Nipping or mouthing...

[kjc]

Originally Posted by Joyce Adams

She has been here 2 weeks today,,she is so playful, eating and drinking really well. I also thought the breeder was selling them too early. She was 8 weeks when we got her...we so love her and want her to be well behaved too. But if what she is doing is natural should I try to change things?

She's already in an unnatural state bc ideally she should still be with her mom and siblings where she would be learning bite inhibition from them. If she doesn't learn it as a pup, she could grow up to be a biting dog. Dogs can be taught at any age, but this is easier and more safely done in the puppy stages.

[Joyce Adams]

Thank you Teresa, that is the way I trained Yoshi and he was very easy to break of this bad habit..Now she will keep her mouth shut and bump my hand a few times..it is so funny as if she is saying I'm working on this,,,I tell her no when she does try to nip and put her in the playpen...she is catching on so fast,,really my baby girl is well above average, just sayin...lol

[beecee]

I was watching Dogs 101 and they recommended butter on your hands if puppies bite. Interesting. I've been around dogs, trained dogs, etc and never heard of that.

[kjc]

Originally Posted by beecee

I was watching Dogs 101 and they recommended butter on your hands if puppies bite. Interesting. I've been around dogs, trained dogs, etc and never heard of that.

I would think that would make them want to eat you! And on a serious note, may cause pancreatitus if too much is ingested.

[beecee]

Yah, I don't think it would be something I would do. I just googled it and they said it's to encourage licking your hand rather than biting.

Nah, not for me.

[kjc]

I got my first puppy too young (but way before anyone knew it was best to leave them with Mom longer) andthe 3rd night she wouldn't stop barking and whining. I decided to try her in my bed as she was missing her littermates. She would not settle down, kept licking me in the face and waking me up. I tried everything, nothing worked.

After my 3rd sleepless night, thought about what her Mom would do, so I growled at her. She stopped dead in her tracks and gave me the strangest look! I growled again and she laid down and went promptly to sleep. Talk about happy, I was over the moon!

After seeing how well growling worked, it made sense bc she hadn't learned a word of English yet, she had no clue what I was saying to her. I've noticed quite a few puppies will get wild when their Mom is no longer around, totally out of control. Like a teenager almost, don't know when to stop. They don't even stop to eat, just keep bouncing off the walls! I was so tired, and really regretting ever getting her. But things changed drastically after that, and we understood each other very well.

I only used the growl when she would get overly excited, and always used words right after. After a week or two, she understood and responded to words only.