# Still biting...



## ladee_sarah (Jul 14, 2004)

*What he's doing:*
Basically he doesn't respond to me AT ALL when I say "No" although _sometimes_ he will stop if I squeal in pain (real squeals mind).

He's been to the park many times now but he still hasn't really socialised with other dogs - especially not his own size <_< However I'm hoping to go to the park with two friends of mine with dogs a similar size (one toy poodle and another Maltese cross), it will be easier now that the school term is about finished.

*Question one:*
But. When does this biting _phase_ stop? I'm counting down the days as my hands are covered in scratched from where I've prised it out of his jaws.

For anyone who's interested here's a url for one of our newest pictures

*Question two:*
The other thing is that I think the heirarchy at home goes: mum, Javier, me, dad, my brother which isn't good. My dad and my brother don't really matter but I need to climb a rung above Javier on the ladder - what can I do?

Thanks for your help!


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## TikisMom (Jul 22, 2003)

Donna,

Below are to links with more information. All of this puppy training takes time and consistency..... If you want his behavior to change you will need the help of the other members of your family to discourage bad behavior and encourage good behavior. Maybe print off some of the information from these links to show your family why you are asking them to help out. 

Tiki used to "mouth and bite" any hand that went near him... getting him to stop was difficult because my husband liked to play rough and would let Tiki bite at his hands. I bought a puppet for Tiki to play with (with my husband) so he could bite at the toy, and not hands. This helped a lot and he no longer bites at peoples hands when they try to pet him. He was also quite sassy when he was younger when he wouldn't stop bitting my hand I would roll him onto his back, holding him with one hand on his chest (not to hard) to keep him from getting up and look him in the eyes saying "no bite" until he looked away, when he got up and wasn't bitting I would pet him and say "good boy".

Hope this helps, I think others may have more ideas also.

perfectpaws.com ---- bite

leader of the pack

I also like the picture, someone is getting DIRTY :lol: :excl:
Judi


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## doctorcathy (May 17, 2004)

CUTE PUPPY!!!  


to answer your questions:

1-mine stopped when all their adult teeth came in so around 7-8 months old. have you tried shoving a toy in his mouth? or given a little time out? --eventhough that didnt really help me. try getting him REALLY REALLY tired so that he doesnt have the energy to bite you. 

2-train him. like constantly. feed him, walk him. what does your mom do thats different? try doing what she does. sprite was getting close to my mom till i started taking her out by herself and feeding her (well, my mom would prepare the food and i would set it on the ground). 

but definitely train him. make him sit, down, stay. he'll get respect for you like that.


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## LexiAndNikkisMom (Apr 13, 2004)

Cute picture! I bet he was a mess afterwards.  

Lexi stopped biting when she was down teething at 6 months. One vet I talked to recommended feeding the dog out of the palm of your hand. This is to teach the dog not to bite your hand. When they are gentle and not biting praise them. If the bite tell the no. 

I think if you were the one to take care of him (feed, walk, & train) you would probably move you up in the heirarchy.


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## Maxismom (Mar 24, 2004)

> _Originally posted by Lexi's Mom_@Sep 8 2004, 08:34 AM
> *Cute picture!  I bet he was a mess afterwards.
> 
> Lexi stopped biting when she was down teething at 6 months.  One vet I talked to recommended feeding the dog out of the palm of your hand.  This is to teach the dog not to bite your hand.  When they are gentle and not biting praise them.  If the bite tell the no.
> ...


[/QUOTE]

doesnt work lexis mom i do feed him alot out of my hand and he still goes through this faze but i am really being stern with him now and i pick him right up and say NO NO NO BITE and he seems to be stopping quicker, my problem is that as soon as he gives me this sad face and licks me i kiss him so i probably shouldnt be doing that but i cant help it he is just a little cutie


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## LexiAndNikkisMom (Apr 13, 2004)

I know what you mean. It is hard to stay mad at them. The only thing the worked for Lexi and me was age. As Lexi got older she seemed to not bite as much. When she stopped teething the biting pretty much stopped. Sorry I can't be more help.


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## Toby's Mom (May 7, 2004)




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## Maxismom (Mar 24, 2004)

arent they cute these babies  its hard for me to ever get mad at maxi so i know i cause this myself. I let him get away with whatever and thats bad but i will say he is very good around people and other animals so i think its the mommy/son syndrome but sometimes when i am tired after a long day i just don't want to deal with his biting because he is so dramatic when he gets in this mood he sounds like this gremlin in pain lol


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## ladee_sarah (Jul 14, 2004)

Getting a hand puppet sounds like a really good idea - I'll look out for one!

However, the hierarchy is still a problem. We've had Javier for four weeks now, I'm the one who feeds him, I walk him etc. the only thing that my mum does is bath him.
The only thing that I can think of is that I'm not stern enough because he's still SO cute


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## Sunshine (Aug 20, 2004)

> _Originally posted by TikisMom_@Sep 8 2004, 07:02 AM
> *Donna,
> 
> Below are to links with more information.  All of this puppy training takes time and consistency..... If you want his behavior to change you will need the help of the other members of your family to discourage bad behavior and encourage good behavior.  Maybe print off some of the information from these links to show your family why you are asking them to help out.
> ...


[/QUOTE]


That's AWESOME advice! I was about to post message because Abby seems to "play bite" a bit of the time. When you pat her, sometimes she will bite your hand. Her teeth haven't come all hte way through and she doesn't bite hard, but I'm worried that she will. Is she just wanting to play or am I right in being concerned?

I've just been saying "NO" but I might try your trick with putting her on her back.


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## TikisMom (Jul 22, 2003)

Hey gals, guys and pups.... Tiki just had a birthday and so did I; so my husband bought us a suprise combined gift. It is a new puppet for us to play with and boy is it great. It is thick enough that you can play rough and those teeth won't get through the padding. He got it at the mall here in Austin, but I found a web site that has them. They are very safe, no eyes or hard pieces to chew off and Tiki just loves it. We have put it up and only take it out at play time so he won't chew it. The minute he sees me take it off the shelf he goes nuts! We have the black and white puppy.









Bite Meez on e-Bay ---GREAT PRICE!---

Dog Puppet Toy

bite-meez dog puppet toy

Judi


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## Sunshine (Aug 20, 2004)

> _Originally posted by ladee_sarah_@Sep 8 2004, 04:15 AM
> *What he's doing:
> Basically he doesn't respond to me AT ALL when I say "No" although sometimes he will stop if I squeal in pain (real squeals mind).
> 
> ...


[/QUOTE]

Take a look at my post "Update on Abby, The Good & the Bad!" - it has a few tips on how I've been handling biting - I got the info from an e-book that I ordered a few days ago... it's working for me so far


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## ButterCloudandNoriko (Aug 26, 2004)

Oh my, YOUR BABY IS SO CUTE! I wanted a mix breed like yours. I love how it's white w/dark fur around the eyes. If I get one like yours, I'd call it Zorro or something HAHA.

Anyway, Butter CLoud, my boy baby, use to bite ALOT and hard, but it had alot to due w/him teething. You can be firm with him without being too harsh. It's ok. You can spoil your baby but dont SPOIL your baby rotten, you know! You're the alpha. Maltese (and i'm sure shih tsu as well) are very sensitive, so if he does bites you like crazy, I would try holding his head and make him look you right in the eye and say "NO" firmly. Or you can lay him on his back if you can, and say "NO BITING" as well. It's not like you have to do it all day or anything. BUt if you cant get your baby's attention from saying just "no," then you should find a way to make 'em REMEMBER! The hand puppet is a great idea too, but your baby should know what NO means too!









GOOD LUCK on your precious baby!


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