Pease help.... My puppy constantly bites and scratches me! I can't do this anymore.... I have tried walking out the room, putting him in his crate, giving him something else to bite but he goes for my face and hands and it really hurts!! I love Cooper so much and just want the best for him but I can't take much more of this. I am hopful able to see my family at Christmas and I dreading introducing him to the children! Please help...
Hello and welcome. You have a very normal lab pup there they are fondly known as crocopups ! It is a phase and settles after about 16 weeks when their teeth start dropping out. The only thing that worked for us was distraction. Cardboard boxes, frozen carrots, stuffed kongs etc..Regarding children at Christmas, it depends how old they are and how old your pup is but really young pups and young kids don't really mix. I kept my 6 year olds away from Meg until she was over this biting stage. It was not worth the inevitable bites and tears. Have a look at old posts, there are loads with the same question and have a look at this helpful thread too Biting Puppies: Help For New Puppy Parents
I would arrange to bring a big crate with you at Xmas and a puppy house line and have your pup tethered to you throughout so you can monitor what's going on. Any interaction with kids should involve a toy so the pup can bite that and just intervene and separate if needed. Be sure you are getting your pup out daily for a socialisation outing and that you are doing enough training and play with toys at home. Oftentimes when I see really bad play biting, it's because the owner is not interacting enough with the puppy in productive ways so the pup is seeking that engagement in the only way they know how - or the pup has too much energy because they are not getting out enough for a socialisation trip every day to somewhere new.
Hi I’ve just come through this stage my trainer advised me to say AHH loudly, stand up and turn my back for 1 minute then continue as normal. On a few occasions he persisted and I had a training line so I pulled it gently saying AHH followed by out and he was placed in our wash room for 3 minutes. This seemed to do the trick though admittedly I’m still cautious at certain parts of the day so after 6pm and I ensure there’s lots of chew things in case it’s his teeth triggering this.
This is all aversive training, which will damage your relationship with your puppy in the long-term - so please find another trainer who knows how to train using positive methods. This forum doesn't permit the promotion of aversive training techniques.
