My puppy won't stop biting...please help!!
I just got my Corgi puppy about a month ago. He is now 12 weeks old. He is very smart and doing well with housebreaking and basic training, however, he bites CONSTANTLY. Not so much the furniture (though he tries to get at that occasionally) as much as my husband and I. Arms, legs, ears, anything. And, of course, his teeth are ridiculously sharp and painful. At first it seemed like he was just playing, but now if we, for example, give him a chew toy that is appropriate to chew on, he will play with it for about 30 seconds and then drop it and lunge for my arm. We have "googled" how to get him to stop and read many previous posts as well, and have tried everything we have come across, but nothing seems to work. We realize he is just a puppy and (hopefully!!) he will grow out of it, but in the meantime, any suggestions on how to make it stop? And more importantly, WHEN does it stop?! It is very frustrating because we cannot play with him for even 30 seconds without him biting, and it makes us feel like we are doing something wrong. Help!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jenna, Jasper and Cersei on -
I don't have a lot of advice, but I can definitely empathize! My pup does the same things. I've been told that when they bite you're supposed to "yelp" in a high pitched voice, stop playing with them and walk away for a minute. It is frustrating though, because it seems like I have to do this every time I play with him, even though it does stop him for the moment. Evidently once all their adult teeth grow in, the mouthing and nipping is drastically reduced. Sounds like it's just a frustrating waiting game!
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Permalink Reply by GoGoRainbow on -
its... frustrating yes. It gets less and less frequent until maybe only every few days they'll get a nip in. Until then, keep your face away when they're excited ;) Pooka is 5 months now, has most of her adult teeth and is doing fine (though she's had a few lapses)
You can do the Yelping technique and ignoring her, cuz its a good foundation for later, but seriously, when they're young and excited, it doesn't stop them the next time you start playing again. I'm very big on saying "No" in a very stern (doesn't have to be violently mean, just SERIOUS) voice, and I push a toy in her face to bite on and maybe a little tug-of-war, or throw it for distraction. You just have to say No, and then show them the good behaviour you want "Don't bite me, bite this"
That's what I did ^_^ good luck!
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Permalink Reply by Ein Danger on -
well corgis are notorious for nipping :( but it shouldn't be too bad once they get all their adult teeth in and have kinda outgrown that puppy-biting phase. ein still goes for fingers as well but since he's still a pup himself, i assume it's still perfectly normal. i would really suggest deterring him from doing this. we totally do the cesar millan techniques with the "shush" and projecting a more dominant energy towards ein. he responds really well to this :)
i've heard that in the heat of the moment adult corgis will still get a little too excited and nip. ein totally does this when we're roughhousing. as soon as i say "ouch!" he totally backs off and lays down on the floor. so he's learning :)
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Permalink Reply by Megan and Penelope on -
It will get better, I promise. We tried everything with Penelope that stage and it was really frustrating. She's my first puppy, always got them out the stage when my parents had dogs, but I was so upset that I could never play with her or love on her without bite marks. When ended up having to something like bite inhibition, which was annoying, but the only thing that worked. Just separate yourself from the puppy for a short time. Like I might run to another room or the bathroom and shut the door. If the dog wants to be around, which I'm he does, he'll get the idea.
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Permalink Reply by Susan Stanton on -
I have two puppies -- when Bertie was that age, my hands were covered with little scrapes from his rough "playing" and my neice temporarily changed his name to 'Nippy"! I also did the "yip loudly and turn away" techniques, etc., etc. but what I think really helped him was not just getting his adult teeth, but also going to puppy kindergarten where he could socialize and wrestle (we joined a puppy k before he was 4 months old, none of the puppies were fully vaccinated). The dogs were really good at teaching each other how to "play bite" with a softer mouth, so by the time his adult teeth grew in, he was really good at playing without hurting anything/one. My second puppy just never had the nippy issue, thank goodness.
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Permalink Reply by Ollie and Dinah on -
Wow! I felt like I was reading something that I wrote 2 months ago!
Yes - I understand. It's absolutely awful. I could be holding the coolest looking toy in PetCo, but he'll still have found my hand more appetizing.
Ollie was AWFUL at that age. He even had my wife crying once, becuase she couldn't even TOUCH him without being bitten. He has gotten MUCH better - he's about 5months old now. While some will tell you not to use the crate as a punishment tool, it is what cured Ollie of his chomping problem. The trick is to not ACT like he's being punished. If you throw him in the crate while yelling at him, he's going to no never want to get into the crate. When he bites (and yes, you'll be doing this quite a bit) you'll need to gently pick him, and casually put him in the crate. You can say something like,"Uh-oh!" or "Oops!" indicating that HE has made the choice to go into the crate by biting.
You only need to leave him in there for 30 seconds to a minute - he'll get the hint eventually, even if it takes more than a month. The biting is probably not stemming from malicious intent, but a need to bite whatever he can get. Even now, Ollie will keep his mouth open while I'm playing with him, seemingly hoping that something will just JUMP in! He's crazy.
My puppy school has helped Ollie tremendously - they are reinforcement-based, and a lot of what they teach is based on the "It's Your Choice" concept. It works. A lot of schools will enroll puppies after they have their 3rd sets of shots, so you can start thinking about that, if you like. I would highly reccomend it. The mental stimulation that teaching comes with is more stimulating than chewing. Especially when treats are involved!
Sorry this is so long, but I wish someone would have told me this! Haha. (Also be sure to treat your puppy when he isn't biting, I know it's easy to pay more attention to him when he's being bad)
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Permalink Reply by John Wolff on -
I keep hearing that 8 weeks is too young to break up a litter and that they learn a lot of social stuff like bite inhibition between 8 and 12 weeks. We've visited a few litters of our breeder's litters at about 8 weeks age, and they were chewing my fingers, ears, nose, lips, beard... those sharp little teeth! We got Al at 12 weeks. I remember no problem with biting, just a couple of expensive chewing mistakes (a shoe, one small furniture damage).
They're adult now, and I marvel how quickly they learn what is taboo and what is for chew.
I remember reading:
They must learn the rule that it's OK for you to put your fingers into their mouth, but it's NOT OK to put their mouth onto your fingers (or any other part of you).
When you feel their teeth, you yell out a highly exaggerated "YELP!!!" in feigned shock, so they get the idea, "Wow. These humans are really fragile. Better not do *that* again..."
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Permalink Reply by Milo on -
Thank you to all who responded! It's helpful and comforting to know that it will end eventually, we will just have to be patient. In the meantime, we will continue to try all of your suggestions. Hopefully in a month or two, we will be able to report back that Milo has been a good, non-biting boy!
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Permalink Reply by Corgibyassociation on -
I understand how you feel. I always yelped "Ouch" when she bit me and turned away. It seemed to help. I also tried to divert her chewing to something that is okay to chew...like a bully stick, an orka bone, or her paw if she's on her back.
She's calmed down a lot and hasn't really bit me hard. But she is now teething again (losing her baby teeth) and sometimes bitey with me now. I have to put my fingers in her mouth so I can see how much she's losing and the state of her new teeth (also want her to get used to it cause I intend to start brushing her teeth soon too.)
Best of luck to you and your little one.
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Permalink Reply by NellyJane on -
My puppy is the same. I also thought I was doing something wrong as she is my first puppy. She's 4 months and is just starting to realize that she is hurting us when she bites I think. Our puppy kindergarten teacher told us to apply gentle pressure on her bottom jaw just behind her front teeth if she is biting really hard.
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Permalink Reply by Alyx on -
My puppy is the same! She's 8 months now though and hasn't stopped.. I read that it would get better once her adult teeth grew in but its only gotten a little better, she still loves to chomp my hand. I have tried yelping 'Ouch' and putting her in the crate and she just doesn't seem to get it.. It was never a huge problem but now it seems like every time I go to say hi to her once I've been gone for any period of time or I'm just playing with her near the ground she dives for a bite at my face.. I can't get her to stop :( Any ideas?
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Permalink Reply by Kelly Kansala on -
Hi, we have a 11 week old Corgi "Max "and he just won't stop biting. We try to get down to play with him and he attacks and bites. He was so good when we first brought him home and now he has turned a corner...watch out. I am so discouraged. Has your Corgi stopped biting? Any advice.
Kelly
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