Tips for biting?

[ottbox]

Hello,

I have an almost 5 month old puppy who just bites for EVERYTHING. When he's happy, when he's sad, when he's board. Ect. I've tried everything to stop him from biting but he just won't.

It's mostly hands that he bites. He doesn't really care about anything else. I've tried just stopping playing with him when he bites but he just gets frustrated and then goes after my hands to play some more. ....I've tried sitting on my hands so he can't get to them, but he ends up just trying to dig at my hands and ends up biting my wrist because he can't get to them. I've tried putting him in a lay down position with the leash and kept it loose so that he had to stay there until he calms down but he ends up getting frustrated and biting my jeans and shoes. I've tried just telling him that's enough and walking away but he just follows and continues to try and nip my fingers as I walk away. I've tried putting him in his crate to tell him to calm down but then when he gets out he goes right back to biting.

I understand that he's teething and biting is going to be a thing but I still think he's doing it more than just for teething.

What is the best way to really approach this?

 

[pes]

Get some edible chewtoys made of hide or something of that sort and when he begins to bite shove that in his mouth instead of your hands.
The unfortunate byproduct will be that he is going to learn to carry that thing everywhere and give it to you to hold when he is in the mood for chewing.
It is a curse and a blessing depending on how much time you have to sit in one spot holding a piece of bone for your dog.

 

[ottbox]

Get some edible chewtoys made of hide or something of that sort and when he begins to bite shove that in his mouth instead of your hands.
The unfortunate byproduct will be that he is going to learn to carry that thing everywhere and give it to you to hold when he is in the mood for chewing.
It is a curse and a blessing depending on how much time you have to sit in one spot holding a piece of bone for your dog.

But wouldn't that in turn be rewarding him for chewing my hand?

 

[pes]

I do not think so. A reward is a more complex thing usually also involves happy emotions and some verbal praise.
This is more like redirecting the energy to something else than your hands.

 

[Okami]

He’s a puppy. He’s going to be biting no matter what you do. Completely normal puppy behavior. You can redirect with toys/chews. Or use a firm “no.” But best thing you can do is wait for him to grow out of it. They always do. Just takes a little patience.

 

[ottbox]

He’s a puppy. He’s going to be biting no matter what you do. Completely normal puppy behavior. You can redirect with toys/chews. Or use a firm “no.” But best thing you can do is wait for him to grow out of it. They always do. Just takes a little patience.

This is good to hear. I'm hoping he does

 

[ottbox]

I do not think so. A reward is a more complex thing usually also involves happy emotions and some verbal praise.
This is more like redirecting the energy to something else than your hands.

Ok. I'll try redirecting as opposed to stopping the behavior

 

[Stash]

respond with open palm directly when about to bite (not after it) - basic dog training

 

[FloofyNewfie]

Typically you'll need to redirect him to something else like a chew toy. He may or may not grow out of it on his own naturally, when I got my mutt girl she was over a year old and still had issues with biting hands. The main things I did was 1) Yelp like a dog in pain. 2) Wait for her to calm down. 3) Give her a nylon chew toy. 4) Praise her if she began chewing that instead. Or 5) If she insisted on still chewing my hand after yelping like a dog in pain I'd (gently) nibble on her ears and firmly tell her "No!"

It took a little while, but she doesn't bite hands anymore unless we're play wrestling with each other, and I'm completely fine with that.

 

[ottbox]

Typically you'll need to redirect him to something else like a chew toy. He may or may not grow out of it on his own naturally, when I got my mutt girl she was over a year old and still had issues with biting hands. The main things I did was 1) Yelp like a dog in pain. 2) Wait for her to calm down. 3) Give her a nylon chew toy. 4) Praise her if she began chewing that instead. Or 5) If she insisted on still chewing my hand after yelping like a dog in pain I'd (gently) nibble on her ears and firmly tell her "No!"

It took a little while, but she doesn't bite hands anymore unless we're play wrestling with each other, and I'm completely fine with that.

I tried light nibbles on ears but I don't really like doing that. I feel like it's negative re enforcement, so I've stopped.

I've tried yelping like a dog in pain but he has effectively stopped caring that I'm doing that because of how often he bites.

I'm trying replacing but so far. Today. He doesn't care about what I'm replacing my hand with. He only wants my hand. Which is bad. So it's frustrating.

 

[FloofyNewfie]

I tried light nibbles on ears but I don't really like doing that. I feel like it's negative re enforcement, so I've stopped.

I've tried yelping like a dog in pain but he has effectively stopped caring that I'm doing that because of how often he bites.

I'm trying replacing but so far. Today. He doesn't care about what I'm replacing my hand with. He only wants my hand. Which is bad. So it's frustrating.

I didn't really care for the ear nibbling either, so I typically only reserved it for when she absolutely was not wanting to listen. After a few times it stopped getting to that point.

If you've only tried doing to toy replacement today, you'll likely have to keep doing it. Persistence is key when it comes to training dogs.

Granted every dog is going to be different. For me it took about a month maybe a month and a half to mostly break her of that habit. I'm sure with enough time and enough patience you'll figure something out you just have to give it time. Also remember that YouTube can be your best friend for these types of matters. Watch a dozen or so videos, read the comments and figure out which method seems to have the highest rate of success from the commenters. See if X method works for your dog by doing it consistently for 1-2 months. If there's no improvement try a different method instead. Dogs, in general, are a lot work. But the main way to work with them is patience and love. Not "quick fixes" and frustration.

 

[ottbox]

I didn't really care for the ear nibbling either, so I typically only reserved it for when she absolutely was not wanting to listen. After a few times it stopped getting to that point.

If you've only tried doing to toy replacement today, you'll likely have to keep doing it. Persistence is key when it comes to training dogs.

Granted every dog is going to be different. For me it took about a month maybe a month and a half to mostly break her of that habit. I'm sure with enough time and enough patience you'll figure something out you just have to give it time. Also remember that YouTube can be your best friend for these types of matters. Watch a dozen or so videos, read the comments and figure out which method seems to have the highest rate of success from the commenters. See if X method works for your dog by doing it consistently for 1-2 months. If there's no improvement try a different method instead. Dogs, in general, are a lot work. But the main way to work with them is patience and love. Not "quick fixes" and frustration.

Yeah. I'm trying many different methods. He's a fast learner. I was able to teach him each trick he knows in a matter of 30 minutes per trick.

So it just makes it more frustrating because it feels like he deliberately just doesn't want to listen to me. But I also know that's just the frustration talking because he does have base instincts. Especially with teething. So I'm trying to stay positive

 

[kartog]

Some dogs don't grow out of biting (my malinois). As soon as I got another dog, he was a lot less mouthy with me. They play every day now and he loves to play-bite her. He doesn't actually hurt her though.

I'll also throw in that he loves biting his rubber football. He'll clench that in his teeth for nearly an hour at a time.

 

[ottbox]

Some dogs don't grow out of biting (my malinois). As soon as I got another dog, he was a lot less mouthy with me. They play every day now and he loves to play-bite her. He doesn't actually hurt her though.

I'll also throw in that he loves biting his rubber football. He'll clench that in his teeth for nearly an hour at a time.

I'm hoping my boy grows out of it

 

[kartog]

I'm hoping my boy grows out of it

He probably will unless he's a malinois or another biter breed, lol.

 

[ottbox]

He probably will unless he's a malinois or another biter breed, lol.

He's a lot of mixed breeds but 35% husky and 18% g shep

 

[Mazikeen_x]

I'm not sure if it applies to dogs as well but when my cats were little and would bite my fingers too hard I'd press down on their tongue with my finger, it's unpleasant for them but not harmful and it worked wonders with both of them

 

[Justalittleblue]

Try getting the no bite spray stuff and put it on your hands when you play with him. I think it's bitter apple or something. Completely non toxic but they hate the taste. Also continue with replacing your hand with a toy he likes. Maybe try the twisted ropes with the heavy solid knot on the ends. I had a heavy chewer and he loved those ropes.

 

[ottbox]

Try getting the no bite spray stuff and put it on your hands when you play with him. I think it's bitter apple or something. Completely non toxic but they hate the taste. Also continue with replacing your hand with a toy he likes. Maybe try the twisted ropes with the heavy solid knot on the ends. I had a heavy chewer and he loved those ropes.

He loves them too. But give him 30 min unsupervised and he saws through it completely

 

[kartog]

He's a lot of mixed breeds but 35% husky and 18% g shep

I'm guessing he'll grow out of it. Everybody has their own solution to get them to stop. Me, I would give my puppy a stern "no" and reward him when he doesn't bite. And I would give him a toy to get through his teething phase.

 

[Mazikeen_x]

Try getting the no bite spray stuff and put it on your hands when you play with him. I think it's bitter apple or something. Completely non toxic but they hate the taste. Also continue with replacing your hand with a toy he likes. Maybe try the twisted ropes with the heavy solid knot on the ends. I had a heavy chewer and he loved those ropes.

do not do this lol, the no bite spray has very strong bitterant in it.. you will be tasting that stuff for days no matter how much you wash your hands

same stuff they put in engine coolant to make it unpalatable to people and animals

 

[Justalittleblue]

do not do this lol, the no bite spray has very strong bitterant in it.. you will be tasting that stuff for days no matter how much you wash your hands

same stuff they put in engine coolant to make it unpalatable to people and animals

well ok I guess i should have added a warning label then... don't put it in your own mouth OP.
I don't know how it would be something that's in coolant considering dogs will go drink coolant that is on the ground without even thinking twice. The ones I am referring to are the ones that are bitter apple, bitter cherry etc. that are all natural.

 

[kartog]

Amazon.com

This is what my dog bites on. It's really durable. The squeaker tends to break after a week or two though. He doesn't seem to mind.

 

[ottbox]

Amazon.com

This is what my dog bites on. It's really durable. The squeaker tends to break after a week or two though. He doesn't seem to mind.

How durable is it really?

 

[kartog]

How durable is it really?

It'll last him years if he doesn't care about the squeaker breaking. I got a new one last year to let him enjoy the squeaker again. My dogs not trying to tear it apart though. He's squeezing it and biting it over and over for about an hour a day. Its his favorite toy to just carry around and show off as well.

 

[ottbox]

It'll last him years if he doesn't care about the squeaker breaking. I got a new one last year to let him enjoy the squeaker again. My dogs not trying to tear it apart though. He's squeezing it and biting it over and over for about an hour a day. Its his favorite toy to just carry around and show off as well.

I might get it and see what he does. Rope toys last like 4 hours with him right now

 

[Goattobeloved]

I can't see anyone mentioning it, so I'll add it here and give it a try

Pups usually bite cause it moves and reacts to biting, so, it is  fun. If you stop, it ceases to be fun.

Classic thing us, when he starts biting, freeze, do not move or withdraw your hand or object while biting is not too hard. Chances are he will stop as there is no reaction.

Obviously, if the biting us too hard, do not stand still while he chews through your bone . If that hapens, move your hand out of reach, turn away from him, ignore him until he calms down. if needed, leave the room.

In short he should see that biting too hard causes the fun to end.

Out of curiosity. What age was he was separated from mom and the rest of pups? That is many times part if the issue

 

[ottbox]

I can't see anyone mentioning it, so I'll add it here and give it a try

Pups usually bite cause it moves and reacts to biting, so, it is  fun. If you stop, it ceases to be fun.

Classic thing us, when he starts biting, freeze, do not move or withdraw your hand or object while biting is not too hard. Chances are he will stop as there is no reaction.

Obviously, if the biting us too hard, do not stand still while he chews through your bone . If that hapens, move your hand out of reach, turn away from him, ignore him until he calms down. if needed, leave the room.

In short he should see that biting too hard causes the fun to end.

Out of curiosity. What age was he was separated from mom and the rest of pups? That is many times part if the issue

I honestly don't know when he was removed from the mom. I know he just turned 4 months when I adopted him. And he was in my area MANY states from his mother at 3 months

 

[Goattobeloved]

Ahonestly don't know when he was removed from the mom. I know he just turned 4 months when I adopted him. And he was in my area MANY states from his mother at 3 months

Oh, ok.
Not really important, but relevant as they are "teached" to play soft and inhibit their bite when playing. This does not happen until they have at least two months, so if separated early they don't learn the game of playing.

If that was the case, you will need to do the work yourself and suffer their tiny piercing teeth

Also, make sure he goes out and meets lots of frienly dogs and play with them so he learns to be socialized while he is still a pup.

And much happiness to both

 

[ottbox]

Oh, ok.
Not really important, but relevant as they are "teached" to play soft and inhibit their bite when playing. This does not happen until they have at least two months, so if separated early they don't learn the game of playing.

If that was the case, you will need to do the work yourself and suffer their tiny piercing teeth

Also, make sure he goes out and meets lots of frienly dogs and play with them so he learns to be socialized while he is still a pup.

And much happiness to both

Yeah. I've been told to do that but I've been told I need to do it in a SPECIFIC way. And the problem is, setting that up is incredibly difficult.