Play Biting & Mouthing
Take the "ouch" out of owning a puppy
About Mouthing & Play Biting
Puppies biting Puppies
Play using mouths and teeth is completely normal puppy play. When puppies play together, they give each other feedback about what is an ok bite vs. what's not. If you've seen two puppies play and one yelps and stops playing, the puppy is telling her playmate that the bite was too hard. It's critical that puppies learn this - bite inhibition - early, while small and can't do much damage. This one of the reasons why socializing your puppy with other friendly puppies is fantastic.
Puppies will Mouth & Bite
Puppy bites can really hurt! Your puppy will try to play with you using mouth and teeth, because that is how they explore the world. A puppy doesn't have hands like we do, so they use their mouths! We can teach puppies how to bite more softly in a way they understand. We can also follow some simple tips to keep the mouthiness to a minimum.
Wiggle Butt Academy teaches the Family Dog Program - this section is from the mouthing portion of the preventing puppy problems.
Click here to listen to the Family Dog Chat about Puppy Mouthing
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Whether you’ve got a puppy or a newly-adopted dog, there are five things you can do to help teach your new pet shark how to keep their chompers to themselves.
SHORT BURSTS OF EXERCISE OFTEN: Tire that puppy out! The more you burn off their 'yayas' – especially the bitey ones, the better shot you have of moments of peace. So, harness that instinct to put things in their mouth and play a game of tug (with rules! Be sure your dog knows the words ‘Thank you’ and will drop the toy first). They can also chase the flirt pole, or play fetch. Be sure to bring the fun not once, or twice, but a bunch of times throughout the day.
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ENFORCE NAP TIMES: If you have a puppy - nap times are key. Make sure you give them plenty of opportunities to sleep, so they don’t get too overtired - because cranky-pants puppies tend to bite more.
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GIVE LOTS OF CHEW TOYS TO KEEP THEM BUSY: Invest in your stash of chew and puzzle toys. You don’t want your dog getting bored because that’s when they’re going to go back to biting everyone again. Instead, toss away their food bowl and use food puzzles at mealtimes. Not only will you be working their brain and body – but the bonus is that you’ll also be buying yourself some quiet time! It may take them 15-20mins to extricate their breakfast, rather than seconds just inhaling a bowl of kibble!
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DON’T LET ANYONE GET YOUR DOG TOO CRAZY: Riled-up pups are primed to chomp! So if the kids (or anyone in your family!) start wrestling, or running around screaming and chasing each other, don’t let your puppy be a part of that action. Call on the Zen Den with a special treat to play babysitter, if the family just has to go wild.
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ENLIST YOUR KIDS! Head over to the games section and start playing some of the Family Dog Games, stat! “Freeze Tag” is a GREAT place to start. Not only does it teach your dog some impulse control, but it also teaches your kids how to give a really important signal to your dog to help them calm down when they get all over-excited.
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GIVE YOUR PUP CHOICE: Remember to use the PAT PET PAUSE method, so see if your dog is 'in the mood' for some lovin'. If they're not - that's ok - and kids need to let them be. Otherwise, they start to get mouthy to make the 'no thanks!' message clearer!
Tips for Controlling the Nip
More Tips
We can't teach as well as other puppies
Set up supervised play sessions with other same age puppies. Puppy friends teach about biting softly much better than us. Not only is this important for socialization, it is important for teaching and maintaining a soft mouth.
Tired puppies bite more
If your puppy is tired, it might seem as though he's hyper, even frenzied. This could be overstimulation or hyperarousal. Put your puppy up for a nap in his crate with a favorite, safe chew toy.
Teach legal options
Give lots of 'legal' chew options to your puppy. Include things of different textures. In my anecdotal experience, they seem to go through a wood phase. Check out our puppy products page for options.
How to Teach a Softer Bite
Age 6 weeks to 18 weeks is prime time to teach your puppy about biting. Allow your puppy to bite when playing with you, given it is not too hard.
How do I know tell the difference between soft and too hard?
Use the bite rating scale. For the first week you begin bite training, time out your puppy for every level 4 and above.
Each week, reduce the level of acceptable bites. For example, in week 2, you will time out for any bite level 3 and above. In week 3, you will time out for any bite level 2 and above.
Don't phase out play biting all together until your puppy bites at a 1, then you can direct her to toys or time out for all bites if desired.
Definitions
Time Out: withdrawing your attention from your puppy completely (slow count of 10 seconds) or putting your puppy into confinement area for 10 seconds. The important part here is to withdraw what your puppy wants: you.
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Troubleshooting & More
Your puppy needs to chew, a lot.
Provide your puppy with a few options for 'legal' chewing. These are the things you want him to chew on anytime the urge strikes. Rotate a chew every few days to keep things interesting. If there's a favorite, it is perfectly ok to leave it down all the time. Bully sticks, puppy Kongs, and puppy Nylabones are some good options.
What if your puppy is biting your shoe laces?
Remove the "thing" the puppy wants. This is either to play with you or your shoes. You can always temporarily change to non-laced shoes to prevent the puppy from practicing this behavior. Also, remove yourself from the puppy or time your puppy out.
What if your puppy is biting your legs?
This problem follows the same procedure as bite training. If you have a zero tolerance rule, start timing your puppy out for any leg biting at any level. For play biting, follow the bite chart rules.
What if I have a big family?
Even though the bite scale is subjective person by person, if everyone follows the same rules, your puppy will get the message.
Does yelping work?
It can. It can also turn you into a human squeaky toy, engaging and rewarding the play bites. Being quiet and doing the time outs avoids the squeaky toy problem.
