Getting control on the Puppy Play Biting

Is your puppy like a shark on land?

Grabbing at your hands and clothes?

Don’t know how to get him to just to stop?

Feeling fed up as though this should have stopped by now?

Have you been google raging ‘how to get my puppy to stop biting me?’ and still not come up with an answer.

Is your pup nipping at your feet and clothes and everything you try just seems to make it worse?

Sound familiar?

Just want your puppy to stop nipping you?

If yes, do read on as I will explain why puppies mouth and nip and that it really does blooming hurt

Why do puppies bite?

All puppies bite and mouth when they are playing, some do bite harder than others and between their needle-sharp teeth (and claws) they can sometimes draw blood.

This can often worry about new owners that they may have an aggressive puppy – fear not your puppy isn’t aggressive just needs to be shown what we find acceptable behaviour and what we don’t.

Mouthing and nipping are very natural behaviours and puppies investigate the world using their mouth, much like babies do.

They want to learn about the world around them and as they don’t have hands they use their mouths, putting everything and anything inside it including your hands, feet and clothing.

Part of their adventures of learning about the world, the need to learn how to interact with the world around them (with our guidance) – such as toys, food, people, dogs, etc

Dogs do not always make the best choices for themselves, this is where we can help them and starting it well right from the start begins that journey you are sharing together.

Puppy teeth are razor sharp and it can hurt when they catch you, so the sooner we can stop them doing it the better

Sometimes they may accidentally nip you when you are playing with them, these are accidents but doesn’t mean they hurt any less.

They may also use their mouths to get your attention too.

I want to reassure you that this behaviour is normal and that we need to start showing what behaviour we class as acceptable and what is not.

Think of parenting, we need to show our puppy the behaviour we do want give them some guidance and some rules so you can live happy lives together.

How to manage the behaviour

Have a toy handy, always – this means you have one to grab should they start to get a bit rough with your hands and toes that you can move them onto it.

I personally avoid all the hands-on, rough and tumble games and this just will encourage mouthing with him getting over-excited or he may try bite to get you to move away from him if your being too rough.

Instead, gentle calm strokes is a much better way to bond with your new puppy.

You don’t want your puppy to be allowed to mouth/bite your hands – so if this starts you need to be moving him onto a toy – as this shows what he can put his mouth on.

But passing him a toy and expecting him to carry the game on his own with the toy will not work – trust me it doesn’t work.

If he is not interested I would mix it up and change tactics – how about practising a bit of training with him? or maybe offer him a kong to lick and chew.

It won’t be the same answer each time, mix up to see what he wants and what will take his interest off biting you!  Puppies can be fickle, one day the soft squeaky toy is their desire the next is the kong to have a chew on.

You need to interact with him and play with him with the toy – it is most likely your attention he wants.

Types of toys to redirect  your puppy onto

This can be anything but make sure you have a variety of different texture, shapes, sizes, noises as he tastes will change on what he is happy put his needle teeth around.

Building your bond through gentle stokes, interacting and handling him is very important, but make sure it is done correctly.  Be gentle and predictable, start on the main part of their body, not going straight over their head and down their legs.  Get them used to be handled all over but start in the least offensive areas.

If you surprise your pup and make them jump, this is when they may give you a defensive nip.  Think about the world from their eyes, they are still learning.

Once you have built up this bond with your dog and he has that nice association with your hands being on him, then you can be more excitable with your hands around him – but always remember each dog is different –

My little dog Eric loves a bit of rougher play but I wouldn’t dare even try with Maisie as she is much more sensitive and likes it much more gentle.

Learning how to get your dog used to be handled is just one of the many things we cover in our Puppy Problem Prevention Programme Classes where we look at pairing being handled with food to make it a lovely experience for your dog – your vets and groomers will love you for spending time to do this!

What happens if he won’t go onto a toy?

Stop play, simple as that just stop.  If he thinks it is acceptable to carry on and you have tried different toys, giving him something else to do – just stop play, stop feeding him any food and you also need to disappear.

Just remove yourself for a few minutes and they will soon learn that if they bite and mouth the consequence is you go away – and it is your attention is what they are really after.

When you return to your puppy, go prepared with a variety of toys so he has different options – again start slow – don’t go in like a bull in a china shop – go back to being predictable for your puppy and have the toy ready to give him if needed.

The old fashioned ways are that – old fashioned and out of date

‘Back in the day when I had a pup‘ will be something you will hear far too often on how to deal with various puppy problems that may arise with your bundle of fluff.

How we used to get told to deal with mouthing was to stop ‘ow’ or ‘no’ or yelp – this really doesn’t work as your puppy hasn’t got a clue what you are talking about – all you are doing is making it more exciting, a fun game and encouraging them to do it again to see if they can make you squeak more.

Tapping their nose, pointing your finger and saying no can be quite an intimidating – If you did this to me I may also bite your finger!  Your body language which comes along with you pointing your finger can be quite intimidating to a dog and you will prob lean over them, make yourself a bit bigger and sound a bit scary – which could end up with them being worried by your hands and feel in the need to defend themselves and even become worried by you.  You dont want your dog scared of you do you?

Puppy training takes time and consistency. Your puppy will learn much quicker if everyone in the household is giving the puppy the same rules and guidance of what is acceptable and what is not

Got a new puppy on the way?

Or pehaps they have just arrived home?

Email me at info@carriescanines.co.uk to see what is best for you and your new pup

Our Perfect Puppy Package or to come and join in our fun classes to get that Perfect Puppy.

I have set up a special Carrie’s Canines Puppy Support Group to help new puppy owners  –  if you want to get involved sign up here.