puppy-nibbling-on-me

Puppy nibbling on me

When we welcome a puppy, we expect many things. That he will pee everywhere but outside, that he will go everywhere but in his basket, that he will want to play 24 hours a day, but not necessarily that he will chew everything within his reach.

So a chewing puppy at first is cute, even funny, but it quickly becomes annoying and frustrating.

But you look at your puppy too cute and you don't want to scold or punish him. Don't worry, I'll come into your living room like a superhero and tell you all about how to train a chewing puppy.

You will understand why your puppy chews everything that moves and even what doesn't move, how to remedy it, what to do and what not to do in his education.

Rest assured, a puppy that chews can be trained to forget this behavior. In short, follow the guide, it's here!

 

Puppy chewing on everything all the time: why?

Before knowing how to prevent a puppy from chewing everything, the first question you have to ask yourself is: why does my puppy chew everything he finds?

First of all, I want to reassure you that this is not a problem of aggressive behavior and your dog will not become a monster. Phew, reassured no? Yes ? I knew it.

So let's start with the beginning of your puppy's life. When your fur ball was about 4 weeks old, he started playing with his brothers and sisters. When I say play, that's a big word. In fact, they were jumping on each other, pushing each other around and... chewing on each other.

When a puppy is adopted, it takes a while (about a week) for him to understand that his new family is you.

And once he understands that, he will do the same thing as his brothers and sisters: he will bite, chew and so on. A chewing puppy is really a puppy that shows affection.

Now you know what the main reason is for your puppy to chew on your living room table, your shoes, etc. He plays with his new family as he would with a dog.

He plays with his new family just like he did with the rest of the litter. He doesn't know any different, he's always done this and for him it's a natural and mostly normal behavior that he does for fun.

At the same time, I don't want to say or defend him, but how could a puppy that chews know that it's not right or how could he know what you haven't taught him yet?

Well, now that you know why a puppy chews, it's time for me to tell you how to stop it and control this playful behavior.

Because yes, a puppy that chews is not a fatality, there are solutions to this behavior and I will give you the one that I applied to my puppy Uno and that worked perfectly.

My puppy, now an adult dog, was considered a "chewing dog". But those days are over and he no longer chews on everything he finds.

 

dog-training

 

Puppy chewing: stop this behavior!

I would advise you to act very quickly, because the longer you wait, the more your dog will get into the habit of chewing on everything in sight and the harder it will be for you to get him to stop this bad habit.

The first thing I would tell you to try is very simple. When your puppy starts chewing on your hand or calf, try to redirect his bite to a toy or chew bone. You can't stop this playful behavior, but you can teach him to control and channel it.

For younger puppies, this solution, strange as it may seem, is enough to stop your puppy from biting. But don't dream, it's not always that simple. Some puppies are tough as nails.

kong

 

 

It's just like when you're training him for basic commands. It may not work the first time (it sure won't) and patience will be your motto. A chewing puppy needs time to understand that this behavior must stop.

By the way, when the time comes to teach him to lie down, sit, not move etc. I advise you this effective method: ➡ "Brain Training For Dogs".

Let's get back to our sheep, our chewing puppy. You can also, when he starts to chew on you, go away and leave him alone for a while.

For a chewing puppy, chewing on you is a game, and when you leave, he is no longer playing. He will understand quite quickly that as soon as he bites, you stop playing and as time goes by, everything will return to normal.

And finally there is another method. Let me explain. As I told you above, your puppy used to chew his brothers and sisters. When it hurt one of them, he would whimper.

The puppy that was doing the chewing would stop. Are you still following me? So now you're going to do what your puppy's brother or sister did.

So I'm not asking you to lie down on the floor or in the basket. But to make movements with your hand. As soon as your dog bites your hand and the pain is there, let out a high-pitched squeal (a squeal or an ouch or an ouch as you like).

Then gently remove your hand from your puppy's mouth and don't pay attention to him for a minute. You can even leave the room. Come back and do it again. And so on.

But don't do this more than 3 times in 15 minutes. When he doesn't bite, reward him with a little treat for example.

All work deserves a reward after all! The purpose of this method is to surprise your dog with your voice and make him understand that as soon as he bites, he loses his playmate. It's that simple!

 

puppy-nibbling

 

Nibbling puppy: What not to do!

You are not a dog trainer and there are probably things you don't know you shouldn't do. But by helping my friends and their dogs, you will learn some tips and especially what not to do.

Don't scold your dog, don't punish him and most of all, don't hit him.

I'm against that kind of thing and it's also valid to teach him not to chew.

When your puppy lets go, praise him with a little pat and encouragement or a treat, but don't get carried away or overdo it.

If you jump up and down with joy (okay, I'm exaggerating a little), he'll think it's a game, chew you up again and you'll fall into a vicious cycle.

Try to always have a toy he can chew on within reach. That way you can redirect his attention at any time. A chewing puppy needs to be able to refocus his attention.

When you get his attention with a toy, shake it to get his attention and throw it a few inches away.

There is a method I haven't tried, but I've heard of. If your puppy is more likely to bite than chew, wear an old pair of thick cloth (sturdy) gloves and apply something that has a strong smell to it.

Your pooch will quickly learn that biting doesn't taste good. Well, apparently some dogs quickly learn that when you take off your gloves, your hands are available for their fangs again.

 

Conclusion

A chewing puppy is the expression of an innate play behavior that is part of the dog's genetic makeup and behavioral repertoire.

That's a nice way of putting it, don't you think? Clearly, you should not try to suppress this behavior, but you can teach him to control himself.

In other words, your dog chewing on your shoelaces, your calves and everything else within his reach is normal, but the good news is that he will get over it and will learn to control this behavior. I hope so for your sake, especially as he gets older, but I don't doubt it for a second.

Do the gestures that I explained to you, be patient and you will not have any more traces of fangs on your minimes.

In any case, I reassure you, this is not a sign that your dog will be aggressive later. I repeat, because I know that some owners have this fear. Your dog will be as gentle as a lamb that is chewing for the moment.

As you can see, a chewing puppy is not a fatality!

 

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