Author Topic: Puppy biting  (Read 761 times)

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Offline bessymate4eva

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Puppy biting
« on: July 03, 2017, 11:31:20 AM »
Our nine week old puppy lucy is just constantly biting. >:( We have tried saying 'ow!' And 'ahah when she bites' and giving her lots of toys to chew on. I know she is a pup and will bite I think we are just finding it difficult as its constant. We have had a lot of holes in our clothes as she starts to really pull at them  :005:   >:D lol. Any advice please.

Offline Londongirl

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #1 on: July 03, 2017, 11:48:43 AM »
Tight fitting clothes until she grows out of it - I couldn't wear anything like a cardigan or loose socks when Henry was little. I've heard some people here recommending wearing welly boots until they grow out of it. We have a baby gate separating the kitchen from the rest of the house and I'd go stand on the other side of it when Henry was being very bitey.

It's MUCH worse when they are tired, so popping Lucy into her crate (if she has one) if she's getting very fixated may help - you might find she falls straight to sleep.

Something to try - when we needed to handle Henry or wanted to give him a cuddle and he went all 'cockerdile', we popped a soft toy in his mouth and kept putting it back in when he dropped it. As he loves a cuddle he soon learned if he wanted positive attention from us, he needed to be carrying a toy. He can't bite you if he's carrying something in his mouth. He still runs to pick up a toy when he wants to say hello or a cuddle.
Rachael (me) and Henry (him)


Offline elaine.e

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #2 on: July 03, 2017, 12:56:47 PM »
An ouch or ah-ah, especially if said in a loud or high pitched tone, can make some puppies more excitable, almost as if they see it as an invitation to play harder. Watch her reaction when you do it and if you think it's making things worse try diverting her attention on to a toy instead.

Puppies tend to bite more when they're tired or overstimulated. At the moment Lucy should be sleeping as much as 20 hours a day. If she isn't getting that much sleep, and especially if she's also overstimulated either by playing too much with people or Chester, or simply by being in a busy household where there's always something going on, she will lose the very small amount of self control that she has and will become a gremlin! Think overtired and overexcited toddler and you'll get the picture.

Add teething into the equation, and the fact that puppies don't have hands so have to explore with their mouths, and you'll see why it can be such a difficult time for owners. If you can give Lucy periods of calm and make sure she has plenty of sleep that should help a lot.

Offline bessymate4eva

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #3 on: July 04, 2017, 11:52:49 AM »
Thankyou so much for the advice londongirl and elaine. She is getting a little better and her having more sleep is helping a lot. She does seem calmer today.  :D

Offline ips

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #4 on: July 04, 2017, 12:13:40 PM »
Good advice indeed from LG and Elaine. I concur that tiredness has a quite dramatic effect on our girl, overtired and she is humping and mouthing at our clothes only shows these behaviours when over tired. We made the mistake when she was a pup of seeing the hyper activity as a sign that she wasn't tired and wanted / needed a good run about, I now know the opposite is the reality. Pop her in a crate , job done 👍
Muddling along in the hope that one day it all makes sense.

Offline its.sme

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #5 on: July 04, 2017, 05:14:08 PM »
We had a very large toy for Bea, it was bigger then her so if she was in her Cockerdile mood we put that between her and our hands,

I think it was this one
https://www.jollyes.co.uk/danish-design-doris-the-natural-donkey-dog-toy.html

Plenty of sleep always helps and as elaine has said sometimes a high pitch noise only encourages them, it did with Bea so I always left the room so she eventually  >:D learnt that bitting = me / us leaving the room.

Good luck, it will pass.

Offline bmthmark

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #6 on: July 05, 2017, 08:50:27 AM »
This stage definitely passes. Mines nearly 9 months now and is very good regarding biting (he has problems in other area's now  :lol2:)

Even though your pup won't want sleep/rest it will do her the world of good. As mine always went naughty when he was tired. So at home we try and act calm around him to help him chill out. It is difficult as being a pup you just want to roll them about, but this does make them go mad  :005:

Offline ips

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #7 on: July 05, 2017, 10:05:40 AM »
Totally agree with mark. In effect they will "go" all day if you encourage it but if you are calm as mark says then that calmness will "hopefully" 😁  be passed to the pooch.
Muddling along in the hope that one day it all makes sense.

Offline Murphys Law

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #8 on: July 05, 2017, 01:16:52 PM »
Murphy was a nightmare biter when a pup as many of my early threads can testify to. I was at my wits end.
I put it down to him having too much energy so would take him out for another walk to calm him down. How wrong I was.

Murphy never slept during daylight hours when he was a pup and many times he would collapse in the evening and I could carry him upstairs without him even waking up.

It was only when I realised that he was over tired and started to give him timeouts in his crate that things improved drastically.

Offline ips

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #9 on: July 05, 2017, 04:01:49 PM »
Murphy was a nightmare biter when a pup as many of my early threads can testify to. I was at my wits end.
I put it down to him having too much energy so would take him out for another walk to calm him down. How wrong I was.

Murphy never slept during daylight hours when he was a pup and many times he would collapse in the evening and I could carry him upstairs without him even waking up.

It was only when I realised that he was over tired and started to give him timeouts in his crate that things improved drastically.

Once again I was EXACTLY the same.
Muddling along in the hope that one day it all makes sense.

Offline Londongirl

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Re: Puppy biting
« Reply #10 on: July 05, 2017, 05:51:24 PM »
I happened to get it right on the puppy naps through chance more than anything else. In the first few days we had Henry home, we kept him in the kitchen and kept everything very quiet and low key, and just observed him (apart from cuddles and quiet plays). I wrote down the times he chose to sleep and how long his naps were at different times of day. It soon became clear there was a pattern, and I knew when he needed a long sleep and when a short one would do. I'd also read somewhere that little puppies should never be awake longer than 90 minutes.

So we ended up with a routine that kept us all sane, and which all members of the family were familiar with. The downside is that we've probably been slower to let go of the routine that we needed to be as Henry got older. At nearly two he is much more flexible about when and where he sleeps, long before I realised the routine was no longer necessary.

The only things that's non-negotiable is bedtime - he INSISTS on being put to bed, with a biscuit and a fuss, crate locked and blanket down, absolutely no later than 8:30. INSISTS.
Rachael (me) and Henry (him)