Located in Rudy, Arkansas
Serving Fort Smith, Van Buren, and surrounding areas
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Located in Rudy, Arkansas
Serving Fort Smith, Van Buren, and surrounding areas

Nipping and Mouthing

Realize that all puppies do this.  It is normal puppy behavior.  And you can teach your dog a better way!

Nipping and Mouthing

Prerequisite

No prerequisite required.

Tools

  • Something to chew.  NOTE:  We do not recommend rawhide, and neither does your vet.  If you are worried about what is best for your pup, ask your vet what they recommend.
  • Toys.  We like toys you can tug with that allow you to keep your hands away from your dog’s mouth.  Accidents can happen when they are first learning!

Training Environment

The ideal training environment is wherever your puppy engages in the behavior.

Steps

  • Determine why your puppy or dog is nipping you.  Some possibilities include:
    • Your puppy is interacting with you in a way that makes sense to him/her.  Puppies use their mouths to explore, and they don’t have any idea just how sharp those little needles in their mouths are.
    • Your puppy is overtired.  Just like children, young dogs can become over-stimulated or tired and act up.  Give your youngster regular naps.  Puppies normally sleep more than they are awake.
    • Your puppy is teething.  Be sure to have a replacement handy and when your puppy goes for your hand, give them something better to chew!
    • Your puppy is over-aroused.  Just like an over-tired dog, an over-aroused dog cannot always control their behavior.  Some down time is in order.
    • Your puppy may be communicating that he is uncomfortable with something you’re doing.
  • If your puppy or dog is mouthing to interact or play with you:
    • Remove the reinforcement.
      • If the bite is hard, leave.  Put yourself behind a barrier.
      • If the bite is soft, ignore your puppy, but do not leave.  Don’t jerk, squeal, or cry out.  It might encourage the behavior.
    • Decide what you want your puppy TO do instead.  My go to is to have a toy between me and my puppy’s teeth.  A tug rope is a good choice.
    • If he’s not getting the attention he wants from the nipping behavior it’s time to give him an alternative like a toy or a behavior that leads to attention.
    • If your dog persists, put yourself behind a barrier for 3-10 seconds.  It doesn’t have to be long, just long enough for your pup to figure out that any chance of interaction goes away when the nipping starts.

Homework

Practice this every time your puppy starts to nip.  Play with toys to make them more fun and to help your pup understand they can be a great way to interact with you.