“The Bible says "He that spareth the rod hateth his son."
Another popular quote is “spare the rod spoil the child”. Some people think this means it’s ok to hit children. Actually a rod is an instrument used by a Sheppard along with a staff. It a stick or stick with a hook used to gently guide the wandering sheep back to the herd. Sheppard’s don’t hit their sheep! Remember the quote “thy rod and staff shall comfort thy”?
There’s a great deal of information out there today on learning and behavior. Studies have found that corporal punishment does not bring long-term good results. Don’t confuse discipline with hitting. That’s the argument most people make when they want to hit kids, “but he needs discipline.” Discipline simply means training and there are good ways and there are bad ways to train behavior. Hitting is for bullies.
Getting back to the problem at hand, I have used the technique mentioned by an earlier poster where you put the hand further in the mouth and say, “No” firmly. This is done when they are nibbling not biting. This has been more of a reaction on my part than something I read about. I’ve even done it with large dogs using my arm, afterwards I thought, “what was I doing?” However, they learn pretty fast. Another option if he is just nibbling and not biting is to say, “No” set him down and give him something more suitable for chewing on.
If they are biting this behavior should be stopped immediately. Using your middle finger and thumb give a slight thump to the nose while saying, “No.” Try it on you own nose first and you will see it’s not painful, merely annoying. Don’t use this for other bad behaviors though; it should be reserved only for biting. It has to be immediate too; he needs to connect the biting behavior to thump, and use it everytime he bites, not occasionally. You have to decide on your plan of action before he does it and don't be wishy washy about it. Firm but gentle.
A lot of people might be confused and think that thumping is like hitting. Hitting and spanking are intended to produce pain. The pain becomes associated with the person doing the hitting more so than the behavior. In other words the behavior may stop only when around that person and other noxious behaviors will take its place. A thump is not painful, merely annoying and closely related to the area (the mouth) that is doing undesirable behavior so it becomes associated with the behavior. For more information on this, research cue to consequence behavior. |