Hi all! My family and I rescued a 20 week old black lab (possible mix) from a shelter and I could really use your tips. I'm convinced she's part hound due to longer ears and the tone of her bark but we can't say for sure. Anyway, I would be so grateful for some tips on how to help her to understand what's expected of her and her behavior. She jumps and bites, a lot. I have done a ton of reading and with our previous dog (Rottweiler) we know ignoring is best and lots of positive reinforcement when she's being good. Unfortunately, this isn't working so well for her. She will jump up on us while we take her outside to potty. We fold our arms and turn our backs to her and wait for her to calm down but she just continues to jump on our backs and bites at us until we have holes in our shirts. Yesterday she got my son's shirt and his stomach too. The ignore method isn't working for her and I have a feeling she may have been abused previously and I'm worried about scolding her. She really is a sweet girl but I'm struggling to get our message across that jumping and biting are not acceptable. If anyone has any tips, I would be grateful. She will be attending puppy obedience classes but since they don't start for a while, I could use all the help I can get in the meantime. Thanks so much for reading & your help!
Hello @mamasteph3 and welcome to the forum from me and my three. I had to chuckle at myself a little, when I read "the tone of her bark" I immediately thought it was a language issue and you meant the colour of her coat - we do get quite a few members whose first language isn't English Anyway, it sounds like typical Lab puppy behaviour. People - especially first time Lab puppy owners - are often taken aback with how bitey they are. Ignoring her, turning your back, removing yourself from the room or putting her in a safe place like a crate until she calms down - these are all the things you need to do and they will help, given time and consistency. The main thing that helps, though, is simply time. They do grow out of it - eventually. It can be hard to keep your sense of humour when they are like this, I know, but if you are consistent in, every time she jumps or nips, you stand up and walk away, without giving any eye contact or even a "no" (all of which is attention and therefore reinforcing), she will eventually learn that jumping and biting get her nowhere. Only disengage for a few seconds, and as soon as she is calm again, give her a big fuss and initiate play again. I like to set this up as a training exercise, rather than simply reacting when the puppy starts by itself. So, when your puppy has had a sleep and been emptied, start playing gently with her. All the time she stays gentle, talk to her softly, tell her she's a good girl and keep playing. Don't try to rile her up - the idea is that you teach her to play calmly. The second she bites, stand up and turn your back without a word. If she is the sort to bite your legs when you do this, step over a baby gate or out of her pen. If even that is too difficult (my last puppy made it impossible by hanging off my legs), then I would play with the puppy through the door of a crate, pen or a baby gate, so you are on one side, pup is on the other and the door is open enough to get your hand through. When the biting starts, it's easier then to slide your hand back out. The handy thing about using the door method is that you can easily count to ten and reengage, so you are more able to have lots of little goes, meaning lots of opportunities to learn. We'd love to see pictures of your girl. What's her name?
Thank you so much for your advice and tips!! We have been working on what you said and it's been helping tremendously! I also got a small bag with her kibble and whenever we take her ourside, the second she starts to bite or jump, I make her sit and watch me and then give her a treat. It's really helped to deter the behavior and I find her going outside to potty and immediately sitting down and watching me for a treat, lol! My son tells her "good girl" in a much more calm voice as well. I think he may have been exciting her a bit. It's a bit hard with small children as the jumping and scratching hurts much more and Roxy got my daughter pretty good yesterday so I've decided to give all my kids a small bag of kibble to put in their pockets all day and it's worked! Roxy has been sitting down and not jumping nearly as much and I like that this gives my youngest daughter some control to stop the behavior. I think Roxy just needed some guidance and your tips helped a lot. Thank you for taking the time to respond! Oh and I'm not sure how to add a photo from my cell phone. :/ I'll try and figure it out today
