Hi, I'm new to this site and a first time Labrador puppy owner! Oscar, is 14 weeks old and generally quite well behaved ( as puppies go ) however, we have a massive issue with him in the living room.. In the hallway, landing, kitchen, outside, on walks and in his crate.. he's absolutely fine but as soon as he goes into the living room, he turns into the devil.. jumping on the settee trying to get the cushions, pawing ( quite aggressively ) at the leather trim around the bottom with his sharp little claws.. jumping up and biting constantly.. he just will not settle!! When he jumps onto the settee, I pick him up and place him onto the floor whilst saying 'off' but he just jumps right back up and the more I try and remove him the more/ harder he bites. He seems to go more for my husband when he's sat on the chaise part of the settee, jumping up and biting down on his wrists, arms, toes.. whatever he can get hold of.. I've tried sitting on the floor and playing with him, rewarding him for playing nicely with his toys etc but he just will not settle!! Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I am struggling to see the positives of such a beautiful puppy!! Oscar has just completed puppy training and does basic commands really well, but these go out the window when he goes into devil mode! Please help!!
Hi Katrina, welcome to the forum. I have Cassie who is nearly 12 months, my first Labrador, although not my first dog. It was her biting that brought me to the forum and exactly like Oscar it was in the lounge if I wanted to watch Tv that was the worst, always "attacking" my arms. Except that it's play attacking. It was pretty horrid. Every time moved or stood up she would play bow and bark and lunge at me etc. Eventually what worked was distraction, a toy or kong that she could chew but that didn't last for long. I attached a short lead to her collar that meant I could grasp her without unwittingly initiating play and then walk her to her crate to separate her, this worked and after a few times she got the idea that it wasn't good to do that. Also I think it's really helpful to teach them to settle on a mat or bed. This phase does go away and you will see the positives of your puppy
Hello. My puppy is 17 weeks old. I understand your feelings completely. Your puppy has way way more freedom in your home than ours does. As we have an older Lab who hasn't taken well to the new puppy, we didn't allow the puppy in the sitting room at all initially. This was very very hard. Then I started taking her in on her lead with her bed and sitting alongside her whilst she eats a Kong. I have done a lot of work on settling on her bed. This lasts about 20 minutes. Then we got another crate to go in the sitting room so she goes in that for a rest for a while. She definitely loves being around us. My DH plays with her for a while and at some point I do some 'training' games which include treats and try to include the older Lab. She is not really into her toys (though I see that changing a bit) but I take one or two kept solely for the sitting room and try her with those. It is very very slow going but I can measure 'baby' steps. I am trying to establish behaviour that is allowed in the sitting room so having a structure to our time spent in there helps us keep things positive. Definitely don't want her on the furniture (the other dog never has) so gently pushing her down, saying down, paws on the floor etc etc. I don't like having to use the lead so much but I am hoping bit by bit we will dispense with this. Have you tried bitter apple spray on the bits where he is clawing? Hope this helps.
