April 19, 2011
Our dog nips at our hands and legs. I tried to yelp and turn away when he did this, (to make him stop). It did not help. What can we do?
Full Question:
I was reading your article on aggression in dogs and I have a question for you. I recently purchased a Beagle/sheltie mix. Well, that's what the mother was in the shelter I got it from. They couldn't tell me what the father was.My question is this; he has a bad habit of biting and nipping at my wife and me. He will be playing fine, but every once in a while he will start barking at us and lunging at our feet, hands etc.
He also has a fear or other dogs I think. When I take him outside when there are other dogs in the neighborhood near us, and if one of the dogs barks while we are outside with him he will run back to the door and curl up next to it. Also, if I play with him he will play nice for a while, but if he doesn't get his way then he will start nipping at my hands. Sometimes, if I am petting him I can't get my hands near him without him trying to get his mouth on my hands. Currently I am trying to "yelp" when he bites or just comes to close. But, when I start to yelp and turn around he tries harder to get at my hands, feet etc. I am planning to get him to a school as soon as he gets all of his shots etc. if not just for the socialization factor. I was wondering if there was anything more I could do in the mean time.
Thanks,
Jarret
Ed's Answer:
You are doing exactly what you should not be doing. This dog is doing what it does because of dominance issues. The dog does not see you and your wife as pack leaders.
You "yelping" and turning away when the dog tries to bite your hands is classic submission in the eyes of your dog. It's OK to do this with an 8 week old pup but not a young adult.
Your dog needs some serious pack training corrections when it acts like this. I will guarantee you that I would be able to stop this dog from biting me in about 10 minutes. It will not take the dog that long to learn that this is inappropriate behavior with this human (me). I would use a drag leash and a dominant dog collar.
It also needs some very, very serious obedience training with a prong collar.
If you would like to learn something about the principles of obedience training a dog, read the description for my Basic Dog Obedience video. You will probably find that you have not had the full picture on the steps of training a dog must go through before it can be considered fully trained. You can also read why I am not a fan of taking an untrained dog to obedience classes.
You also need the DVD I produced titled DEALING WITH DOMINANT AND AGGRESSIVE DOGS - its 3 1/2 hours long
You "yelping" and turning away when the dog tries to bite your hands is classic submission in the eyes of your dog. It's OK to do this with an 8 week old pup but not a young adult.
Your dog needs some serious pack training corrections when it acts like this. I will guarantee you that I would be able to stop this dog from biting me in about 10 minutes. It will not take the dog that long to learn that this is inappropriate behavior with this human (me). I would use a drag leash and a dominant dog collar.
It also needs some very, very serious obedience training with a prong collar.
If you would like to learn something about the principles of obedience training a dog, read the description for my Basic Dog Obedience video. You will probably find that you have not had the full picture on the steps of training a dog must go through before it can be considered fully trained. You can also read why I am not a fan of taking an untrained dog to obedience classes.
You also need the DVD I produced titled DEALING WITH DOMINANT AND AGGRESSIVE DOGS - its 3 1/2 hours long
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