Methods to get a puppy to stop biting

[Punkygirl0101]

So as you know I am raising another puppy..Fun! He is the BIGGEST biter I have ever dealt with. He chews/bites hands, feet, ears,hair, random areas of flesh. And he does it HARD!! The dogs have been teaching him not to bite them (Which hes been doing good at), but he still bites me. I am currently using Caesar Millan's method of cupping my hand sort of like a dogs mouth, and when he bites quickly applying pressure to his kneck and making a loud sound. (I use "Hey").

But its not working very well, or maybe I am not giving it enough time. What other methods are there to curbing this behavior in puppies?

[Punkygirl0101]

Woops, just realized this should probably be moved to the puppy forum.

[Doglover1988]

I believe the most common method is to stick a toy in his mouth that he is allowed to chew on ignore him and walk away. This is the method I used with Lucy but since she was taken away from her mom at the age of 5 weeks she still play bites sometimes at 1.5 years. I'm sure other people can help out more.

[Punkygirl0101]

I do that as well, but hes not very interested in playing with toys.

[greekblue]

How old is the puppy? I think it also depends on the dog on how fast will stop the puppy biting. You should not expect results quickly. Just be consistent with whatever method you use and wait patiently.

Niki took the longest I have seen in a puppy to stop the puppy biting and sometimes, she still does it, but she does not hurt me anymore. Before I completely worked on stopping the behavior, I worked on teaching her to bite "gentle." Be patient; some puppies take a couple months to get it.

I cannot find the posts I had posted here for help with that, but I was really frustrated with that. Niki took longer to stop because I could not be patient enough for this behavior. Niki also was not interest in toys at all. What it worked for us was to close her mouth and apply pressure, look straight into her eyes and say loud, but clear and strict "NO BITE." Also, when she was at her worst times, I had to keep the leash attached to her and when she was trying to bite, I would tug the leash and say "NO BITE." I would stop all play immediately, but I would resume the play when she stopped biting. I had to do it many times consistently.

[Swiftwind]

Have you tried yelping like a dog in pain when he bites you? I've heard this method can be quite successful. It'll either scare him to death so he won't want to do it again () or he'll understand he's being too rough.

[Ritz459]

Chloe is a year old and still nips in play. It has gotten a lot better, as now she more mouths than nips/snaps, but she still needs some work done with her (shame on me).

I used a mixture of meathods with Chloe - I firmly believe not one meathod is a "cure all" and it depends on your individual dog's personality. Chloe had two types of nippyness. One was when she thought I was the best chewtoy in creation and just wanted to chew on me and the second was when she would nip at me and then run trying to get me to play/chase her. For the "worlds best chew toy" nip I would "ahhhh!" or "hey!" at her in my mean/deap/growly voice (the kind of noise you'd make if your walked into a room and you found your dog chewing on your most prized possession) and then when she looked at me like I was insane, I would redirect her to a toy while saying in a happy voice, "Get your toy, Chloe!"

When she would nip at me and run because she wanted me to chase her I'd studiously ignore her. Turn my back, avert my eyes, avert my face, everything. When she would finally calm down (normally with a bark, a sigh, and then she'd lay down) I'd "turn on", go grab a toy, and ingage her in play.

She didn't start "getting it" until she hit about eight or nine months, but now she's better. Now when she starts getting "nippy" she'll look around for one of her toys. lol

We did the same thing with Sadie, minus the scolding. Chloe almost needs correction to learn, but Sadie didn't.

[Lunachick]

I used a mixture of meathods with Chloe - I firmly believe not one meathod is a "cure all" and it depends on your individual dog's personality.

I totally agree with you. Each dog is different. You just need to find the one that works for both of you. Though, this may be difficult since the results aren't shown for awhile after you're consistent with the same method.
I'll let Shanna explain about Ailchu and his biting since he's her puppy. But let me tell you, was it ever annoying/painful. He doesn't do it as much now, really.

[Faol]

Well, Ailchu is five months old now and he hasn't bit/nipped in a long time. Like Ritz, I used different methods. I would yelp in a high pitched voice, toss a toy for him, or just get up and walk away. But teaching not to nip can be really frustrating, especially when have brothers who want to play rough with the dog and encourage mouth games.

[Carrie]

Screech in pain and walk away abruptly. Give NO other attention, including Ceasar Milan's mistaken idea that you resemble a mother dog. The dog probably thinks you're joining in with the play. If it's too harsh, you'll make your pup afraid of you and your hands. The dog wants your attention and wants to play. Remove that possibility consistantly and immediately...the same consequence every single time he bites too roughly.

If he mouths ever so gently, let him. Let him learn to regulate his bite pressure and learn what amount hurts human skin. That way if he ever does bite out of defense, he may be less likely to inflict a damaging bite. If he follows and bites at you when you walk away, lock yourself in another room for 30 seconds or a minute (no more) and try again. Or if you can't trust him alone for that amount of time, calmly and unpunishingly escort him to his crate with no fan fare. Repeat. Very short time-outs. That way you allow more opportunities for him to be reinforced for not biting and he'll learn sooner. Take away what is reinforcing his biting: You, your attention, your presence. Reinforce him with continued attention when he is gentle in his mouthing. Everyone who interacts with him must do the same. Do this for as long as it takes without changing methods. It shouldn't take more than 2-3 weeks. Remember, dogs do what works. It's been working for him up to now to bite or the behavior wouldn't exist. So, he'll keep trying for a while until he has an extintion burst. Don't give up. Keep at it and make sure it doesn't work for him to bite you. You don't have to punish the behavior in order for it to go away. You simply must remove the reinforcer consistantly and immediately.

Be sure he's getting enough exercise and teething toys and some short lessons in basic obedience.

[Raised By Wolves]

Cesar himself has stated that some dogs raised from puppyhood with mostly positive reinforcement, may not need his methods or rehabilitation.

Cesar (for the most part) also specializes in messed up adult dogs, not young pups.

That said, I agree with Carrie. Young pups, like children, need gentle reminders as they learn how to interact with others.

Bite inhibition should be learned gently. It's okay to say "hey" when a pup bites too hard as a form of feedback on their bite pressure. Give it some time, if you see your puppy responding to your verbal communication, why put more discipline on them?

I've also got a young "Mr. Bitey" in my house. But he's learning as we go without me being harsh. If you watch a mom dog with her pups, she doesn't overly reprimand them just for being puppies. It's only when they cross the line.

Whether it's mom dog or us, go easy and let them learn at their own pace, IMO.