Dog Community

biting

Posted : 6/30/2006 12:54:01 AM

hi.

i have a 10 week old female puggle Roxie. here's a pic of her. she's such a sweetie and can't stand being away from people which causes a big problem with crating... more like a huge problem.

she bites like crazy and it's not just a teething thing even though she is teething. she'll nibble on my thumb or fingers and it won't hurt but if it hurts a little too much i say, "ouch!" to her and it catches her attention. that is her teething. then there are times where she'll start playing and bite extremely hard, sometimes breaking the skin, and i'll say "ouch" but it doesn't click. she'll back away for a split second and come back biting the same way or harder. it'll continue until i give her a toy and she has a good bit of toys and a variety. even though she has the toys she'll get bored with them and come back to biting my hand/fingers.

she's very feisty and growls a lot when biting. i was told i have to get her to stop this before she gets older and thinks biting is ok. she doesn't growl when she nibbles on my finger to soothe her gums.

what should i do?

Lizzie

Benedict

Posted : 6/30/2006 6:18:58 AM

Lizzie...

The moment she bites too hard, YOU should back away. Yelp very loudly, stand up, turn your back and ignore her. Even leave the room if you need to. Return after a very short time (just ignore her for a moment, different people use different lengths of time but I'd say max of a minute) and resume the game. If she bites again, repeat the process. If she nibbles on you, but isn't hurting, put a toy in her mouth instead and praise her like crazy for chewing on that. Every time you see her chewing on a toy or something she is allowed to chew, praise her and give her a treat, if you use them. Then let her go back to chewing on her toy. She will learn to chew on the things she is supposed to chew on, and that if she really bites you, the fun stops.

I am going through the same process with my 12 week old lab, but he IS learning and I am seeing noticeable progress with this strategy.

Kate

loveukaykay

Posted : 6/30/2006 11:37:05 AM

Oh my goodness she is sooooooo freaking cute!!!!!!!!!!!!![

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Just a puppy thing. Stay patient and consistent and she may take a while but she will get it. Shes very young and just needs to learn the boundaries. So often people think they have a mean or vicious puppy, when really they just have a good old young puppy. She will learn.

lillizzierae

Posted : 6/30/2006 9:32:45 PM

thanks everyone for your advice. i've just never had a puppy this young before. when i got my other dog he was 6 months old. a ten week old puppy is a bit different. [

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lizzie