Help! My Fur Baby Bit My Skin Baby!

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gretchensmom

Boxer Pal
My 11 week old fur baby bit my skin baby in the face for no reason. My son is 3 and a half and is now pretty afraid of her. She bit him on the nose and drew a little blood and she did this un-provoked. Can someone please tell me why she is so aggressive with my kids. She also terrorizes my 6 year old. She always bites their feet and jumps and bites at them for no reason at all. And she has done this since she turned about 8 weeks old. When she play bites with me and my husband she is gentle. Really no pressure at all, but when she tries to play with my kids she gets really rough. Growling, snarling and really biting hard. HELP! My husband is getting really tired of having to break them up every few seconds it seems. The training on bite inhibition is working for adults, but not kids.
 

gmacleod

Elusive Moderator
Staff member
I'm afraid that that is how young puppies play, and exactly how she'd play with her littermates. Puppies don't come with any inbuilt conception of bite inhibition or what is acceptable play and what isn't - they have to be taught. So don't worry that you've got an aggressive or somehow defective puppy, you've got a perfectly normal one ;)

If she were playing with other pups, their reaction when she plays too roughly would be to squeal loudly in pain, and then retire "hurt" from the game. Of course, the first pup would be after them again within a couple of minutes, and the process repeated. Eventually though, pups do come to understand about inhibiting their bite and how to play gently.

Now, normally owners are advised to mimic that to a large extent in training their pups. First thing is to do the squeal/retire trick, there's redirection and there's isolation (getting up and leaving the room or putting the pup in time-out) for a few minutes. And I would suggest that that's how you, as adults handle things. There is more information at http://www.boxerworld.com/puppy/biting/ and a *lot* more information (questions/answers/others' experiences) available by doing a search of the forums using the term "puppy biting".

But obviously, you can't expect your three year old, or even your six year old to handle things that way effectively. So that's a part of the answer as to why she plays roughly with them - she doesn't get the right signals from them not to. They're also closer to her size and she'll view them closer to littermates than as pack leaders. The answer really has to lie in you supervising all interactions between them, and stopping play/engaging the puppy in something else whenever things get a bit rough. She's only a baby herself, and it's going to take some time before she understands that she can't play roughly with your kids. You've got the challenging task of teaching her that. The best way is redirection of her attentions when she gets overly excited or rough. And reward - never forget to reward - when she does what you ask. That's really how puppies learn - by rewards for the behaviour you want to encourage more than negative consequences for the behaviour you don't.

I'd suggest that you do search out previous posts in the "boxers and children" forum - there's some very good advice there that you can benefit from. Just reading about others' experiences often helps. You're really far from alone in this. It's just one of the things that goes along with having young kids and young puppies simultaneously. A big challenge initially, but very rewarding in the long run.
 

Clover's Mom

Super Boxer
Remember she is just a puppy - at 11 weeks she would not of learned bite inhibition - it takes a while. All pups bite at feet and whatknot, because when they were with their littermates, that is how they played, and don't see the children as any different. Have you children, everytime the pup bites them or plays to rough to make a high pitched yelp (just like a pup would), and turn away, or walk away, wait about 5 mins then come back. This is exactly what littermates would do. Soon enough your little pup will learn.

When did you bring her home? Between the 7th and 8th week, the pups learn bite inhibition from their mama, and litter mates. If you brought her home earlier than this, just work with her more.

Remember she is just a baby. AS far as drawing blood, IMHO, their little teeth are razor sharp, and will draw blood and hurt very easily.
Also establish, nothing in life is free, rule in your house - she has to sit to eat, get a treat, go outside. Make sure she knows her place in the pack, but remember she is still young - it just takes time.
 

kassa

Boxer Insane
She's 11 weeks old. Jumping and biting at this age is like human babies grabbing earrings/necklaces/hair and yanking on them -- you have to practice a certain amount of self defense, and a 3 year old human isn't capable of that.

>And she has done this since she turned about 8 weeks old.

When did you get her? If she left her mom and siblings much before 8 weeks old this could explain a lot of the behavior (though most of it's probably perfectly normal).

If the bite inhibition is working with you, that's great, and shows she understands it. She doesn't quite appreciate that it transfers to the kids yet, and also probably views them as her littermates. This is why it's so important to always supervise children and dogs -- they misread each other and then there's trouble. Kids wave their arms around and screech and run and generally send out great big "come chase me!" flags. And to children, puppies look cute and sweet, and then they leap up and nip you on the chin.

My main advice would be immediate puppy kindergarten, to lay the framework for basic obedience and also start building your relationship. At the same time, I'd let the 6 year old demand that the puppy sit for treats, to go outside, etc. Once the pup knows "sit" and the child knows how to deliver it calmly and firmly, you can let the child exercise authority in this way (under supervision). You could even let the 6 year old put the food in the bowl and feed it (after the pup sits -- you may need to hold the leash at first while they work on "wait") Controlling food is a BIG sign of power, and will help the child gain authority. However, always supervise any interactions until the dog is much older and you are 100% comfortable.

I'd limit the 3 year old's play time with the pup to when the pup is already quite tired, or when you can be outside and the child won't be the focus of the puppy's energy.

The biggest thing I'd advise you to do is keep a mini diary for a couple of weeks of the times of day that the pup exhibits the out of control behavior -- chances are she does it just as she's ready to fall asleep. In my house we call it "getting nasty" -- when the biting and turbo running start, and it's been an hour or two since the last nap (especially in the early evening, when it's generally worst), we slip on the leash, go outside to potty, then back inside and STRAIGHT TO THE CRATE. No drama, no cooing, no treats. (If you have a fenced yard and usually send the pup out, take her on the leash anyway, rather than get into a chase outside when she doesn't want to come back in).

You may be surprised at how often she'll be asleep and snoring within a minute or two. (Keep the crate wherever you are -- living room, etc. If you keep one in the bedroom, consider buying/borrowing a small one for the next few weeks to have handy in the living area.)

At 11 weeks she should be sleeping much of the time still -- maybe 1-3 hours up, 1-3 hours asleep, finally conking out in the early evening until early morning (with a trip outside before you go to bed and maybe one in the middle of the night, depending on her bladder).
 

apollosdad

Boxer Insane
sounds like she's a pretty normal pup to me. sorry to hear about your sons being afraid of her. the best thing to do would be to supervise the children socializaing with her for a few minutes a day. break things up when it gets to rough and place your dog in her crate to give her time to settle down. however, when you place her in the crate do not make it seem as if she is being punished. just let her go in their and after a few minutes let her come out and play with them. this will help her get used to your sons and build a bonds with them, as well as allowing them to not be afraid of her. hope all works well. you shouls also check out the "boxers and children" forums.
 

gretchensmom

Boxer Pal
Thanx Guys

Well, it's nice to know that at least my dog is normal. LOL. I never leave the kids unattended, I already know how that goes. Leave them alone for just a second and all heck breaks loose. Like I said, she does very well with my husband and I with the play biting, but my kids don't get the rules either. It really is like having another child in the house. LOL. Thanx for all your advice. I,m going to enroll her in obedience classes this weekend. Something has to work right? She's incredibly smart so maybe the trainer can help us understand how to teach her the harder stuff. (Like not treating my skin kids like a yummy snack!) Thanx again. You all are so helpful!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

apollosdad

Boxer Insane
you can also try training your dog into realizing that biting hurts you and your children by saying "OW!" in a sharper tone. this will cause her to be momentarily (but gently) startled and have her stop the behavior. keep up with it and she should eventually get the picture. she's young, so she's a pup and loves to play though. keep us posted.
 

gretchensmom

Boxer Pal
She's done a complete 360 turn around!!!

Wow, guys I don't know what happened, but in the last 2 days she is acting like the kids best friend! Gretchen is all about snuggeling and kissin the kids.What could have happened? She's not even trying to play bite them or bite their feet! I hope it's not to early to say, but WOW!!!Yesterday she was playing so gentle with my youngest Dylan, and letting him rub her belly. She only lets me and my husband do that. She even watched some cartoons with him until falling asleep. lol. And this morning when my 6 year old Clayton was getting ready for school, she just followed him all through the house, and actually hugged him and gave him lavish kisses. What happened to the demonic puppy? lol. I'm not saying I want that part of her back any time soon but could it be she knew she did wrong and is trying to make friends with them? fiestaicon
 

apollosdad

Boxer Insane
boxers are great with kids. the females tend to be a bit "wishy-washy" with their emotional expressions at times. one minute they are acting like the devil's seed, and the next their acting like angels. but i don't have to tell you that, since you've experienced it first hand.
 
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