Advice pleased - nipping puppy

[bex1984]

Would be grateful for some advice for my mum pretty please...

My mum has recently got a puppy - a 14 week westie x jrt, who is her first ever dog. She's generally a lovely little thing, quite chilled for a terrierist pup, learning basic commands, and doing a good job of keeping my mum company

She does bite and mouth in play which is not a huge problem as I know most pups do this and she tends to stop if we ignore her or stop the game. However, my mum has felt pup has tried to nip her in annoyance/frustration recently, when she's being told not to do something, and this really needs nipping in the bud before it becomes a habit (especially as I have a baby who will be around the dog a lot as she grows up).

My mum has booked in for a puppy training course but this doesn't start for another month, so I'm wondering how to help her deal with this behaviour? Any advice gratefully received.

 

[CorvusCorax]

There's a great section on bite inhibition in The Culture Clash by Jane Donaldson. Would be an especially good buy if this is her first dog.

 

[moosehunter]

Biting and mouthing in play is THE problem- the dog does not now know when its welcome and when its not.
Any attention is good attention so saying no/ tappubg nose etc etc doesnt work.
Instead when pup mouths remove yourself immediatly say nothing and walk away. pup soon learns that he only gets to pkay when he doesnt mouth- becoming a pleasure. EVERYONE has to be consistent tho- one person allowing mouthing undermines you!! good luck!!

 

[Mister Ted]

Buy a good dog book Cesar Milan in pet stores.Gives great advice on bringing up puppies and dogs.I learned so much from his books and all the mistakes I made with our first puppy (had her until she was 18yrs.) made sure they were not repeated on our next dog.Things like possesiveness with toys and food,and only obeying one person in th e household used to be huge problems with our terrier.! Buy a puppy teether she can chew on with supervision.meantime.

 

[Hedwards]

A good loud squeal from your mum as and when the pup nips might help, when Millie went through a very short phase of doing similar, I made a really loud high pitched squeal followed with a no command stopped her in her tracks, she soon got the message and has never ever been a nipper/biter since...

Now she's older when i watch her playing with my Lurcher Suzy, Millie will do a loud squeal if Suzy gets a bit to excited and takes play a bit too far, stops her in her tracks and they then continue to play nicely...

 

[HeatherAnn]

I disagree with the loud squeal, when my pup used to mouth a squeal would cause him to become really overexcited and he would bite and nip harder. We used the moving away method and when he was a bit older he reverted back to nipping and one time I pinched him on the bum. I regretted it straight away as it was in anger because he bit me really hard and drew blood. I wouldn't recommend it but it actually worked :/

 

[WeedySeaDragon]

Our whippet pup was terrible for nipping (he wasn't known as 'the pupodile' for nothing) and what worked for us was all attention stopping the second he nipped. It worked really well as he hated being ignored and very quickly worked out that the less he nipped the more attention he got.

 

[Tizzy]

A very loud, short, sharp squeal worked for all 3 of mine. Closely followed by a stern 'no' and then turning your back on them.

Do not stroke, touch or reassure them once you have done this. A squeal indicates pain and that they stepped too far when you tell them no and then walk away.

I have 3 very excitable spaniels and they soon got the hang of it. Our youngest one is stil in his teething phase and he gums on clothing, ie sleeves or dressing gown tassle. He doesnt nip anymore.

 

[CAYLA]

Each to their own but im not into the sqealing either.
I always advise never allow the puppy on the chair (a few reasons) one you can place yourself up there for "time out" as a negative, works the same as placing the dog out of your space, you instead get on the chair and end the attention immediately. I have funnily enough done a few visits recently where the pups where actually being very ott aggressive ( a few really worried/shocked me) for them being so young, leaving very nasty scars on arms and snacking not just biting/mouthing. Not sure if there is a correlation but they where all working breed pups trying to be raised as babies (and they where having less of it) one I had to take away and is now being rehomed via me (not biting me at all) but in my house there are different rules and one is no jumping around chairs and pestering me for attention (it will be given when I choose) all desperate attempts for attention will be ignored, she has also had a smacked bottom for snapping at other dogs and pestering for play stopped all together now she knows there is a consiquence for her unwanted actions.
Remeber do not encourage any behaviour that will not be so cute when they are no longer puppies.
Otherwise play/interaction always on the floor, it also teaches good manners (not having pup bounding on chairs) and at this age they can generally only get up when we pick them up and put them on
The little put I have had had more firm handling then anything as she was very head strong and she has responded very well and has a new found respect for dogs and humans, I believe had she carried on as she was she would have been pts. She is a terrier too.

I have my puppy guide it does touch on biting/mouting, if any good Pm me your email and I will send you a copy.

 

[bex1984]

Thanks folks will PM you cayla. Pup's behaviour seems to be improving with lots of ignoring her. She's had a smacked bottom from me and OH which was very effective, but my mum doesn't feel she can do this so is sticking to ignoring her. Having now seen the behaviour myself it really isn't aggression, it seems to be in play/an attempt to initiate play.

Pup is best friends with my little dog - they came from the same breeder, and he is doing a great job of teaching her good habits It's a steep learning curve for my mum but they are getting there. Being around a pup makes me realise how good my dog is!

 

[moosehunter]

well done glad it worked!!