# Dracula puppy



## Very muddy (Jun 8, 2012)

I was wondering if anyone had any tips or solutions they could share please. I feel like we are on a downwards spiral!

We have a 12 week old puppy called Monty who is gorgeous and we love him very much. HOWEVER (!) he is starting to drive us a little bit mad and actually I'm a bit concerned. :devil:

Monty has started to bite - we're not just talking mouthing, we are talking snapping and biting and this evening he put puncture wounds in my husband's hand which resulted in a verbal explosion from my husband and time out for Monty. Is this normal for this age? Do you have tips for stopping it and getting the message home that this is really unacceptable? I'm really worried he is going to take a chunk out of a very small child. 

any help, suggestions, tips or advice would be really appreciated.

Thank you.

X


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## RuthMill (Jun 30, 2012)

I dont think you should worry at all. It's definitely an age thing. Lola is exactly the same. I find she is worse when she is tired and doesn't realise. Time out is a good idea it gives them a chance to calm down and usually Lola falls asleep. The other thing is if you are playing or having a cuddle and he starts biting make sure you always have a toy he likes to chew. We have all sorts for Lola but have found when she is in a bitie mood a soft toy is best like a small teddy. This seems to satisfy her much better than a chew toy. If he bites have the toy at the ready, tell him NO, give him the toy saying good boy. Some people suggest yelping like another dog would but I found this made Lola worse. I am not experienced by any means however we are going through the same as you and I am starting to see an improvement. 

Hope this helps,
Ruth.

Ps ice cubes, frozen carrot sticks are great for teething!


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## RuthMill (Jun 30, 2012)

Sorry if I called him a her sometimes... So used to saying she.


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## Nanci (Mar 1, 2012)

Sami went through an awful spell of biteing hands and shredding noses if we got to close . . it really smarted!! We ended up keeping 2 water spray bottles handy that worked pretty well . . others on here have suggested pebbles in a plastic bottle to shake as a deterent . . ours was mostly


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## Nanci (Mar 1, 2012)

sorry . . Sami actually jumped on my laptop and sent that message early for me!! lol I was saying Sami mostly did this at night time and was over excited and tired . . .but take heart . . this does pass . . as soon as Sami got his big boy teeth at 5 months this has almost stopped completely . . now just a firm "no" will suffice and he stops. This is not aggression, just puppy phase.


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## Scarlett (Dec 15, 2011)

I think that it is normal for pups to bite, so try not to worry about it too much  Scarlett did quite a bit of biting and at times it did get frustrating when nothing would get her to stop. I kept waiting for it to get better as she got older and as her teething was finishing, etc. but it seemed like it never would. One day not too long ago, my husband and I were talking about how it seemed like her biting just stopped one day. Now she will still nip at times when she is playing and accidentally catches your finger instead of her toy (ouch!) but she doesn't go after our hands and feet like she used to. So try to be patient and keep correcting the behaviour (we never stopped correcting her, no matter how frustrated we got) and it will get better for you!


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## Very muddy (Jun 8, 2012)

Hi there. Thank you for your support and helpful comments. I thought it was an age thing but seems to be getting worse! He decided to have a go at my mother-in-law this afternoon (oops) which was probably the worse person he could have picked for an attack! We've got oodles of teething bones and toys but is seems nothing beats a hand or an ankle.

I'll keep persevering! 

X


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## MillieDog (Jun 1, 2011)

Once the adult teeth come in things should improve, thats at about 16 weeks. 

You could try praising gentle mouthing and naming it, Gentle and yelp if he bites too hard. When you are having a cuddle always keep a soft puppy toy to hand, if the play gets too much and nipping gets out of control, shove the soft toy in his mouth. Puppies feel and learn so much through their mouth. Finally how much sleep is he getting, puppies need about 18+ hours sleep a day and if they don't get it, they get tetchy and bitey just like a small child.

It will pass


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## designsbyisis (Dec 27, 2011)

Don't fret. I had much the same with Dexter & started questioning even if we'd done the right thing. I taught the off command by having a treat in a clenched fist & not letting him have it until he moved his face away. I then used the off verbal command for a whole & now use it if teeth hits skin. 

As soon as adult teeth arrived he stopped the biting. 




Sent from my iPhone 
Lisa - mum of 3 boys, Dexter Cockapoo & 4 hens !


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## Muttley Brody (Feb 14, 2012)

When we attended dog training classes, we were told to yelp as that is what their siblings would do if things were getting too rough.


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## Very muddy (Jun 8, 2012)

Hi there. As I write, Monty is curled up next to me on the sofa looking absolutely angelic and not at all affected by his bitey run in with my mother-in-law today - he's braver than I am! 

It's lovely to hear from you all and to learn it's a phase. We've tried yelping loudly and Monty seems to quite like the noise and he has another go straight after a yelp. Little monkey. Time out seems to work but I'm conscious that we're not supposed to use the crate as a punishment but he hates being away from the hustle and bustle of our very busy family home and he tends to be better behaved after five minutes of thinking time.

Tiredness could be a culprit too milliedog. I'll look into that. And lisa, the off command could be quite useful so I'll have a go with that too. Thanks to you all for your help. 

Once we've cracked the biting, we'll have to have a go at curbing his enthusiasm to 'helping' with the washing and dragging it through the flowerbeds!  

Sally

Ps. Must get a photo sorted of our little pup too.


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## JoJo (Mar 2, 2011)

Sorry I shouldn't laugh .. but washing dragged through the flowerbeds .. I have an easy way to stop this .. great training tip .. just stop doing the washing lol .. 

Hope the puppy nipping stops soon .. I use the yelp, muzzle hold and swap method .. be consistant it does work ... there is a big different in puppy nipping, mouthing etc and a growl type snap .. puppies play with their mouths .... and you can stop this with these easy methods  .. now stop doing the washing ... just buy loads of new clothes lol  and enjoy your puppy xxxx


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## tessybear (May 1, 2011)

They all do it, be patient there is light at the end of the tunnel! We have all been through it. Dexter was a terrible biter and he is now the gentlest dog.


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