Kingdom of Pets

Posted by sasch1226
Jan 4, 2012

Hello,

I have a 14 week old Boerboel puppy. She is really great, she loves being around people and is very friendly, does not chew on furniture, etc....but she chews on us! We are crate training her and she does get exercise but we are not sure what to do when she bites us during play. Usually we take her stuffed animals and try and play with her with those when she gets into a biting mood but these moods can last for over an hour. I have started holding her snout closed firmly but not hurting her-and saying "no bite" in a firm voice. What do you think? Is there a better way to break them of this? I know she is young and will outgrow this but we have kids and our puppy's little teeth are sharp and it hurts!

Posted by KOPCaroline
Jan 8, 2012

Hi there,

Common problem! As you said, she will grow out of it and learn with help from you. That being said, I think what you're already doing is great! Its pretty much exactly what I would have advised.

Substituting an appropriate chew item for your hands is a really, really good way to train out of this behaviour. It may take a lot of repetition, but its worth it. If she gets to be too much for too long, try giving her a time out of 10 or so minutes, either in her crate or in a quiet room by herself. If she comes out and starts biting again, put her right back in time out.

People have mixed opinions on holding your dogs mouth shut or grabbing one jaw, etc. I personally think its ok to do as long as you are not hurting her in any way - just a steady grip so she gets the message. I did it to my own dog - grabbed his lower jaw until he stopped trying to wiggle out of it - and it worked well for him.

The other commonly used training tool is to turn your back to her and ignore her when she starts biting. It may be harder to do since she's probably a big girl but its worth a shot - just ignore her with your arms folded and keep turning away from her until she stops pestering you and settles down. Then you can turn back and tell her good girl.

Hope this helps, but as I said you're doing great already! Let us know how she gets on

puppy biting