Hello! I picked up my 8 week old black lab puppy 5 days ago. Her name is Rosie (now 8 weeks 5 days) and she is very sweet but my anxiety toward raising a new puppy "properly" is preventing me from enjoying her and bonding with her. She is house training really well (we've been vigilant taking her out every couple of hours including throughout the night, after naps and after food) and she's only had half a dozen accidents in the house. Her crate training is up and down however it seems to be improving, I'm not worried about that at all because she gets quite happily into her crate, howls for 15-30 minutes and then settles down for around 3-4 hours before a wee break at night. My concern is her behaviour in terms of biting, barking and growling. We keep her well stimulated with toys, food puzzles, basic behaviours (sit, lay with treats), playing in the garden, taking her out (carried until vaccinations) to socialise her with noises, etc. However in the last couple of days she has become very very bitey, especially obsessed with feet and lower body clothing. She's only tiny but it really is quite painful. Also it seems to be directed only toward me which I find quite upsetting (I'm her primary carer however my mum also lives in the house and cares for her the times I'm not able to; with her apparently she is calm and gentle). To combat this I have tried a few techniques (standing entirely still, although this hurts and she doesn't stop; removing her/myself from the room (which is working to some extent), a firm no which doesn't seem to help; a high pitched yelp also doesn't seem to help; distracting with other toys (but my feet are far more fun) and removing my feet from her reach. I've never trained or raised a dog before (although I'm generally comfortable training and being around older dogs) and so I'm not familiar with puppy behaviour - I've read this is normal however it doesn't stop it being upsetting and frustrating, especially as I don't know how to best curb it. I'm really just looking for some reassurance that it will pass and how I can best speed this along, promoting gentle mouth behaviour. Thanks for your help, I'm not quite at my wits end but I don't know if I'm entirely bonding with her because I'm subject to her sharp little crocodile teeth all the time. Thanks for your help x
Hi and welcome. This is a very common issue with Labrador puppies and there are loads of posts about biting with excellent advice on the forum. Use the 'search' bar at the top of the page to find them
Hi and welcome I promise this is sooo normal and will definitely pass. They're a few posts on this puppies page full of advice, lab puppies are known as "crocopups" My own pup was dreadful, we couldn't even play with her without being bitten! But now she's such a lovely girl and the biting is a distant memory (as is the chewing!) Relax and enjoy your pup and know it passes
Oh my first let me say I was you with my own Rosie at 8 weeks.....she is now 19 weeks. From 8 weeks to about 17 weeks she was an absolute nightmare with biting. Hands, feet, legs, whatever whenever, all day every day from morning to night. Only break from the biting was naps. We tried every single thing to curb the biting. I have 3 pairs of pants with holes, and a couple shirts same. Yelping (spurred her on), ignoring her (too painful to wait her out) tapping her on the nose, holding her muzzle - breeders suggestion (she thought this was play and I hated doing it), shaking a can filled with coins to startle her (no effect), squirting with a water bottle (she's a lab - YAY water!), and a scruff shake and short crate time outs. In the end we settled on a scruff shake and if that didn't work she went to her crate for 10-30 sec to chill out and settle. I totally get what you mean by your anxiety about raising her properly and enjoying her. I was downright depressed and sad that Rosie was so difficult in comparison with my first lab Daisy (avatar pic) who was such a gentle soul. I've had lots of days where I have cried from the frustration and feeling so overwhelmed. Every pup/dog is different though, and you will learn to read your Rosie's behaviours better as she gets older, and notice when or even before she gets tired and cranky (super bitey) or see the crazy moments coming on. A daily schedule (like a baby) and the crate will be your best help. The other things that help are having lots of toys around, stuffed frozen Kong treats, and also bully sticks. My Rosie still bites, but differently now. I'm not covered in scabs or bloodied on a daily basis anymore. I can actually walk around the house in sock feet now. A small thing but its a step forward! The play biting has calmed down and she is a bit more gentle, and she still has her crazy moments. Every now and again she forgets herself in play and bites me. I think it will slowly fade away. Probably when she is done teething. She's just starting to lose her baby teeth. I have been told this seems like the magic time the biting stops. My biggest issue with her currently is getting her to accept the harness being put on. Both my hands are bruised around the thumb area where she bites down when I put her legs in harness. We are working on that. This is the best place to come to for advice without judgement. Good ideas and helpful suggestions. It's a good thing they are so darn cute!
