# Snapping when i clean his face. :(



## DiamOnd (Apr 12, 2014)

Hi everyone. I am having a little problem with my maltese. He is 2 years old. He snaps and Bites when i try to wipe his mouth, tearstains and eyes. 

Everytime he sees my hand Holding a wipe. He knows what is about to happen so He snaps and bites really hard. What i mean by snapping is something really scary. Like he is aggressively scary and becomes a different dog. my fingers bleed. Due to this. Each time i have even attempted at cleaning his face. Have all been fails as i can't even go near it. :/


He used to also do this when i brush him. I've had to shave his beautiful hair 3 times. 

I Just now started to get the hang of grooming him. Since last shaving him 3 months ago. 

I started brushing him for 30 seconds per day and then gradually increasing. 

For the first month He was still snapping at me when being brushed but have always been able to shield his bites with the brush.

The great news is that he has improved ALOT when i comes to brushing during the last 3 months. Just today i was able to brush his coat for 10 minutes without him snapping. He had a small matt on his bum so it took me longer than usual to brush today but he was such a good boy today. He never even growled once. 

He even lets me brush his face now but he still won't let me go near him with a wipe. :/

Now i have the brushing sorted. I would like to take it to the next step and be able to wipe his face. His tearstains are getting crazy. So far the only way i have been able to remove it is by a professional groomer. 

when he sees the wipe on my hand. He attacks and bites me really hard.

I've been bitten so hard numerous times at attempting to wipe his face that i am now a little scared to attempt it because i know what will happen. lol 

I have tried putting a muzzle on him but that doesn't work. when he sees the muzzle. he does the same thing. He snaps and bites me when i am attempting to put a muzzle on so i don't want to do with a muzzle. i think a muzzle stresses him out. 

I really need advice. 
1, how do i do this without getting bitten?
2, how do i do it without a muzzle?
3, if a muzzle is necessary. How do i attempt to put one on without him biting me? lol

Overall He is a well behaved dog. His personality is dominant and cheeky but He does listen to commands and has No Sesperation anxiety, No food/toy guarding etc. 

The only thing he does is snaps/bites/goes crazy when i am either attempting to put a muzzle on or when i am trying to wipe his face.


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## pippersmom (May 21, 2012)

I don't have much advice but others here will have ideas. Only thing I can offer is to try lots of treats. Start by just touching his face gently and when he lets you do that, treat and lots of praise and then work your way from there. I wonder if maybe the wipes get in his eyes and hurt and that is causing the biting????


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## Chardy (Oct 30, 2008)

Maybe the wipes caused some sort of stinging at one time and he relates to that. You have to regain trust and what Kathy said is a great idea. I cannot get in my dogs mouth to brush or do anything. I don't have biting going on, but it really is impossible and I think it all has to do with teeth coming in and out, as he was fine with this before teething.


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

I don't think we have any behaviorists that post on this forum. I really think that's where I'd look-start at some of your local training facilities and see if they have a behaviorist that works there. To me this is a serious issue that needs expert attention.

Kudos to you, I could not live with a dog who bit me like that, no matter what it's size.


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## Furbabies mom (Jul 25, 2011)

I agree with Carol, something probably hurt or stung him at one time or another. When I do my fluffs faces, I have four of my fingers under the chin and my thumb relating on the nose. I use the other hand to clean the eyes and the area that goes from the corner of the eye down to the chin. Mine don't try to bite, but if they did I already have my hand placed that I could hold their mouth shut until I could calm them or move away. I use a baby wash cloth with water and Spa Lavish Facial Scrub and a hair applicator bottle to rinse. Hope you can resolve this.


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## Bailey&Me (Mar 8, 2010)

I would agree that you absolutely need to see a good, experienced trainer for this issue. If he is biting you this aggressively during grooming, he may bite other people in other situations and that is just not something you want to risk. Please consult a behaviorist as soon as possible. Do a search on the forum and you'll find tips on finding a good trainer/behaviorist - the most important thing is to make sure they are using positive methods only.


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## mdbflorida (Feb 28, 2013)

Boo has never liked brushing his face or the eye cleaning. It has taken me a year to get him not to be mouthy. He never was real aggressive but he did the playful biting. I personally think he thought it was a game. Treat rewards helped and i finally found the eye pads that are wet are the best. I use the Happy Tails, eye pads -got them off Amazon. I think you just need to work with him a reward him. Since Boo always likes having somethin in his mouth, I would give him a toy or his favorite a sock while I started -that helps!


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## DiamOnd (Apr 12, 2014)

Thanks for the replies everyone. i will get a trainer. I never realized how serious this issue was. i did speak to the vet about it who shrugged it off and told me that i wasn't holding him properly and that if i held him differently then wouldn't get bitten. :/


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## DiamOnd (Apr 12, 2014)

@mdbflorida, i was sooo close of naming my boy... Boo. lol


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## Maglily (Feb 3, 2009)

I don't think I'd like the taste of a wipe near my mouth, I'm not sure what they are like near the eyes though. Maybe he doesn't like the taste or they are stingy.

I use water and a toothbrush to clean Jodi's face, it usually means his face is very wet afterwards as compared to using a wipe. I sometimes don't clean every day so a wipe just wouldn't work, even every 2nd day. Do those who use wipes find they are useful only when used every day? I think I'd have to 'scrub' more if I waited for every 2nd day and used a wipe.


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## NYCHelloKitty (Jun 28, 2013)

You're vet obviously was dismissing you. I hate that. GL. Sounds like a behaviorist is necessary. Little teeth hurt just as much.


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## Summergirl73 (Sep 18, 2011)

I just wanted you to know that you are not alone. Bella will let me do some grooming but not all. If I approach her occasionally (even at non grooming times) she will growl and show her teeth. She does not act this way when we are out of the house and she does not act this way towards guests or children. She'll occasionally act this way towards my husband, but mostly just towards me (I'm the one who's usually with her). She is super irritable in the evenings. She's never bitten us - but I think we are on borrowed time. We also are considering a trainer. I wish you the best and hope you can get to the bottom of it.


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## Charlie'sMom (May 12, 2012)

DiamOnd said:


> Thanks for the replies everyone. i will get a trainer. I never realized how serious this issue was. i did speak to the vet about it who shrugged it off and told me that i wasn't holding him properly and that if i held him differently then wouldn't get bitten. :/


Wow! That's a really stupid answer your vet gave you (excuse my language, but it's true). Sometimes I'm just stunned, what some vets or so called specialists let out of their mouths...
The primary problem is not the handling, but the fact that the dog aggressively attacks his own owner....ouch...

You definitely want to consult a dog behaviorist. I truly believe there is a way how to get rid of this bad habit.
Please keep us updated.

Hugs,

Katie & Charlie.


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## maddysmom (Mar 8, 2012)

My last fluff which who was rescue was afraid of anyone touching her head and face. It took about 6 months but everyday my mom and I would gently touch her body slowly working up around her face and then praise, treat. We didn't even worry about the stains at this point. Our goal was to build trust where she was so fearful. After awhile she caught on that we weren't going to hurt her and she was a love, totally enjoyed grooming, head rubs and even her teeth brushed. I wish you the best of luck...it can be hard and very scary but you can do it and like the others mentioned...a trainer would be ideal!


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