Thank you for this thread. I read it a while ago when our (at the time) 3 month old lab was shredding, lunging, nipping and generally chowing down on me; I was so reassured. One thing that helped us was that we sought out other puppies and young dogs (and older dogs - even grumpy ones, within reason) and let him play with them as much as possible. Puppy romp groups are BRILLIANT for this. The puppies basically teach each other bite inhibition.
10 days after we got him (he was 9 1/2 wks) I hid behind a kitchen cabinet in near terror when he was lunging and biting like the very devil himself!!!!!!!!! lol It sounds a bit pathetic now, but they're strong little dogs and it hurts. Now he's 6 months old and has a very soft mouth. Not a little angel yet, but maybe just a minor demon.
i have organised a school day for newbreeder and first stud dog owner yesterday,
one thing was interesting.
one lady said when a breeder takes away the dam, the puppy biting will be much more
I've read this thread so many times, before we got Tess and at least once a week since.
My hands and arms are full of little holes and scores and I'm wondering where the line is between mouthing and full-on biting! Will call it mouthing but sometimes it seems like she lunges on purpose...?
I'm tough as old boots so I don't mind it too much although I don't think my skin will ever look the same again . Just wondering if this still sounds about right for puppy biting?
If her mouthing hurts, I yelp or say OUCH and end the play, and sometimes even leave the room for a short while (1-2 mins) if her bite really hurt me. She doesn't seem to really care, just goes off and plays with something else.
Don't want my inexperience to turn Tess into a pirhana - should I be doing something differently?
Kait.....It all sounds perfectly normal, even if it is painful and undesirable.
It takes several weeks before they start to realise how softly they have to use their mouths when playing with us pathetic humans. So just keep doing what you're doing and one day this will all be a distant memory and your scars will fade .
And thank you so much, because I really needed to hear that it's normal! (and yes, it really is bl**dy painful!)
But there was that element of doubt that if she doesn't get bite inhibition sorted I would have been responsible for not training her properly and if she hurt someone... you can see where this is going...my brain, on a ramble of dooom
So... phew... and thank you. I'm doing the right thing, and Tess is totally normal.
I was really worried about Sam and his biting but the lad's and lasses of LF told me it was normal, he kind of knows now not to bite me hard and he soft mouths me but with my kids and OH he really goes to town going for the face, hair, scalp, legs, arms everything hopefully the kids will pick up on my tips I give them and he won't bite them as hard.
I have a very vivid memory of holding a tissue to OH's head after he was lying on the floor fixing something and Roo CHARGED at him and sunk his needles into his scalp
Not funny at the time and it made Roo's mouth bleed as he collided ...
I also remember me and OH cowering on the sofa with this Tasmanian Devil running crazed around the sofa, jumping and trying to get up. It was the standard drill - get on the sofa, assume foetal position and have no body part near the edge of the sofa. The day he finally jumped on the sofa with us sent us in to a real panic! There was now no escape!
Needless to say Roo is a saint now (with regards to his biting at least) and only bites his toys now
Posted: Thu Oct 22, 2009 9:36 pm Post subject: Re: Labrador puppies DO bite a lot and hard too.
_Jules_ wrote:
In short....If you don't want a pup that chews everything.....hangs onto your trouser legs...bites your ankles, hands, arms (leaving broken skin and scratches)....growls, pounces, lunges at your face when excited.....plays faarrr TOOO rough for most children under 10 to play with......then you really should rethink getting a Labrador Puppy...as that is just what they are like.
what frustrates me is that I DID research dog breeds etc. before we got a lab and everything said that labs were great for families and young children and that they were also a low risk for other pets such as cats!! oh how i wish I had read this first! With hindsight, we should never have been advised to get a puppy!
As previously mentioned, puppies must understand that they must not bite hard. During this stage there should be no need for physical punishments or restraint. The best way to teach this is during normal play sessions with your puppy. If they bite too hard, let out a loud 'Ouch' and stop playing for a moment. Depending on how painful or severe the bite is, further measures may include walking away from the play session or even leaving the room. Eventually your puppy will learn that painful biting results in the loss of its favourite human play mate.
2. Eliminate Jaw Pressure Entirely
Even though your puppy no longer hurts when biting, this step looks to completely eliminate bite pressure. This is achieved by gradually reducing the threshold that triggers the loud 'Ouch' to the point where even the slightest pressure results in a reaction. This form of biting is best described as 'mouthing' and you should look to achieve this by the time your puppy is 4-5 months old.
3. Inhibit the incidence of Mouthing
Now that your puppy mouths rather than bites, the next stage is to teach your puppy to stop mouthing when requested. A good way to do this is to hand feed a portion of your pup's dinner. Use the commands 'Off ' and 'Take it' to signal when your puppy can touch your hands to take the food. Practice this over time and you can gradually eliminate the food and use the commands during play sessions. Remember, this stage is about ensuring your puppy stops mouthing when requested, it is not about preventing your puppy from starting mouthing - that is the next and final stage.
4. Never start mouthing until requested
The final stage is to prevent unsolicited mouthing. Around the age of 5 months, your young dog should learn that it must not touch a person's body or clothes unless requested to do so, say during play fighting. Some trainers recommend avoiding play fighting altogether on the basis that, over time, many owners let play-mouthing get out of control. Dr. Dunbar suggests controlled play fighting is a healthy way to maintain the dogs 'soft mouth' so long as the play rules are obeyed at all times:
* Never use gloves when play fighting since a puppy will need to bite much harder before getting a reaction
* Start any play fighting with a short training session so that they see it as a reward.
* Frequently stop play fighting for short training interludes (say every 30 seconds).
* Anything other than mouthing is not allowed and will result in the end of the play session.
* Play mouthing must only start on command at the start of play sessions. It is not allowed at any other time and must not be initiated by your dog.
* Only mouthing of hands is allowed (never clothing or other parts of the body)
we dont seem to be able to get past step 1 - he just doesn't seem to care
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum You cannot attach files in this forum You cannot download files in this forum
. Just wondering if this still sounds about right for puppy biting?
.
