Incessant nipping

[Dcreese]

Hi all, new to the site so please be gentle! Our 10 week old black and silver girl is an absolute beauty, however we really can't seem to improve on the nipping. My feet are cut to shreds! We have tried the turning around and ignoring her, tried putting a chew toy in her mouth as a replacement to my feet and tried to give her time outs in her pen when she does it. Nothing is working. Does anyone have any pearls of wisdom? Thank you

[zeta1454]

Hi Darran - the puppy nipping stage is always a challenge. Good news is that this is a stage all pups go through while they are teething and they do grow out of it - even if you do nothing at all.

However, you don't want to be "cut to shreds" in the meantime! Ignoring her may not be successful with this as it is likely to be pain from teething that is causing the nipping and she does need alternatives to chew on. Are you making sure that she gets regular rest periods through the day and is not getting overtired? Overtired puppies (like over tired children) can get irritable and, with puppies who may also be suffering pain from teething, this is going to lead to an increased likelihood of nipping.

If you don't already have a regular schedule of play / rest / training / meals etc. through the day, try to start a routine with regular periods in her playpen. Young pups should be having several regular rest periods of about an hour spread through the day.

Using a clicker, you can start simple training exercises with her, rewarding with tiny treats, and in my experience puppies quickly respond to training as a fun activity and this can help distract from teething pain / nipping. If you are new to clicker training, check it out online as there are plenty of websites and videos to guide. Karen Pryor is a pioneer of this training and her website has plenty of guidance:

https://www.clickertraining.com/puppy-nipping

Chew toys vary considerably in how exciting they are and, if the ones you have are not enough of a distraction, you could try others perhaps - Anco roots; antlers; tripe sticks or raw lamb ribs (if you are OK with giving raw meat).

https://www.ancodistributors.co.uk/anco-roots

We give raw lamb ribs to weaned puppies and they love them. Once she is 16 weeks old you could also try Yak sticks which all our dogs love.

http://yakers.co.uk

If you have a Kong type chew toy, fill it with something tasty to tempt her and you could also give a frozen carrot as a teething treat when she is in her playpen which can also ease the pain for the puppy. The more interesting and fun distractions you can offer and the more time she has to rest after play and training, the less likely she is to be constantly nipping but, as it is a stage all puppies go through, you will also need to be patient with her and try to make sure the opportunities for getting her teeth on your toes or fingers are minimised

[Dawnspell]

Hi Darran

I can totally sympathise, Jasper is now 13 weeks and is a total mouth monster (although nobody believes me when we're out as hes always on best behaviour , that's schnauzers for you)

He has got better but arms and ankles are full of scratches. I wouldn't say I've found anything that's stops him totally other than barrier separation but its more a case of calming down.

- I taught him the touch command. He basically has to put his nose to my hand when asked to touch and gets a treat. This has really helped for stopping the feet chasing when outside or getting around the house. He picked up the command in 2 sessions. If I see him acting with intent to feet chase I quickly ask for touch. He does it and gets a treat. I then ask for touch again while taking a step and putting my hand in front or to the side and so on. Laborious I know but it helps him concentrate on something else. He will normally then walk along side without biting and I give him an occasional treat.

- Trying to distract him from biting fingers with a toy if hes on my knee. This I've found just winds him up even more to try to get your arms or fingers. Instead I've been using a long pizzle, calf hoof, fallow deer antler, dried tripe. He starts chewing on that while I hold it and it calms him. If I let go for him to chew on his own hes straight back after fingers and arms

- If hes in bity mood and is trying to jump up to get you on the settee or anything like that while we're sitting a few minutes of asking for sits, downs or the touch again gets him settled by having to concentrate.

He has always been one for things in his mouth. I had him and a litter mate on my knee at 5 weeks he was chewing clothes, fingers anything in reach while his litter mate sat there then went to sleep When hes not trying to chew us he has something in his mouth. He will walk around chewing a piece of tripe with it dangling out of his mouth not lay down and chew. We have loads of different legal toys or edible chews all around the house. Thankfully the only thing he has chewed of ours is a cork coaster which he managed to steal from off the coffee table

I know its really frustrating at times. If you feel yourself getting annoyed or really losing your patience with her. Put her in her crate without saying anything and just sit calm by the crate without interacting but being there, its not a punishment she just has to learn to calm down before she gets attention. If shes like Jasper you'll get a few extra bites in the process. She may whine and protest but that's better than you being annoyed with her. As she calms give her some treats for good behaviour.

They do grow out of it but those darn puppy teeth are so sharp. I feel your pain, physically