# Behavioral Troubles



## Milo26 (Sep 7, 2015)

Hi guys, I apologize for creating a new thread, only I really need feedback specific to Milo, here is the low down...

Milo is 7 months, weighing 14KGS, so on the bigger spectrum of a cockapoo. He is lovely however, he will have random biting attacks.
This includes jumping and biting in to the side of legs and thighs, and fingers too.
We attend dog training classes religiously every week, instructors have suggested the following to stop the 'attacks' occurring, none of which have worked:
Loud noise when he bites including yelping, turning your back (he then bites you from behind), walking out of the room (occasionally works), holding him underneath his collar (more biting), put him on lead so he cant jump up (chewed through them), time out in crate (no effect), redirecting focus to a 'sit' with treats (used to work).

Finally, he now has time off the lead on walks. When he sees another dog, he sprints to the other side of the field and starts to play fight with the other dog. This isn't helpful to owners who have a dog on the lead. I am fearful Milo may jump and bite a child whilst I am fast-walking across the field to recollect him. I have got a whistle, treats and a clicker...none of which refocus his attention on me when another dog is around.

Sorry for the essay, we really need some assistance, any would be helpful, thanks in advance.


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## fairlie (Sep 7, 2013)

He sounds charming. Seriously though if he were mine he would

a. not be allowed off lead outdoors until his recall was 100%
b. be kept on a chain typle lead so he can't chew through it, and so I could step on it to keep him from jumping up and biting
b. never be allowed to jump and bite and be put in a soft sided muzzle if he cannot be trusted
c. be given something constructive to do with his incredible take down energy like ball throwing or play with a favourite toy. If you train this indoors using a long lead reel him in with lots of encouragement until he brings it back willingly for another throw. 

Others will have different helpful ideas but one thing I bet we all agree on is that biting is a biggy.


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## RuthMill (Jun 30, 2012)

Hello. There are plenty of really experienced folk on here who are trainers or who have brought up lots of dogs and therefore have a wealth of experience. I am sure they will all be along to offer some help. Anything I would have suggested, you have tried already and I have no experience with these issues at 7 months old. I do think it would be useful to invite a 1:1 behaviour specialist or positive reward based trainer into your home to assess your pup and offer some bespoke help. 

I wish you all the best, he is still young and I am sure with the right help these issues can be sorted out. 

Let's see a picture of your little monkey.


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## Cat 53 (Aug 26, 2012)

Please don't take offence, but have you ( as a family) ever laughed or actively encouraged this sort of behaviour when he was smaller? People often think a pup hanging off a jumper sleeve is funny. They laugh and encourage the pup to do it again and again. The pup then learns this behaviour is acceptable and continues the behaviour as it ages. Now if this is a scenario that rings a bell then it's much harder to break. 

I think consistancy is key. Part of the problem is he has hit teenage, hence ignoring you. I would suggest taking him out on a longline and going back to basics with his training. I am sure others will be a long to offer a lot more help.


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## 2ndhandgal (Aug 29, 2011)

As fas as the off lead goes he needs to go back on a long line and not be allowed off lead until he has a reliable recall - many adult dogs will not tolerate that sort of behaviour and I would not be impressed if my on lead dogs were leapt over by an off lead dog - more to the point my dogs would also not be impressed and would be likely to make that point to your puppy.

Jumping up and biting - you need to work out when and why he is doing it to work out the way to stop it. I like to teach pups to play tug with rules so they learn that the second their teeth touch human skin the game stops and also teach them to let go of the toy when asked and this can give a lot more control over this sort of behaviour. If your pup is doing it as an (albeit very rough) attempts at play then removing yourself from the room instantly as soon as he starts sounds the most sensible way - but for a long standing behaviour you would need every person to be totally consistent and make sure there was no other methods employed - often peoples attempts to tell off or push down pups just encourage the behaviour.


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

Oh dear poor mad Milo - being a 7 month old thug puppy is tough! 
Adolescence is tough what ever species you are and as Cat 53 (Marilyn) says what was cute(ish) or just laughable when pups are 2 months old is suddenly really not funny when they start throwing their weight around at 7 months.
A clicker, whistle or even rustling treats will not be enough to entice a dog back to you if what he associates with these things is being trapped back on to his lead and the end of his fun.
Training is the answer - but you need to be doing it more at home or in environments where there is little/no distractions. A long line will give you control - although I appreciate that a long line in these muddy days is potentially really disgusting. 
However it is also really important to find ways of getting your pup to enjoy responding to you and also helping him to use up energy. Encourage retrieving type games as Fairlie suggests, but also try trick training and just basic obedience inside... keep it simple with plentiful rewards so he really looks forward to these sessions. Try and involve all members of the family and if he starts lunging and biting immediately end the session put him in the kitchen and ignore him for 10 minutes and then go back and try again. Training sessions need only be 3 minutes long, but they need to be frequent - whenever you boil the kettle or in an advert break on TV etc.
If your dog is constantly frustrating and annoying you it will damage your relationship with him you really need to work at enjoying him too.


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## Milo26 (Sep 7, 2015)

Thanks to all for your suggestive ideas. 
As a family, it's treated very seriously. 
Name recall is spot on during training and when off the lead, hence why we let him off occasionally. The problem is when another dog is around.
The games we have also tried but the fingers get bitten and the jumping up and biting occurs almost straight away. 
We may need to have a serious think of alternate training methods. 
Here's a pic Milo had at training classes, as if butter wouldn't melt!


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## fairlie (Sep 7, 2013)

He is beautiful. Milo is far from the first puppy we've seen here who is way over the top with the fiendish biting. Rufus was one of them, so much so that I nearly gave up on him. It's like getting a Lamborghini when what you wanted was a family sedan. Is he your first dog? I'd had plenty of experience before Rufus so I knew from the get go that he was not "normal" in any sense. I was able to devote hours to training him and more importantly hours to the bond between us. That is what will work, hours of training, fun, and affection with no opportunity for him to do wrong. He needs to know he is a valued, important member of your pack and that he has a big boy job to do. In the wild he'd be the very best in his pack at taking down prey, pro dog people seek out these very high energy strong prey drive dogs because they are great at fly ball, agility and so on. I did want a sedan but I must say a Lamborghini is alot of fun. There are alternate training options. A friend of mine recently sent her dog away to a positive training boarding type school where the pros worked on some of his issues for a full week. Please keep us posted about how he is doing.


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## essexabi21 (Jan 12, 2016)

Milo26 said:


> Hi guys, I apologize for creating a new thread, only I really need feedback specific to Milo, here is the low down...
> 
> Milo is 7 months, weighing 14KGS, so on the bigger spectrum of a cockapoo. He is lovely however, he will have random biting attacks.
> This includes jumping and biting in to the side of legs and thighs, and fingers too.
> ...


Hay my puppy does this how r u dealing wid the biting ? Coz it's driving me crazy Nothink seems to work x

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk


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## Milo26 (Sep 7, 2015)

essexabi21 said:


> Hay my puppy does this how r u dealing wid the biting ? Coz it's driving me crazy Nothink seems to work x
> 
> Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk


Hi there,
We have all decided to exit the room when he is biting because he is doing this for attention. So by leaving the room he doesn't get this. We leave him for about 2 minutes because it gives him time to calm down and bite toys rather than us!
Hope this helps X


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