Puppy biting, well, nipping actually

[VioletVera]

I'm doing pretty well with my training with my puppy Violet, but I'm still having an issue with her biting- well, nipping. Last weekend we were in Fire Island and "of course" when I took her for walks, she got all excited when she saw people and ran over to say hi. She normally licks their hand, but sometimes the licking turns into a nip or two. I was nervous a few time when we saw small children, I was afraid she was going to bite them. She doesn't bite viciously, she thinks it's all in fun. There was an incident with a girl about 10 years old, I said, "she's teething, so watch putting your hand in front of her mouth". Not more than 2 minutes later, Violet nipped her. She said, "oh, she just bit me, but it didn't hurt." The father was pretty calm, and I apologized, but they both said it's OK and kept petting her... I was SO afraid that she was going nip a younger child who would have been freaked out and crying, but thank goodness it didn't happen- I had to pull Violet back with the leash a few times.

When I'm home, I try to put a toy in her mouth when she gets nippy, but I don't always have one handy. I also make a squeak noise when she nips, and she usually looks at me and stops, but then goes back a short time later and nips me again. I've tried 2 other techniques I read about online, but they haven't really been working: when she nips, I say, "no biting" and either hold her mouth shut OR put my thumb in her mouth under her tongue, which makes her pretty uncomfortable. Neither is stopping the nipping. This week my parents came over for a visit- she's always excited to see them, but nipped them a few times. For the most part, she's a VERY good puppy, very sweet, loving and really funny, but I really want her to stop with the biting. I know she's teething, she lost her bottom baby teeth last weekend in Fire Island, and the new ones are growing in already, but I want the nipping behavior to stop. Will the nipping stop when she stops teething, or is there something else I can try to get her to stop?

Any advice to stop the nipping would be MOST appreciated! Thank you in advance!

[makettle29]

Nipping is normal puppy behavior and you are correct to give your pup an
alternative to bite on. Find whatever is most satisfying and offer that. My pups liked those rawhides that were rolled like a pencil and they were recommended by my vet.

As far as strangers getting nipped, if you warned them then they asked for it, imo. Going out in public with darling white fluffs always is a mixed blessing as people are likely to interact in ways you don't like.

Your fluff will stop nipping once teething is over, unless you have taught him that it's a game by your reaction, and it sounds like you are giving him the right message by responding with a sharp tone in your voice. They understand disapproval in your voice.

JMM has probably said it better, you might search for more info on the subject.

mary anna

[Ladysmom]

Since Violet was taken from her mom and littermates, she missed very important lessons in socialization like bite inhibition. You will have to teach her yourself.

Here is a very good article:

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/13_6/features/Bite-Inhibition_16232-1.html

[jan149]

When I got my puppy last year and she tried to bite, I would say "oww" loudly and move my hand away and then give her an acceptable chew toy (like a nyla bone). Or I would move my hand away and ignore her for a bit and then resume play.

She has only bitten me once (while playing) and it was only due to the toy being on my leg went she went to grab it. She hasn't bitten anyone, although she likes to "chew" gently on my boyfriend's hands, but not bite - and she isn't allowed to do that with me - I take my hand away!.

[Dogwriter]

Hi Vera,
My pup is about the same age as yours. So I enjoy your posts, as we're usually going thru the same thing. Mine was a single puppy and was only with her mom til 8 weeks. She BITES. Hard!

Interestingly, she only bites me, not my husband. It's also interesting that most dogs immediately consider me a pack leader, and she doesn't...and most dogs will follow my calming signals and she doesn't. She just gets mad. So I've concluded that she doesn't speak dog.

Anyway, one good trick is to keep your hand closed into a fist so that there aren't any fingers out there tempting her. You're doing the right thing to swap a toy out for the body parts, I like to use a rawhide chew or a nylabone. Don't hesitate to ignore her for a few seconds -- ours gets put down off the couch as soon as she bites.

Piper does not respond at all to the "ouch", no matter how loud or high I yelp. But she knows uh-oh, so I use that. And if the nipping happens while we're playing with a toy, I assume it was an accident and don't scold, I just say "whoops" and invite her to the toy again.

I'm with makettle on the biting thing. I have people into my store every day, and I warn them ONCE that she's a puppy and she bites. Then if they get it--oh well. Usually she only bites middle school boys who she thinks will play with her.

[VioletVera]

Hi everyone, thank you for your replies and good feedback.

Originally Posted by makettle29

Nipping is normal puppy behavior and you are correct to give your pup an
alternative to bite on. Find whatever is most satisfying and offer that. My pups liked those rawhides that were rolled like a pencil and they were recommended by my vet.

As far as strangers getting nipped, if you warned them then they asked for it, imo. Going out in public with darling white fluffs always is a mixed blessing as people are likely to interact in ways you don't like.

Your fluff will stop nipping once teething is over, unless you have taught him that it's a game by your reaction, and it sounds like you are giving him the right message by responding with a sharp tone in your voice. They understand disapproval in your voice.

JMM has probably said it better, you might search for more info on the subject.

mary anna

Violet actually LOVES rawhide, so I'll really try to always keep some handy to put into her mouth when nipping begins. I'll also try to make my husband give her rawhide too so she doesn't nip him... he plays much rougher with her than I do, so she nips him a lot more. Glad to know it should end once she stops teething, whew :-)

Originally Posted by Ladysmom

Since Violet was taken from her mom and littermates, she missed very important lessons in socialization like bite inhibition. You will have to teach her yourself.

Here is a very good article:

Teaching Bite Inhibition - Whole Dog Journal Article

I purposly left Violet with her mom, dad, and 2 littermates until she was 13 weeks old so she'd be better socialized... and she sure is! She will go up to other dogs to sniff and play, doesn't matter the size, but if the other dog barks, she will bark back! She is super friendly and loves people, children, any height, race... it's a great thing!

Thank you for the link to the article, I skimmed it, but I printed it out so I can really sit down and study it.

Originally Posted by jan149

When I got my puppy last year and she tried to bite, I would say "oww" loudly and move my hand away and then give her an acceptable chew toy (like a nyla bone). Or I would move my hand away and ignore her for a bit and then resume play.

She has only bitten me once (while playing) and it was only due to the toy being on my leg went she went to grab it. She hasn't bitten anyone, although she likes to "chew" gently on my boyfriend's hands, but not bite - and she isn't allowed to do that with me - I take my hand away!.

Yeah, the squeak noise I make is a high pitched "ow"... and Violet knows it's a "hurting" sound, but looks at me like, "come ON, mom, I didn't bite THAT hard! Wimp!" LOL... I think I need to make more of an effort to have a toy or rawhide handy for those biting moments...

Originally Posted by Dogwriter

Hi Vera,
My pup is about the same age as yours. So I enjoy your posts, as we're usually going thru the same thing. Mine was a single puppy and was only with her mom til 8 weeks. She BITES. Hard!

Interestingly, she only bites me, not my husband. It's also interesting that most dogs immediately consider me a pack leader, and she doesn't...and most dogs will follow my calming signals and she doesn't. She just gets mad. So I've concluded that she doesn't speak dog.

Anyway, one good trick is to keep your hand closed into a fist so that there aren't any fingers out there tempting her. You're doing the right thing to swap a toy out for the body parts, I like to use a rawhide chew or a nylabone. Don't hesitate to ignore her for a few seconds -- ours gets put down off the couch as soon as she bites.

Piper does not respond at all to the "ouch", no matter how loud or high I yelp. But she knows uh-oh, so I use that. And if the nipping happens while we're playing with a toy, I assume it was an accident and don't scold, I just say "whoops" and invite her to the toy again.

I'm with makettle on the biting thing. I have people into my store every day, and I warn them ONCE that she's a puppy and she bites. Then if they get it--oh well. Usually she only bites middle school boys who she thinks will play with her.

I'll try keeping my hand in a fist, thanks for the suggestion. But sometimes she bites my toes too (after licking them), which are much closer to her mouth, which I know will stop once the colder weather comes and I stop wearing sandals, LOL!

[Ladysmom]

Originally Posted by VioletVera

I purposly left Violet with her mom, dad, and 2 littermates until she was 13 weeks old so she'd be better socialized... and she sure is! She will go up to other dogs to sniff and play, doesn't matter the size, but if the other dog barks, she will bark back! She is super friendly and loves people, children, any height, race... it's a great thing!

Oops! I guess I got you mixed up with someone else. Senior moment!