Bad Behaviour
Alfie may seem like the perfect puppy, but he has got very sharp teeth, and has had a problem with bite inhibition. He used his teeth when playing, cuddling and kissing. He didn't mean to hurt, but his teeth are very sharp and the bigger he gets, the worse it could get.We used 3 combined methods to help control this habit
- The first is to gently but firmly hold his snout closed whilst saying no bite, until he gives a big sigh and stops struggling.
- The second is to ignore him when he is using his teeth in play sessions and to stop playing with him.
- The third is to provide him with plenty of opportunities to bite and chew toys etc and to praise him for it when he chooses to bite a toy during play instead of us when we say "no bite".
After 8 weeks he was much better, he only used his teeth occasionally when kissing or cuddling, and was finally beginning to improve when playing or demanding to play. His bites were noticeably gentler too.
We knew that he was teething and that he would most likely grow out of it, but we still felt he needed to learn bite inhibition sooner rather than later.
At 81/2 Months this really isn't a problem any more, he still likes to nibble us, but oh so gently.. and if he occasionally gets over excited, we just go back to methods 1 and 2 above and he gets the message :)