david levin is the owner of citizen hound, a professional dog walking business based in the san francisco bay area. there are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. this article received 23 testimonials and 85% of readers who voted found it helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. does your puppy bite? the good news is that there are lots of things you can do to signal that biting needs to stop, all while reinforcing positive behavior in your puppy. once you train your puppy not to bite, you can move on to more fun things, like teaching him tricks.
when the puppy bites, squeal and let your hand go limp so that the game ends and the fun stops. while you can’t stop a puppy from biting completely, you can train it not to bite too hard and to focus its biting on chew toys. whenever your puppy bites down hard enough to hurt you, yell “ouch!” then, pull away and ignore your puppy for a few minutes. if your puppy is biting on something it’s not supposed to, like your hand or your shoes, try redirecting its attention to a chew toy instead. if your puppy plays with the chew toy, give it a treat to reinforce the good behavior. to learn more from our veterinarian co-author, like how to use a muzzle if your puppy keeps biting, keep reading the article!
but while biting is a natural behavior, it’s important to train pups to control when, what, and how hard they bite while they’re small so they don’t hurt anyone later. when your puppy comes home with you, it’s your job to convey the message that biting down on hands and other body parts is inappropriate. denise herman, founder and head trainer at empire of the dog in new york city, says that “the difference between an adult dog who injures someone and one who doesn’t isn’t their intention to injure.” rather, it’s “did they get experience as a puppy pulling their punches when they had human hands and skin around?” when you’re spending time with your puppy and they bite hard enough to cause discomfort, stop playing. yelling in a dog’s face, herman says, can teach them that “people’s faces near theirs are scary.” similarly, by grabbing a dog’s muzzle, you could teach them to fear hands—“and that’s really a problem, because hands come toward dogs all the time.” you could eventually teach your dog to stop putting their mouth on people altogether—but, no matter what, reducing the force of a puppy’s mouthing is an essential step in the process.
this is likely if the chomping doesn’t happen in the normal course of play, but instead seems to be in response to an action that your dog doesn’t like. so if your dog is taking too much of an interest in chewing on you, the legs of your couch, or your once-mint-condition vintage reebok pumps, give them better gnawing options: chews and chew toys specifically designed for dogs. “i tell people that their goal for chewing and puzzling toys is three-plus hours a day cumulatively,” herman says; she’s especially fond of toys with food in them, which can keep dogs mentally engaged with a chance to “hunt.” all in all, it’s ideal for your dog to have approved toys and chews that they can turn to when they feel an inclination toward mastication. using the tips above to create a training plan that works for you, and following it with patience and consistency, can set your puppy up to become an adult dog who happily sinks their teeth only into items designated for that purpose.
when you play with your puppy, let him mouth on your hands. continue play until he bites especially hard. when he does, immediately give a high-pitched yelp, as when your puppy nips you or someone else, quietly, gently remove them and place them in their crate or a separate room so they can calm down. your goal here is to teach your puppy not to bite everything that comes near his face. don’t set him up to fail. start slowly, his first, what age to teach puppy not to bite, my puppy keeps biting me aggressively, my puppy won’t stop biting me and my clothes, how do i get my puppy to stop biting my hands and feet.
humans can exploit this behavior to stop puppy nipping and teach your pup how much mouthing is acceptable. when a puppy latches onto your hand or finger too part 1. part 1 of 2: teaching your puppy not to bite react consistently to bites. every time your puppy bites, say “no!” in a firm voice. then just walk away when you’re spending time with your puppy and they bite hard enough to cause discomfort, stop playing. you can also let them know that you didn’, puppy biting, puppy biting, why does my puppy bite me and no one else.
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