And the biting continues! As of this week (17), the biting sessions are getting slightly shorter. I have loaded up on good biting treats but like Marissa said above, sometimes she won't interact with me unless human biting is involved. She does not do this to my husband and I believe she looks to him as the 'alpha' male. Being able to divert her attention with some clicker/treat training has helped a bit. And yes, this half-healed place on my hand keeps getting opened up by her. Ouch! Thanks for everyone's support!
@Trufflepup My little girl is the same! Runs around like a mad woman and then is so unimpressed when Titan chases her and bites her feet It almost seems as if it may have slowed down the tiniest little bit over the weekend (maybe this is just wishful thinking...) We can sit on the floor with him and he'll sit in our lap without chewing on us. Poor little dude is popped in his crate quite often throughout the day when he gets to crazy and over excited. But once he calms down, he can come out and be okay for a little while. Hopefully, we're only going to get better from here on out!
No, there is no such thing as 'alpha male'. She just sees you as a playmate and treats you as such. Look after yourself. Put wellies on, wear tight jeans and sleeves. Be more determined than she is that her teeth won't touch your skin. Pick her up, put toys and chews in her mouth and hold them for her to chew. Give her time with a kong behind a baby gate while you rest up for the next play/training time. It can be done, even with the worst of crocapups! ...
I go home for lunch the three days a week I'm at work and check on Libby. My husband gets home from work at 4pm and he takes her for a walk. Something I've tried doing which helps a little (but only sometimes) is that when I get home from work and the gym (not until about 7pm every night), rather than enjoying some dinner, changing my clothes, etc., first thing I do is sit on the floor with her and we have some one-on-one. She likes to sit in my lap with her chew and hang out with me. The minute she starts with the biting, I get up and move away from her. At some point it usually gets bad enough for a time out.
I gotta wonder -- would all this biting have anything to do with how early they left their mom? We got Libby at 9 weeks but the breeder said she was rejected by her mom early on so he took her under his wing. Maybe she didn't get enough 'learning' time with her. She was pretty shy around the other puppies in her litter too. Took her about a week to open up once she got to our house. She's totally social now and loves everyone.
I think it's definitely the case that puppies who leave mum and litter mates early are worse biters - but that's not the only reason. Betsy had a completely normal and appropriate upbringing, stayed with a devoted mum and litter mates until just over 8 weeks, and she was a complete horror for biting. Much, much, much worse than Charlie had been. I think the only thing that was noticeably different was Betsy was teething much earlier than Charlie - her first puppy teeth were falling out by 9/10 weeks, and her adult teeth were in much sooner than Charlie's were.
Tonight when I got home at 7, I stood in the kitchen and ate my dinner (she bites me more when I'm sitting). Then I sat on the floor in the family room with her in my lap and her chew-stick-of-the-day. She chewed on her stick while I held it for over 30 minutes. My husband went to bed early tonight so we took over his recliner and she did more chewing. I got up for some snacks and she bit my hands a bit but then curled up on the floor and went to sleep. Got a break from the chewing tonight. And yep, she's getting her teeth in. I know of at least 4 that have come in so far. She is spending a lot of time chewing on her gums way in the back of her mouth.
Hi y'ya...i am soo grateful to come across this forum it has given me such insight i feel like i am not alone in this nipping battle!! My boys and i stayed up reading everyones suggestions because they to are feeling frustrated with trying to play with their new pup and getting attacked lol.. yelping makes her more excited, appropriate chew/teething toys not interested only our flesh!! and training/redirection-well tjats another no go!! So removing her from play for a time out it is...but even that can be a struggle as she will sometimes nip being picked up!! ugh the battle continues.. I hope this stage passes soon!
Hi it will get better honestly - yelping when my boy was tiny just made him leap for my face, redirection lasted less than a second and my hands and arms looked liked I self harmed at one point either that or had a dot to dot drawing done by a baby with a red marker pen! I found becoming a tree and totally ignoring him (after the first time I turned my back on him and he leapt up and bit my bum!) worked, that and removing myself from the room for a few seconds. Same when playing tug with him if his teeth touch my hand, even now, I stop playing and become a tree, just for a few seconds, and then when he's calm I start playing again. Apart from when he is really tired and wants to hold my hand in his mouth (no pressure from his teeth at all) he never touches me with his teeth - tongue yes lots but never his teeth. Loosing those razor sharp puppy teeth helped a lot - that and lots of alcohol!
I have noticed Libby is ever so slightly better the last couple days. Maybe we're making headway. I'm chained to a clicker and a treat bag. An 'AH AH' is finally starting to work in getting her attention.
I found that removing myself from the room for 30 seconds was far more effective than trying to move the crocodile into the kitchen/crate. By the time I'd moved the croc I had a few more bites in me and I was even more frustrated. Much quicker for the victim to just quickly leave the room.
Good thing they're so cute, hey? I thought Titan was getting better, but he's definitely not. Oh well. It'll come, I'm sure of it!
Since we adopted Bella they entertain each other a lot, but sometimes we have to use a time out lol. It took me a little to watch them play but when I separated them he laid in front of the pet gate and so did she. I finally got them to listen to outside if they wrestle to much. Never a dull moment with our babies lol
Good Morning to y'all..thank you for all your great suggestions, i did start removing myself from the room as well as my boys because giving her a time out in her pen was difficult as per her biting while i am doing it, my thinking was is it ok for her to keep running us out of the room lol?! considering it happens a fair amount a day and she needs more than a min to calm, and sometimes we cant even resume play its that bad... But I also didnt want her to associate her pen with time outs as she is so great at going in her pen and settling and sleeping through the nite... The last couple of days tho it seems her biting has increased, she now will launge at our leg first and grip it with her upper paws while in standing postion and try and nip us that way with growling and if she cant reach my hands she will attack my clothing riping holes in it...but she doesnt let go thats an issue.. I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this!? She just turned 12wks...i have had her since she was 7 wks... We lost our 14 year old lab this year i had her since she was 7wks as well...and i cant remember her nipping being this brutal!! She gets plenty of exercise and mental stimulation but i am also teaching her down time... I am at a loss, any feedback would be greatly appreciated She gets her second set of vaccines tomorrow and i am looking forward to being able to take her out more and have been trying to find people with younger pups to socialize with hoping that will help with bite inhibition amoungst other things....but it has been difficult to find people!?
Also i have tried all the appropriate chew/teething toys, nyabone etc...she is just not interested or clearly not satisfying her choppers coming in!?!
In the midst of all that now and Libby is 18 weeks. My hands and ankles are so chewed up. People can't believe what they see! It has finally gotten slightly better this week and I think I'm starting to heal. She still gets in landshark mode every day. I am spending more time down on the floor with her, holding her chew stick which she sits in my lap and chews. That has helped some. Clicker training too. Redirecting her to a toy doesn't work anymore and the chew stick thing only works sometimes. She is also learning the words 'time out'. Sometimes that's all it takes.
Well, we're now at 25 weeks and I can honestly say I've forgotten she ever did this! Between 4 and 5 months is key I think. How's it going?
I'm jealous...tomorrow is 16 weeks and no sign of stopping. What are some good chew toys besides the kong?
