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Permalink Reply by Elizabeth Throneberry on September 18, 2012 at 11:55am

There are going to be many ways and inputs on what to do. What I do with my pups is I take a rolled up magazine and sorta push there face away with it as I'm grabbing for the toy. Another great way a lot of trainers do is use butter on the top of there hand. It premotes licking instead of biting. Point your puppy to your hand with butter on the top of it. Just enough to have a scent. He will then start licking your hand while your grabbing for the toy in the other hand. And also premote good behavior... Everytime he doesnt attack give a treat or when he does attack kennel him or put him outside. I would do the butter it teaches them at the same time protects you. You could also use peanut butter or yogurt.

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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on September 18, 2012 at 12:09pm

A puppy this young is just treating you as he would another pup. "It's mine!! " He needs to learn that you are not another puppy in fact no humans are...you are the leaders. Any kind of training will help but a good resource is googling Nothing In Life Is Free to determine the things we humans do to foster our dog's belief that we are their followers. At this point I would always trade something, treat or toy for the item you want. If any teeth touch your skin or a growl sounds,say No and give a time out for a few minutes in a puppy safe place. Also, work on the leave it command. I have always taught it by saying "Leave it" and trading a treat for an item, then occasionally immediately giving the item back. You can practice this randomly and be sure to give the item back if he releases it when you say leave it. I think this method helps them learn that you are in charge and not a danger to them.

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Permalink Reply by Priss, Charlie & Kaylee (PK) on September 18, 2012 at 6:35pm

Kaylee was a bit of a biter when she was younger. We tried to desensitize her to use holding and taking away her toys/chews by playing "Let Me See" after advice from our trainer. You hold the toy and say the command. You let go. Eventually you take it away and give it back. That way the pup no longer thinks it's a big deal for you to hold or take away "their" things.

For normal biting your hands, we did two things. One, I hand fed Kaylee a good bit, like one meal a day. It helps with bite inhibition and food possession behaviors. Second, my husband and I would take turns playing with her and the one not playing would have a shake can out of sight. If she bit me, I'd indicate to him to shake the can. It worked pretty well and has she stopped play biting. If alone, I would yelp, stop all play and stand up, if she bit me. This way she got cues she could understand that I did not like being bitten and something she wanted (tug of ware or ball) would stop if her teeth touched me. You can also include teeth touching you clothing with this.

I suggest a bite inhibitor like Bitter Apple for things that she really shouldn't chew (wires, furniture, etc.). Most dogs don't like the taste.

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Permalink Reply by Cindi on September 19, 2012 at 11:16am

Excellent suggestions.  One other thing I would caution.  Be sure you are not playing rough with him at all.  I've found that, especially guys, like to rough house with a puppy.  And that can bring on aggressive, biting behavior.  With mine, I work on exchanging items.  If I constantly take things away, the dog learns they must guard their stuff.  However, if I teach "leave it" or "give it" or "drop it" I can get the pup to exchange one thing for another and they don't resource guard as much.  

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Permalink Reply by Lemmy Winks on September 20, 2012 at 10:37am

For biting like that, I never pull my hand away.  I grab the scruff and I pin them down, say "No bite!" sharply and hold them until they stop squirming/resisting. Both my dogs learned early on that I am not afraid of being bit. Now they don't even bother so much as growling at me, and if I have to pin them, they go belly up.
Work on the aggression itself. Get your pup use to you giving and taking things away. Do not act timid or nervous. And if you're given aggressive behavior do not get upset or mad, just correct it.
Even now, I'll random go up and take toys, treats etc... away from my dogs. They don't make a scene about it, I praise them and give it back.
Hope this is of some help. Best of luck!

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Permalink Reply by Beth on September 20, 2012 at 12:11pm

When people encounter this I ask them how they would feel if they were at work, eating lunch, and their boss came and took their lunch.

Or they were at a restaurant, and the waiter came and took their food in mid-bite.

We get very angry at our dogs for not tolerating things we ourselves would never tolerate. I'm not sure why. If my husband came and snatched a book out of my hands while I was reading, I would have VERY sharp words for him. Yet if our dogs growl we want to punish them.

Still, it is important, for our dogs' own safety, that they learn to give things up graciously. So here's how to do it: Get very yummy treats, make them visible, say "Leave it!" in a normal voice and wave the food in front of them. While you give them the food (hot dogs, cheese, not normal kibble) you pick up the toy they were chewing and when they are done eating, you hand it back nicely. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Start training with toys they CAN have so you can hand it back. Then if you have to take something and keep it, reward and praise lavishly.

My dogs are 5 and 8, and if they get something they shouldn't have and I say "leave it", they do drop it, and I take it, and then we have a praise party and get yummy treats.

It is normal and healthy for dogs to guard what they have in their possession. Even low-ranking dogs will guard certain things from higher-ranking dogs. If you punish for it, and your dog is generally cheerful and outgoing, it MIGHT work. But you might also teach your dog you are sort of unpredictable and might steal stuff from him for no reason and then get unreasonably angry when he protests, and your dog will be less likely to listen and more likely to just bite with no warning or run off with what he has, and trust me, you will never catch a running Corgi....

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Permalink Reply by Beth on September 20, 2012 at 12:12pm

I should add (but can't edit for some reason) that after starting out by showing the food BEFORE you say "leave it" you will rapidly be able to move to saying "leave it" first and then going and getting the reward; most Corgis catch on to this very quickly because they love to eat so much.

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