My 15 week old lab, Bran, had gone totally crazy. I've been reading all the posts about biting and general bad behaviour but it's so hard. At the moment the biggest problem is when I'm sitting on the sofa He jumps up at me, snarling and biting whatever he can get. I don't know what to do, I can't ignore him as he's physically hurting me, I can't push him away as he'll just bite my arm. I've tried staying up to walk away but again, he just grabs whatever he can. If I give him a chew toy, he takes it for a few seconds but then goes for me again. I really can't cope - I'm in tears just writing this. I'm his only carer. My husband only agreed to get a puppy on condition that he didn't have to look after him and my children are too young to be around him when he's like this, but he only acts like this with me. I'm really at the end of my tether. I don't know what to do
Hey @SiobhanB75 - ugh it's horrible isn't it. You'll see from some of my posts at a similar age that I felt exactly the same, and to be honest I still have times when I just want to cry. Today's a good day so I thought I'd reply with a suitably positive vibe for you Luna used to do this a lot and we had this in the really hot summer so I've got scars on my arms and legs even now. I learned 3 key things that might help you: Remember that even though it might seem like you have a grumpy dinosaur in your house, she's not doing it to hurt you or to be naughty, she is trying to get your attention because she wants to play. If it's late on in the day and you're chilling in the lounge after a long day wanting to watch TV, then it'll be her most active hour and your most relaxed - the two just aren't compatible sadly. I had to accept that chilling out in the lounge with the pup asleep or relaxed at my feet just wasn't a reality for us. Pushing her away will be a cue for playing so she'll do it more often. My other half still does this now and gets frustrated when she doesn't back off. I keep telling him that she's reading the gentle push as a play signal. The crate is your friend! I have never put Luna in her crate to punish her, but I often (even now at 1 year old) pop her in her crate with a happy voice and some kibble, and let her sleep. It's a safe space for her to just chill out and get used to people not being around all the time. Often craziness is down to being over tired and not knowing how to channel it, so a sleep is a good cure. Don't let it get you down - expect less from the situation, don't feel bad about using the crate, and use it as an opportunity to keep teaching her some boundaries. It won't be relaxing and it will be hard work, but it will be worth it. We've only just in the last 2 weeks started letting Luna into the lounge in the evenings and she'll now sleep for hours, very unladylike - upside down with her bits on show and her legs in the air. If she doesn't settle, then she goes back in her crate. If she settles, she gets the reward of being with her people all evening. Good luck - you'll get there
Hi Hi there, I completely agree with Luna's mum, it is so hard but definitely will get better. The only thing I can add is that we used baby gates on every door. My pup was the same, I couldn't even play or cuddle her as she saw this as a game and lunged and bit me. We consistently put her over the gate every time she mouthed us, telling her "no bites", it took time but she did eventually realise that all play stopped if she did this. She could still see us at all times but couldn't join us. Good luck
When you give her a chew toy, do you hang on to the other end. She will probably be more likely to play with it, if you hold on and make it more interesting. The crate is your friend also. It does get better. Cooper was pretty bitey, but by 4 or 5 months did not do it any more. Some people suggest yelping when the pup hurts you. I think we did that and it seemed to help.
Thank you all for your advice. I was at the vets yesterday getting his vaccination and she suggested he's probably overtired and again, as Luna's mum said, to use the crate more. Thanks again - it helps knowing that I'm not alone and it'll pass.
It will definitely get better! What I'd suggest in these situations, is to think about what the dog WANTS and what NEEDS are being expressed. A puppy doing this, is seeking engagement with you. This is how they would behave if wanting their mum or sibling's attention. They don't know how to seek engagement in any other way. It is easy to react to the behaviour itself and to push the puppy away - but this isn't recognising the need behind the behaviour. The more you push the pup away and refuse to engage, the more their need for engagement can increase. Instead, this is the perfect time to do some training with the pup or play some structured tug games with a leave/drop cue and a release to the tug cue. That way, the pup gets your attention - in a productive way - and ends up better trained for it. The emotional need of the pup is met, but not in a way which encourages the behaviour we dislike. Of course if you've already met those needs and the pup is being continually obnoxious, then that's where the crate comes in...
I know exactly how you feel, our now 1 year old lab was exactly like this, it is so hard to walk away when they are jumping and biting, we were told to put him in his crate when he did this but it was a nightmare trying to even get him in there while doing this while he's biting and jumping, you can't run away or they run and jump up on your back,oh I remember those days. The crate did work well for us, or putting him in a fence outside for a bit. I can tell you that IT DOES GET BETTER, we never thought it would, but hang in there.
Im glad the vet reiterated possibly tired. I see it all the time with our 18 week old. My husband and I actually laugh at how much they are like a baby....sometimes you don't see it as "cranky" but it totally is. This is our 4th lab so I think we have learned some of the cues along the way! Hang in there as everyone says....it DOES get better
We are having exactly the same problem with our 15 week old lab Ralph. When he's nice he is lovely but when he gets frustrated or has a crazy fit he is horrid. Bites us and barks at us until we have to walk away or put him in his crate. Last night we went to puppy school and he was so badly behaved, barking at the other (smaller) pups and desperate to play with them. He was like an extremely over excited toddler, weeing on the floor, which he doesn't do at home anymore. He was in a frenzy and could smell the treats that were handed out liberally. We were kept back at the end and the trainer said that he needs some mental stimulation and to learn to prefer humans to other dogs. I was so exhausted and upset when we got home we seriously wondered if we had a major problem on our hands. He was so tired that after a crazy few minutes back home we put him in his crate and he lay on his side (which he does when properly sleeping) and apart from a wee at 10pm he slept all night till 7am. For mental stimulation she suggested scattering one or all of his meals onto the grass. I did this at lunchtime and after looking at me as if i had gone mad he started to locate all the bits and eat it all. It took him a lot longer than his usual 30 seconds! I will continue to do this with one meal a day. I really hope that it does get better, I know that I could not cope if he continues to attack us as he gets bigger.
