Hi! This sounds like me and my family just about a month ago so I feel your pain! Our Niko is now 4 months and 4lbs. We went through the exact same thing, and I honestly did not know what to do, so I did the same thing you did - reach out to the internet, signed him up for puppy kindergarten, bought tons of toys and pulled my hair out! My 5 year old daughter will not get off of the sofa if Niko is loose because she is afraid of being pounced on. Every person that I spoke to said - PATIENCE. It will stop. It hasn't stopped completely, but it isn't as bad as it was last month, so I imagine he is starting to learn good behavior. We started puppy kindergarten 4 weeks ago and have learned a lot of things. I'll note some below:
- his biting always means something:
- he needs to exercise
- he's bored and wants to play
- he's hungry
- he has to go to the bathroom
- he's over-tired
We have a doggie playpen (with a peepee pad, toys and food/water bowls) for him in our living room and a crate in our bedroom. At this age, he needs his rest - he is still a baby and needs to nap like one. Although I want him to be loose and learn our home, I found that it isn't always good for him to have free roam of the house for too long - he usually ends up overtired, has potty accidents and starts to nip and bit hard. So I limit to the time he has free roam of the house. An example of our day is:
- Niko sleeps in his crate until 6 or 7am and then cries a little to go down stairs to his playpen where his potty pad is. He'll pee and poop and depending on the time - he either comes back up with me and back in to his crate OR I'll leave him downstairs in his playpen and I'll go back to bed
- Once I get up, I'll come downstairs and let him out - he'll nip immediately - meaning he's hungry or wants to play (exercise) - I'll make sure he eats and we'll do some fetch for a while until he's done - and then he'll walk around the house and check things out (under supervision of course). When he's done he'll go after our feet - this means he needs a break, so I'll put him in his playpen - not as a punishment, but to calm him down. If that doesn't calm him (still crying and barking) - I'll bring him up to our bedroom and in his crate he goes. He will nap with no problem. I'll leave him in there for an hour or so or until I hear him wimper as he may need to go to the bathroom.
- We do it all over again...all day. I am pad training him so I reinforce "going peepee/poopy on your pad and good boy."
I train him everyday and during the morning, I'll use his kibble to train him in the AM, but some times he realizes that and will want a real treat, so I'll reward his good behavior with real treats. He loves to train - I suppose he loves the praise and the treats.
Bottom line, it's about picking up his cues and he's learning about you and your family. The trainer has recommended certain toys that help with the biting of the ankles (any "chase" toy works wonderfully), they usually look like fishing rods with a toy at the end of it. He loves to chase this and I don't need to run around! So it's a win-win and he gets his exercise.
I am starting to know his "witching" hours when he is most active - it's in the morning obviously after being crated all night, but then again in the evening before bed. So I try to run him in some sort of way before bed (either fetch or the chase toy).
I'll put him in his playpen and tell him to go pee on his pad so we can go to bed and he is starting to do it!
I hope this helps! If I can remember anything else, I will let you know OR if you have questions - ask away....I'm still learning too, but will share whatever I know as I know how difficult it can be.
As for the collar - no way - your pup will get hurt - not sure how they can say otherwise.
Best of luck and hang in there - it will get better! :-) |