Malaysia Veterinary Forum (Archive)

ju · Joined: 25 May 2008 Posts: 7 Location: Labuan

Hi. I'm having a Miniature Schnauzer 2.5 months old. He is very active and playful. I know his teeth are itchy and he has his toy/chew to bite on.However, he likes to bite our hands and legs.

Can anyone advice how to teach him or to prevent him from biting us?

amhwong · Joined: 05 May 2008 Posts: 15 Location: Kuala Lumpur

Hi ju,

Puppy mouthing/biting is very normal. Puppies explore the world using their mouth (and teeth!). When puppies grow up in their litter, they learn bite inhibition through interaction with their littermates. Notice when puppies are playing and if one puts too much pressure on his bite, the puppy at the receiving end usually 'yelps' and walks away?? This is how puppies learn to control the pressure of their bite, as too hard a bite will end the play session with his littermate.

In this case, your puppy's littermates will be you and other members of your family. When your puppy's play-bite gets too hard, say a loud (high-toned) OUCH and immediately stop playing for a few seconds. Then allow him to mouth and play again. Repeat the OUCH and stop playing each time the puppy applies too much pressure.

If your puppy is not responding to the OUCH, just stop playing and get up and move away for a minute (we call this the "Timeout"), then resume play.

Practise this several times a day for 3-4 weeks. You should see some improvement. Let me know if you need further help.

ju · Joined: 25 May 2008 Posts: 7 Location: Labuan

Hi amhwong,

Thanks for your response. I have tried but he continues to bite. My friend scolded and slapped his puppy's mouth. Now his puppy won't bite him anymore. Just wondering whether this tactic works...

When he is not responding to my OUCH and go away, he will follow and even try to bite my legs instead.

Any other method to stop him from biting us?

cheng_see · Joined: 29 May 2008 Posts: 10

hi Ju,

Method A:
Using ouch and time out.
However when you do the "ouch" and time out,make sure your "ouch" is loud enough or else your dog will think you are the "large squeeky toy" :lol: . (especially for breeds that love playing squeeky toys :D )

Method B:
Next thing you can try is the "leave it" command.

This method is best taught as a game.
Place a treat on the palm of your hand and offer it to your dog to smell. However close your fist before he can take the treat. Do not withdraw your fist, just keep it closed and allow him to sniff at your hand.

Your dog will probably attempt to get the food but if you keep your fist closed he won't get the food and he won't get a grip on your hand to damage your skin. As soon as your dog pauses in his attempts to get the food, reward him with a treat from your other hand. Repeat this game until your dog is no longer trying to take the food but is waiting and possibly watching you for your response.
At this stage introduce the command “Leave” as he withdraws his nose from your fist.
Once your dog has learnt that "Leave" means "don't touch", he can be asked to "Leave" when he is play-biting.

Method C:
Transferring dog's attention to a chew-toy is another method you can use to teach him not to treat you as his personal chew-toy. If for example he is play-biting your hand, offer him a chew-toy instead.

WHY YOU SHOULD NEVER SLAP A DOG'S FACE/MOUTH:

This may (or may not in most cases) stop the dog from biting in the "short term", but may cause problems in the long term as a dog will never be sure whether a hand coming toward him is going to pat, or smack! If he decides that it is going to smack him, he may display aggressive behaviour toward that human to defend himself from what he sees as a threat.

I have come accross many case of dog snapping human hand when they reach out to give it a pat and after history taking from my cleints , without fail 80% of them admit that they have slap thier dog on the mouth. So don't use this method . Try Method A,B,C.

Cheers
Cheng See