To a young puppy biting is a natural phase they go through. It is also essential as they will learn what is ok and what is not in regards to biting. You can’t stop puppy biting, you can control what they bite. This phase happens especially when they are teething, usually around 4 months.
During this teething stage puppies love to bite on anything and everything, including your hands. They need to learn what is called bite inhibition. It is learning how much force is too much and how to control the force of their bite. Puppies normally learn this from their litter mates and mother, but because we take them away as early as 8 weeks of age, they haven’t learned bite inhibition yet and it’s up to us to teach them.
A Few Things To Remember
Remember when puppy training to be consistent with whatever method you choose to teach them.
Puppies don’t know they are doing anything wrong until you teach them what is wrong. Don’t assume they should know they shouldn’t bite.
Encourage acceptable behavior and correct unacceptable behavior.
You are taking the role of their Mother and littermates while you teach them.
Stop Puppy Biting Techniques
Any time your puppy starts mouthing or nipping your hands, tell him firmly No and give them something acceptable to chew on like a bone or toy. Get them to focus on what is ok to chew on.
If you start this early enough it may be all you have to do.
Another technique and one that works really well is to react with a loud yelp if they bite you and turn your back and ignore them for 30 seconds or so. This is what a littermate would do and your puppy will learn that if he bites his playmate goes away.
If they are a little older and their teeth are not razor sharp I will grab their bottom jaw with my thumb under their tongue and the rest of my hand underneath. This is uncomfortable for them and they will try to pull away. You only need to do this for 10 seconds or so until they stop struggling.
You can keep a spray bottle of water around and spray him if he starts nipping at you, this also works for a barking dog.
Fill a pop can with coins and if they start nipping shake the can loudly. This also works for barking dogs.
To find out more ways to train your puppies and dogs, check out the course I learned and use called Secrets To Dog Training. You can read our review of this course here.
