How To Stop Puppy Biting Lesson 1
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biting puppies
Welcome to Lesson 1 in the series of "Biting Puppies. How To Stop Puppy Biting".
In this first lesson we will look at using Toys to stop Puppies from biting. Toys can be of great assistance when it comes to stopping Puppies from biting. As well as being a great distraction from biting things that should not be allowed, biting Puppies often are simply in need of something that can ease the pent up energy that many Puppies have. We will look at the benefits of Toys for Puppies that bite and nip, and also at some of the do's and dont's when it comes to using a Toy to control your Puppies constant biting.
Before I begin don't forget that fleas and ticks can be treated once your puppy is 8 weeks or more. Cheap frontline plus for Dogs seems to be the most effective way. Frontline for Dogs is fairly inexpensive so consider using it or another flea preventative.
Stop Biting Puppies Via Toys
If we are going to use Toys to stop our Puppy and biting then we need to ensure that we use them correctly. There are a few basic guidelines that we will look at in detail later on, but first some basic rules when it comes to learning how to stop biting Puppies through the use of Toys.
- No Tug of War
- No aggressive play with your Puppy
- keep playtime short
- Be in charge of the Toy
- Make sure you use a suitable Toy
- Observing play time
- How to use the Dog Toy effectively
We shall look at these different points in turn. Each one needs to be addresses fully for us to understand how we should interact with a biting Puppy if we are trying to stop it via the use of Dog Toys.
Tug Of War To Stop A Puppy Biting
When it comes to training puppies to not bite there are a few things we must remember.
Often Puppies get extremely excited because of the amount of energy they have. This quite often leads to the biting behaviour we are trying to stop. If we use Toys to help with the biting problem then we need to ensure we use the Toy correctly. This means we should never get involved with tug of war type games with a young Dog. The pulling of the Toy away from your Puppy will do nothing but exacerbate its already high energy levels.
Pulling may help strengthen your Puppy but it will also heighten its levels of aggression. This is NOT what you want to do. Controlling Puppy and biting is not achieved by using any activity that can raise the aggressive nature of a Dog. Ensure you never begin a rough pulling game as it may use up some of the Puppies high energy levels but it will still be hyper when the game ends and it may well become even more of a biting Puppy than it was previously.
No Aggressive Play To Stop Biting Puppies
A stated previously, no aggressive play if at all possible. Not just with games such as tug of war with Toys, but no aggressive play with Toys at all. Letting your Puppy think it is fine to play rough and aggressively with you will get you nowhere. Dogs may play roughly together but that does not mean that you will let it play roughly with you. You are giving biting Puppies justification for their biting habits.
Keep Playtime Short To Help Stop Puppies From Biting
Puppies tire very quickly and their energy levels can soon be dissipated. This is one of the advantages of using Toys to help burn off their energy. The use of a playful Toy will keep the Puppies interest and will help it burn of the energy that is more than likely causing the biting behaviour.
You do not need to make the playtime with a Toy very long. Keep playing the games with the Puppy and its Toy and it will soon become tired. You can see this if the Puppy is playing with the Toy on its own. It will soon give up and have a little rest. If you are involved in the play then make sure you stop as soon as you are aware that the Puppy is tiring. Controlling Puppy biting means keeping an eye out for the signs that your Puppy has spent some of its energy.
Do not prolong the play. If you keep trying to play when the Dog has clearly had enough for a while you may find that it starts biting and nipping out of frustration. You do not want this to happen as it can lead to aggression in later life.
Take Control Of The Toy To Control Puppy Biting
You need to be in charge of the Toy during playtime. From very early on you need to let the Puppy know that it is you who is in control. When you give your little Puppy the Toy to play with ensure that you can easily take it away again. Don't tease the Puppy with Toys by letting it try to grab for it only to draw it back at the last minute. This will lead to aggression and will get you nowhere but backwards.
You need to start trying to train your Puppy in other ways by the use of a Toy. Start the beginnings of training a Puppy to sit. Use the "sit" command and then give your Puppy the Toy. Obviously this will not happen overnight but it is a good excuse to begin. Give the Toy to the Puppy and play with it or allow the Puppy to play on its own. Whichever it seems the Puppy is most interested in doing. You will have learnt how to control Puppy biting for a short while whilst it is engaged in its activity. When you see the Puppy beginning to tire take the Toy away. You are asserting your authority and if the Puppies begins biting again you need to give a sharp correction such as a "no" or a "yelp". We will discuss these techniques fully in later Lessons.
Try repeatedly giving and taking away the Toy during play. Try using it to control the Puppies behaviour and at the same time you will be teaching it how to sit and stay calm in between play. You may find your Puppy simply has too much energy to be in control of itself when you take the Toy away. Puppy and biting can be difficult to control when you have something it wants. Don't despair, if your Puppy is to excitable for you to repeatedly give and take the Toy then just allow it to play until it becomes tired. You can teach it to react better to Toys and the fact that you are the owner of them once it has been trained out of its biting stage.
Use A Suitable Toy To Help Training Puppy Not To Bite
You must use suitable Toys if you are to be successful using Toys to control your Puppies biting behaviour. Rope Toys can be a very good Toy as long as you do not use them for games of tug of war and other overtly aggressive games. The rope Toy is probably one of the best Toys for Puppies as long as it is used correctly.
Nylabones can be very good for easing the biting instinct and the soreness that many Puppies have in their mouths because of emerging or new teeth. Just be sure you purchase a Nylabone Bone for Dogs that is suitable for Puppies. There are lots of different types available.
There are a cornucopia of different Toys available for Dogs. Ensure you purchase a Dog Toy that can not cause harm to your Puppy. Nothing with flimsy rubber pieces that can be chewed off. Get an indestructable Dog Toy if at all possible. Toys with food inside may keep your Puppy occupied for hours and will stop it getting involved in any biting behaviour for quite some time. A lot of methods involved in learning how to get a Puppy to stop from biting involve distracting it while it has the urge to wreak a little havoc!
Observe Playtime To Help Training Puppies To Not Bite
Puppies should be closely supervised if you decide to use Toys to help control their biting behaviour. Being extremely adventurous and interested in the world they can get up to all kinds of mischief if left unsupervised. You need to keep a close eye on your Puppy when it is playing with Toys. It may be able to chew pieces off the Toy. You need to watch to see if this is a concern. May Toys, even those labelled as indestuctable Dog Toys can still be chewed and damaged. Puppies are small and you do not want anything to be swallowed by it.
By observing playtime you can also gauge how long the Puppy like to play before it becomes tired. This will help in gauging how long you need to interact with it when playing with Puppy Toys. You may well be playing with the Puppy with its Toy. See how it reacts to different activities during playtime and follow through with the one it seems to enjoy the most.
Effective Use Of Dog Toys To Maximise How To Get A Puppy To Stop Biting
Toys are a very effective method of stopping Puppies biting hands, feet, ankles etc. The involvement keeps them focused on their Toy and game but you must use the right games and Toys. We talked about the best Toys for Puppies and we need to know how to play with them effectively.
We know not to use tug of war type games so what should we do to play with the Puppy and its Toy?
Fetch is probably one of the most popular and most effective games. It helps to tire Puppies very quickly and for controlling Puppy biting it is very effective. Throwing Toys for Puppies gives them a real chance to focus. They will run and slide after the Toy and probably give it a good shake. Don't expect it to return it, although some will be more inclined to do this than others. Regardless of whether it returns it to be thrown again or shakes it and rolls about, this is perfect for learning how to tire a Puppy.
Your Puppy will let you know when it is tired by slowing down or stopping play.
Other Toys are more just for solo play, such as Nylabones. You can interact by throwing and playing fetch as previously stated but Toys like Nylabones are perfect for letting the Puppy take out its biting aggression. Allow the Puppy to bite and chew on the Nylabone to satisfy its need to bite and chew.
There are other Toys where you fill them with food and these are very good at keeping the Dog occupied and away from mischief.
Use Dog Toys As A Distraction To Stop Biting Puppies
This is really the crux of the use of Dog Toys to stop biting. Toys should be available for the Puppy at all times if they are safe. You will of had to monitor them with the Toy first to ensure it is safe.
Where Toys really come in to their own though is as a distraction. Whenever your Puppy starts biting and nipping use a Toy as a distraction. If the Puppy is excited and jumping up or running around nipping at everything in sight then call it and give it the Toy. This technique really is one of the best ways to stop biting Puppies.
Used effectively and at the moment that you wish to correct Puppy biting the Dog Toy can be very effective against biting Puppies. Puppy training biting problems still occuring? Remember to stay consistent with your training. Read more...
