Training a Puppy to Stop Biting

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Taking home a new puppy is going to be an exciting new quest that will also bring a lot of responsibility in rearing the puppy and providing it with proper training. The moment the dog comes home, training should start immediately although this is the time when the owner is still enjoying the cute little pup. The owner must just keep in mind that everything he does will create an impact on the behavior of the puppy and will carry this on even when he is already an adult.

The puppy training should be consistent throughout its life so that the behaviors that are allowed with the owner are also allowed with people that enter the home. If the behavior would be an embarrassment or could cause harm or annoyance to the person entering the home the owner must not allow it with himself, otherwise the dog will be confused as to what behavior is appropriate to do with people.

Biting

A usual issue that has to be prevented through training is biting. Puppies like to bite because they are still trying to explore their world and sadly, people at times get the burden of this attention.

When this happens, make sure that you do not hit or slap your dog when training it to stop biting as the puppy might think that the owner is actually playing with it, playing rough like dogs will make them do it with each other.

One way to train the puppy to stop biting is to refuse to play aggressive games with it such as tug of war, chase or wrestling. Although these activities are fun for dog and owner, they encourage aggressive behavior which is not acceptable for the dog to exhibit with all humans that come into the home.

One of the most ideal ways of training a puppy not to bite is by saying Ouch loudly whenever it tries to bite you, and then look away and turn your back away from it. This would just let them know that like dogs, it is a way of telling him that he is hurt and that he does not want to play that way.

This will make the puppy understand that he will be given a negative reinforcement whenever it bites and will not be given attention like he thinks it would. On the other hand, if your puppy calms down and does not try to bite, give him a treat of reward him with attention and praise so that the right behavior is reinforced.

If the puppy bites down on the hand, the owner should place one finger inside the mouth under the puppy’s tongue and hold onto the bottom of the jaw with the thumb for about ten seconds. The pressure should only be firm enough that the puppy cannot get away for that amount of time. The puppy will not be able to bite down and it will provide the negative reinforcement that the behavior is not acceptable to use.