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  1. #1
    Real Retriever PinkDragon14's Avatar
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    Biting taken to a whole new level

    So about a month and a half ago, I posted a thread asking what to do when your lab puppy bites. At that time, Murphy was just 8-10 weeks old and still learning. But now he's 15 weeks and the biting is getting WORSE. Now, I don't mean nipping here and there. I mean aggressive biting. I'll be sitting on the couch minding my own business, he'll come over, and just latch onto my leg or arm. This isn't a little nip - this is a BITE. I try to get him off, but then he starts lunging at my face with an open jaw and barking. It takes me a good 5 minutes to get a hold of him and put him in time out. Even if he's sitting and chewing his own toy, when I walk by, he comes out of nowhere and bites the back of my leg (which by the way hurts really bad. I don't recommend it!)

    I'm not sure what to do anymore. We have tried EVERYTHING. Lip curling, bitter spray (which I think was to blame for the diarrhea), water spray bottle, shoving toys in his mouth, positive training etc. Saying "no bite" doesn't work anymore. He ignores you and keeps biting. I've also tried teaching "gentle", but after he gets his treat, he's back to biting my arm. (Yes, I know this takes a long time to learn, but it doesn't "click" like his other commands)

    I understand teething and he may be in pain, but there's absolutely no reason for being this aggressive when he bites. I've given him ice, frozen washcloths, ropes, etc. so he definitely has enough to relieve his pain. My arms, legs, and feet are torn up from his constant biting. The other night, I was trying to get a hold of him and he ripped a good 4-5in long gash in my arm.

    We can't keep living like this! We can't even have people over without him being in his crate because he bites everyone and no one wants to be around him. He is scheduled to start puppy classes at Petsmart in 2 weeks, but I'm not sure we can make it that long.

    Does anyone have any suggestions? (We're also running out of peroxide, so something needs to be done LOL)

    (Also - we plan on taking him for walks in the neighborhood, but he still has one last set of shots before we can do that. We do go in the backyard and throw the kong, run around, etc.)
    Last edited by PinkDragon14; 08-28-2015 at 10:00 AM.

  2. #2
    Senior Dog Tanya's Avatar
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    given you frustration level I'd recommend working with a trainer. shouldn't take many visits (maybe at home would work better). a positive based knowledgeble trainer.

    Have you looked intot he trainer at the petsmart classes? Were those the only option? sometimes you can find a decent trainer there (or even a good one) but often it's just staff that followed a very basic course to then teach the stuff. so not ideal.

    what's a normal day for him like?

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  4. #3
    Real Retriever PinkDragon14's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tanya View Post
    given you frustration level I'd recommend working with a trainer. shouldn't take many visits (maybe at home would work better). a positive based knowledgeble trainer.

    Have you looked intot he trainer at the petsmart classes? Were those the only option? sometimes you can find a decent trainer there (or even a good one) but often it's just staff that followed a very basic course to then teach the stuff. so not ideal.

    what's a normal day for him like?
    The only class we saw at Petsmart geared towards puppies (without prerequisites) was the basic puppy class. The person working the "station" said that it would help him (not sure if she knows what she just signed herself up for...)

    I wanted to do a home trainer/different trainer, but the ones in our area are EXPENSIVE!!! I love Murphy and I don't want to get bit, but I'm not willing to hand over $150 for a 1hr session :P Still finding a cheaper one, but it isn't going very well

    Now, do you mean a normal day with biting or without? LOL

    He wakes up around 6-6:30a, eats his breakfast, takes a few trips outside, chews on his toys, *sometimes* falls asleep (he's growing out of his frequent naps sadly), eats his next meal around 12:30-1, plays with his toys, trips outside (this is usually when I try to run him around), an afternoon nap, eats his dinner around 7, plays until bed.

  5. #4
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    Boomer was still a nutbag at 15weeks, still nips (play nips) at 6mo just depends on his energy level if he's been worked that day or not. I wouldn't fret too much just pick one thing and stick to it. Mine was lip curl in back teeth and "no bite" over and over and over and I still do it.

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  7. #5
    Real Retriever PinkDragon14's Avatar
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    This may seem funny, but he just got out of his time out and started biting my ankle (he was more than happy to create a new rip on my ankle :P). I went on youtube and found a dog yelping and played that as he bit me. He immediately stopped and looked around and walked away.

    Maybe that's the trick? I have no idea. Our neighbors have 2 labs (3yrs I *think*) and I'd love for him to play with them so he can not only be put in his place, but to also have some "friends". He just needs that last set of shots before we can do anything

  8. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by PinkDragon14 View Post
    This may seem funny, but he just got out of his time out and started biting my ankle (he was more than happy to create a new rip on my ankle :P). I went on youtube and found a dog yelping and played that as he bit me. He immediately stopped and looked around and walked away.

    Maybe that's the trick? I have no idea. Our neighbors have 2 labs (3yrs I *think*) and I'd love for him to play with them so he can not only be put in his place, but to also have some "friends". He just needs that last set of shots before we can do anything
    I’ve never had a biter as bad as you are describing, but my pups have all responded to me yelping (like a littermate would). It doesn’t stop them from biting, but it does teach them to bite more gently so it doesn’t hurt as much. For my really mouthy ones (Scully and Chloe) that taught them to bite more gently, and the lip curl (rinse and repeat for weeks) taught them not to bite at all. Chloe still does gently mouth my arm when I let her - I use it as a reward in the Obedience ring.
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  10. #7
    Senior Dog Snowshoe's Avatar
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    If your neighbours dogs are vaccinated I'd let them play with Murphy. One at a time, a big dog can inadvertently hurt a puppy. Depending on the level of Parvo in your area maybe, but you do need to weigh the benefit of vaccination against the need for socialization. And many readings say the window for optimum socialization is up at 16 weeks but of course does not end there. You socialize and habituate all their lives.

    Did you try the lip curl over the teeth? Many folks here have reported success with that.

    Thinking to add, at Murphy's age and if the other dogs are male it might not help with the biting at all but might help dispel some energy. They say, and it's true for my boy, that the males are more tolerant of puppies than females. An adult bitch who has had puppies is sometimes very good at putting young whipper snappers ( ) in their place. We went out with an adult spayed bitch and she did not put up with Oban antics for long. Whereas I have to rescue Oban from puppies.


    ETA: Annette types faster than me, re. lip curl

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  12. #8
    Real Retriever PinkDragon14's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Annette47 View Post
    I’ve never had a biter as bad as you are describing, but my pups have all responded to me yelping (like a littermate would). It doesn’t stop them from biting, but it does teach them to bite more gently so it doesn’t hurt as much. For my really mouthy ones (Scully and Chloe) that taught them to bite more gently, and the lip curl (rinse and repeat for weeks) taught them not to bite at all. Chloe still does gently mouth my arm when I let her - I use it as a reward in the Obedience ring.
    We've tried the yelping, ow, yip, etc. He bites even harder when you do that. I think he enjoys the negative attention of it which is aggravating

    Quote Originally Posted by Snowshoe View Post
    If your neighbours dogs are vaccinated I'd let them play with Murphy. One at a time, a big dog can inadvertently hurt a puppy. Depending on the level of Parvo in your area maybe, but you do need to weigh the benefit of vaccination against the need for socialization. And many readings say the window for optimum socialization is up at 16 weeks but of course does not end there. You socialize and habituate all their lives.

    Did you try the lip curl over the teeth? Many folks here have reported success with that.

    Thinking to add, at Murphy's age and if the other dogs are male it might not help with the biting at all but might help dispel some energy. They say, and it's true for my boy, that the males are more tolerant of puppies than females. An adult bitch who has had puppies is sometimes very good at putting young whipper snappers ( ) in their place. We went out with an adult spayed bitch and she did not put up with Oban antics for long. Whereas I have to rescue Oban from puppies.


    ETA: Annette types faster than me, re. lip curl
    I think he's already had his parvo shot (not positive on that one though), but the parvo risk in our area is low-medium. Obviously I want him to socialize with all breeds/ages, but I also don't want to put him in the position of a giant dog towering over a small puppy (well, not small anymore, but small compared to an adult).

    We've done the lip curl many times. He's basically become immune to the pain. I reach for his mouth and he backs away and then lunges at you with an open mouth.

    I'm not sure what the dogs are regarding gender. I'm pretty sure they have a male, but I'm not positive on what the other one is. I was hoping an adult dog would put him in his place immediately

  13. #9
    Senior Dog zd262's Avatar
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    At 15 weeks he's probably pretty close to being done with his shots. In my opinion, I would definitely start taking him out in places that I consider "safe", and if you know these dogs then they seem like a great place to start. Just ask if they're vaccinated. I had Bubba out and about much earlier than that. It's all a personal decision of weighing the risks of parvo vs the risks of lack of socialization.

    And I don't think you need to worry about a large dog towering over him. First of all, you should be close to him at all times to pull him out of a situation. Second of all, is he submissive or particularly shy? My dog wouldn't even care about that so unless you know that your dog would, I wouldn't worry about it. One of Bubba's first interactions was with the largest Bernie I had ever seen, and it went great!

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  15. #10
    Real Retriever PinkDragon14's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by zd262 View Post
    At 15 weeks he's probably pretty close to being done with his shots. In my opinion, I would definitely start taking him out in places that I consider "safe", and if you know these dogs then they seem like a great place to start. Just ask if they're vaccinated. I had Bubba out and about much earlier than that. It's all a personal decision of weighing the risks of parvo vs the risks of lack of socialization.

    And I don't think you need to worry about a large dog towering over him. First of all, you should be close to him at all times to pull him out of a situation. Second of all, is he submissive or particularly shy? My dog wouldn't even care about that so unless you know that your dog would, I wouldn't worry about it. One of Bubba's first interactions was with the largest Bernie I had ever seen, and it went great!
    The walking trail near our street has plenty of dogs that walk on it each day (and that's why we're waiting until his next shots so he doesn't pick something up). It isn't a play environment, but it would be a quick socialization moment. The city just opened a dog park (or I guess I should say "pen" - just a small fenced area with gravel) but I'm not sure how many dogs play there on a daily basis either.

    He used to be shy when it came to other dogs (12wks old in the vet's office - he had never seen another "dog" before besides his siblings and he hid behind me), but 2 weeks ago at the vet's office, he was trying to play with an older black lab (who obviously didn't give a hoot about a small playful puppy!). I may take a walk over to their house this weekend and see if they'd be willing to have him play with their dogs. If not right now, definitely when he's a bit older (under supervision of course!)

 



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