The first thing to realize is that biting and mouthing are normal behaviors for puppies.
It's what they do when they play with each other.
However, they learn to control how hard they bite during play because if they bite too hard the other puppy yelps.
Puppies play quite roughly together and lots of biting goes on.
Because of the learning that goes on with the mother and other puppies, it's best if the puppy stays with the mother and siblings until 10 weeks old.
It's vital that this stage in a puppy's development is not skipped - otherwise, he will never learn to control his jaw muscles and will be dangerous when fully grown.
Training your puppy not to bite is a vital part of training a puppy as house training is.
Puppy teeth start to fall out around 18 weeks, and the adult teeth start to grow.
It's important that your puppy learns bite inhibition before the adult teeth grow.
When you have brought a puppy home, especially when it's before he's 10 weeks old, he no longer has his mother and siblings to continue his bite inhibition training.
It's helpful, for that reason, to allow your puppy to socialize with other puppies and dogs so that he continues to learn from them as well as from you.
Taking him to a puppy class is a good way for him to meet other puppies.
In any case, socialization is vital for a happy dog who can cope with the world he lives in.
Lack of socialization is a major cause of biting in dogs.
Dr.
Ian Dunbar, the veterinarian, animal behaviourist and dog trainer, has said that a puppy should meet a hundred new people by the age of three months to become socialized! Clearly, biting is not an acceptable behavior for your puppy to engage in with you or your children.
The best response to biting and nipping by your puppy is to shriek just like his siblings do, so that he learns bite inhibition.
You can also turn away and ignore him after you shriek, so that he learns that he doesn't get your attention if he bites.
You only need to ignore him for a short time, maybe 20 seconds to 30 seconds.
If your puppy isn't getting it and you want to give a stronger message than just yelping, you can growl before you turn away.
This is using the kind of language the mother uses to show her displeasure.
It will take a while to learn what is acceptable.
You should continue yelping until he learns that any pressure at all is unacceptable.
It's vital that all family members are consistent and don't give any positive reinforcement to biting.
Don't play rough games with your puppy (such as tug of war) which might encourage him to bite.
Since biting and chewing is natural for a dog or puppy, make sure you provide a variety of toys and chews which your dog can play with and chew on.
Especially when puppies are teething, they use chewing to ease their discomfort.
I hope that you can put a stop to your puppy's biting using these methods.
It's what they do when they play with each other.
However, they learn to control how hard they bite during play because if they bite too hard the other puppy yelps.
Puppies play quite roughly together and lots of biting goes on.
Because of the learning that goes on with the mother and other puppies, it's best if the puppy stays with the mother and siblings until 10 weeks old.
It's vital that this stage in a puppy's development is not skipped - otherwise, he will never learn to control his jaw muscles and will be dangerous when fully grown.
Training your puppy not to bite is a vital part of training a puppy as house training is.
Puppy teeth start to fall out around 18 weeks, and the adult teeth start to grow.
It's important that your puppy learns bite inhibition before the adult teeth grow.
When you have brought a puppy home, especially when it's before he's 10 weeks old, he no longer has his mother and siblings to continue his bite inhibition training.
It's helpful, for that reason, to allow your puppy to socialize with other puppies and dogs so that he continues to learn from them as well as from you.
Taking him to a puppy class is a good way for him to meet other puppies.
In any case, socialization is vital for a happy dog who can cope with the world he lives in.
Lack of socialization is a major cause of biting in dogs.
Dr.
Ian Dunbar, the veterinarian, animal behaviourist and dog trainer, has said that a puppy should meet a hundred new people by the age of three months to become socialized! Clearly, biting is not an acceptable behavior for your puppy to engage in with you or your children.
The best response to biting and nipping by your puppy is to shriek just like his siblings do, so that he learns bite inhibition.
You can also turn away and ignore him after you shriek, so that he learns that he doesn't get your attention if he bites.
You only need to ignore him for a short time, maybe 20 seconds to 30 seconds.
If your puppy isn't getting it and you want to give a stronger message than just yelping, you can growl before you turn away.
This is using the kind of language the mother uses to show her displeasure.
It will take a while to learn what is acceptable.
You should continue yelping until he learns that any pressure at all is unacceptable.
It's vital that all family members are consistent and don't give any positive reinforcement to biting.
Don't play rough games with your puppy (such as tug of war) which might encourage him to bite.
Since biting and chewing is natural for a dog or puppy, make sure you provide a variety of toys and chews which your dog can play with and chew on.
Especially when puppies are teething, they use chewing to ease their discomfort.
I hope that you can put a stop to your puppy's biting using these methods.
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