Puppies sure are cute. And, yep, those little teeth are like needles. Yep, puppy bites hurt. Bite, nip, chew. That’s what puppies do. That’s how they explore their little puppy world.
What’s a new puppy owner to do? Here are a few simple training steps to ease a possibly painful situation in a painless way.
- Remember, your pet is a puppy. Dogs use their mouths to learn about their environment. If they see something, like the chair leg of a priceless antique, they’ll want to investigate. (Read: get their mouth around it and bite it.) And if they’re not “investigating,” they’re most likely playing with things, destroying things, and, in general, just having fun.
- Mind your mixed messages. Any attention, whether positive or negative, can cause a behavior to happen more often. Be careful you’re not rewarding behavior you’d rather not encourage.
- Offer a number of options. Variety is the spice of life. Make sure your dog has a good number of chew outlets, such as chew bones, tug toys, squeaky playthings, and interactive food toys. These are probably favored over a table leg any day of the week.
- Socialize. Most dogs love having canine playmates. But, just like humans, dogs aren’t born with perfect socialization skills. They need to practice. Set up doggy playdates with puppy peers. For additional tips, check out this blog post on dog-play.
- Cheer the better choice. Whenever your dog makes a choice of playing with his or her toys and things, versus furniture or another item, reward him or her with an extra special little treat. Dogs catch on quick. They’ll figure out what works to their advantage and what makes you happy and proud.
- Guard the environment. Arrange your puppy’s environment so he or she can’t practice behavior you don’t want. If you haven’t taught your dog what you want, or if you don’t have the time or energy to monitor your dog’s behavior, then you’ll want to keep him or her from making choices you don’t want them to make. This means, sequestering your dog to an area with enrichment to keep his or her mind (and mouth) occupied. However, avoid giving a “Time Out!” by just sending him or her to a crate, yard, or another room without anything to do. That would be too punishing. A bully stick or food enrichment toy in another area is certainly a fine option.
Remember, when developing your training and management plan for puppy nipping and chewing, determine what you want from your dog, teach him or her what you want, provide appropriate outlets and reward heavily for making the better choice. This will make everyone happy, including your dog and everyone else in the household.