting rid of Joey when he came to us at 8 wks old. You could not love on him, pet him, sit anywhere near him without him play biting you. Those little teeth hurt and my son, who has wanted a dog for years, didn't even like him b/c of it. I did the time out in his crate, lots of toys for redirection, firm NO's, etc. After what seemed like forever, one day, he started losing his puppy teeth and the biting was gone. What helped in the meantime, was me teaching him the word 'easy'. I taught him with taking toys and treats from me and then when he would start to mouthe me, I would say 'easy' and his bite would decrease. That's all I can offer but I do understand what you are going through. If I had it to do over again, I would have picked a calmer pup but Joey was the last of the litter so......LOL

 

[TheBoxerCrew]

Ah......someone ELSE with a "pirahna pup"! Mindy is the most biting Boxer pup I have EVER encountered. "NO" didn't work......time outs didn't work......walking away......well, that only got my feet/legs bit. Finally, I watched her play with "the boys" (10mo & 16mo males).....I noticed when they had enough of the pirahna pup, they would put their open mouths over her muzzle from the top and give a short growl. She would back off and stop. I am one always known to do things a little differently with my dogs, so next time she and I were snuggling and she started biting my face, I put my hand over her muzzle from the top, covering it like the boys did and growled "NO BITE" at her. She sat up and looked at me like she didn't know me, but after a minute or two laid down next to me and fell asleep.

We still have the occaisional "pirahna" moment, but she is getting MUCH better. When she does it, I growl "NO BITE" and she usually stops. If she doesn't, I cover her muzzle with my hand and repeat (growling) "NO BITE". I don't need to take it to a third level......she knows I am serious.