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We have a female puppy who constantly bites - she would like to chew on hands, fingers, toes, even noses and chins! She may begin by kissing, then gets wilder and begins to nibble.
I know that she is teething, and we have provided her with a plethora of toys on which to chomp, but she seems to become disinterested in them quickly becomes disinterested. Her favorite things to chew other than human body parts are hair brushes, slippers, underwear, loofa sponges, and used tissue paper.
We are concerned that she is going to continue this biting behavior into adult hood. It hurts now, and when she gets her adult teeth it will be worse.
Currently we say VERY FIRMLY " NO BITE!" and she seems to think that this is part of a game! she stops for a moment and resumes what she was doing.
HELP!!!
How much exercise does she get? Most puppies who are not exercised get frustrated and will do pretty much anything to excite themselves.
Yelling 'No bite' will not work. They are in an excited state of mind and you yelling or talking back or doing anything with your hands/legs, etc will only reinforce them to continue the behavior.
Instead, you should try one of the following:
1. Say ah-ah in a low, but stern voice. If the puppy stops with a puzzled look, give her a teething toy to play with.
2. Stand up, turn your back to the puppy. When you are 100% sure that she has calmed down, praise her and give her a treat. She will learn that obedient behavior is the only way to get your attention.
3. Walk out of the room where this happens without the puppy having a chance to look at you or walking into where you went. My wife walks into the restroom and says there for a couple mins. Puppy simply sits at the door of the bathroom, calmed down and waits for her to come back.
Currently we say VERY FIRMLY " NO BITE!" and she seems to think that this is part of a game! she stops for a moment and resumes what she was doing.
HELP!!!
Instead of "no bite", let out a loud yelp... like a puppy would. Then turn your back on the puppy for a minute or two. She may not have learned bite inhibition (how long have you had her?). Don't let her determine when the "game" resumes. You do that by turning away from her and coming back after a minute or so. She'll get by the yelp that it's too hard, and the play stops. When she bites again, let out another yelp and turn your back to her. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. She'll get it.
She is three months old. We have had her since May 20th.
We don't to give her time out in her crate, because she loves her crate and we don't want her to associate the crate with punishment.
As far as leaving the room, when she is that hyped up, she would just follow. Part of a chase.
Giving her a teething toy will also be hard since she doesn't care for any of the many that we have bought for her.
I am going to tell the rest of the family about turning their backs on her.
This is not my first or only dog. I am familiar with puppies being "mouthy" and teething. Also playfulness. But she is excessively playful, which is no problem, but the biting and rejection of appropriate substitutes is a concern.
I agree with all of the above. And try to not get her too hyped up when you are petting her, calm, don't put your hands near her mouth. When she is playing, use a ball, or other toy, not your hands to play with her. Only pet her when she is worn out, in a mellow puppy trance almost asleep mode, but if she starts to bite, put her down, walk away.
Your puppy will grow out of this...Puppy time is just so much work. I have written this before, but I really hated our dog for the first 18 months of his life...then, one day, "magically" he was the perfect dog...
Agree with everyone else....patience and persistence is the key. I've had puppies who stayed annoyingly bitey for a year or more, but they eventually got it. The stop/freeze/ignore thing works really well
One thing that may help is playing games with her, training (good training should be structured play) and teaching her an "out" or "drop" command. Training in general is good, it teaches the pup to be responsive, to pay attention to you, and if you make it fun and rewarding, your pup will WANT to do what you ask of her. But it does take time....she is still very much a baby.
Agree with the others as well. Also keep in mind she's a doxie. They're easily one of the most stubborn breeds out there. It's going to take repetition and being firm on your rules. Do not let anyone in the house change the rules and let her get away with even a bit more.
To get her energy out, you can get some landscape timbers from the local lumber or home improvement store and build her a big sand box. Fill it with play sand. Doxies were bred to hunt badgers, digging into the tunnels after them, so they like to dig. The smaller 'mini' doxies were bred to chase rabbits and other smaller species. Giving her a place she's allowed to dig in the yard will keep your landscape from looking like a bomb testing facility when she's older.
Just remember to always be consistent. That's so very important with them. Especially as puppies. The more firm you are in rules now the easier it will be as she gets older.
Our Doxie liked to burrow under blankets in her little dog bed.
I will tell you that Sam, as a puppy, destroyed all toys, beds, and anything else within reach of his little puppy teeth. It is something he grew out of, he also nipped the kids when he was a puppy, he stopped that when he found out biting kids meant immediate banishment to the backyard for time out. To puppies, they need immediate, direct consequences, consistently, and firmly. They quickly understand when they have displeased you if you let them know.
steelstress, she was seven weeks old. I thought it was a little young.
All of my other dogs are rescues and larger breeds.
I received a lot of flack from my animal rights friends because I purchased this little dog, but that's another thread. I just wanted a small dog for my self. I have three large pit mixes and this dog did not take the place of a shelter dog. We have no room for another medium or large dog. None.
It is REALLY hard to interest her in a toy at all. She doesn't like ANY of them!
Don't misunderstand she is also sweet, very smart and affectionate. Her parents are very calm, appropriately playful, friendly, and affectionate.
I have to get the consistency part across to my teenagers and husband.
What is the "out" "drop" command?
She loves walking on a leash and thus far aside from her name she knows, "sit" and "here"
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