OH NO, MY PUPPY BITES!

You’re excited and proud to be the new pet owner on the block; however you find that your new best friend is biting you and your children. You aren’t alone. Puppies, like children, general go through stages of mouthing and biting. Providing toys designed for chewing and plenty of opportunity to play throughout the day goes a long way to help your puppy learn not to bite people.

If your puppy tries to bite while playing, stop playing with him/her. Tell the puppy NO and walk away. After a short while, reengage in play. Never run and play chase with or allow your dog to nip and bite during play. This will set your puppy up for failure when you turn around and scold him for “playing”.

If your puppy brings you a toy to play with, this is an opportunity to do some training with him before you play. Puppy learns that if he listens and obeys, there will be a reward. This also helps establish humans as higher in the pack order. Use these training opportunities to burn off the puppy’s excess energy. Taking your pup on a long walk will also help. A tired puppy is a well behaved puppy.

Other tools for training are praise and consistency. Consistently praise your puppy’s good behavior and give him toys to chew on, make sure he has his own space too. A crate of his own or a dog bed where hecan lay down and chew on his toys is all he needs. He needs to know what’s his and what isn’t to discern what is “right” and “wrong” behavior.

Further resources on this subject can be found at:

http://www.perfectpaws.com/bite.html

http://www.vetstreet.com/our-pet-experts/how-can-i-keep-my-puppy-from-biting-me

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