HELP 9wks old puppy!! My arms look like I've been through a berry patch. All teeth, but when I correct her She gets mad and bites and if I even pin her down she starts as soon as she is loose all over again .Isn't food motivated or toy it's her way or no way.I have almost all your dvd's bought them statring in Jan and didn't get puppy until May 25.What Am I doing wrong.even Vet had to pin her.Said get a trainer.he wants 690.00 for 4 visits and I have spent 3-0r400, on your dvd's what Am I missing?Home all day with her so can work on problem.

must . . have . . more . . .info

Quit trying to pin her down Marcia, most of the time its going to seem to her like your attacking her. Its a fight in her eyes. Have a leash on her, a light weight drag line so you can control her without it being so physical.

The dvd's are great, but puppies arent machines so what works for one may not for another, or at least not right away. One reason she may not show any interest yet is that you've gotten stuck at trying to stop things more then showing her what you want. Vets don't always have great skill at handling high drive pups, so don't let that be much of a factor in how you work with her beyond teaching her to accept being touched.

For a little while here, I'd concentrate on just letting her get used to her new home, some exploring, and calling her to you for the foundation of a good recall. Try and break the cycle of fighing with her and pay attention to what she seems to like when she's a little calmer so you can start to work with her again.

at this age , i'd just try to " extinguish " the behaviour , that is , don't encourage or correct , just ignore it .

if she doesn't think there will be any fun / entertainment in it ( chewing on you ) she'll soon learn to look elsewhere .

having said that , you need to be providing her with the appropriate means to release that energy .

hopefully you haven't gone too far with the pin . . .


if you can foresee situations where she is likely to start to gnaw on you , prepare yourself with gloves and good sleeves so that her efforts won't have any effect on you .

hth . . .

Hi Marcia

I had exactly the same shock to the system with our Boerboel pup, after 2 English Pointer pups who were like angels, we thought the devil incarnate had been spawned, we tried the rolling and pinning, and that just incensed her, distraction, bribery, ignoring, nothing worked, she followed me round the place trying to bite my arse, ankles, in fact anything she could sink her razor sharp teeth into, after 2 weeks off work to bed her in, I looked like a self harmer, in short, she was a nightmare.

I ended up getting her teething Kong's that you can spoon peanut butter or cream cheese into, small rawhides etc, anything that gave her something else to teeth on, and while I can't pin a specific time down, it only lasted for a few weeks, by which time I also introduced a tug for play, and some gentle exercise around the garden to tire her out.

It will get better I promise, but some pups seem more mouthy than others, her sibs were nothing like her, but she was pushy as a week old pup, stroppy as an 8 week old pup, tenacious as a one year old, and a honey now she is 3, keep the faith, try not to lose your cool, and the crate is your friend.

Good luck, and would love to see some pics

Marcia, it sounds like you got Leo's sister. lol

Redirect onto appropriate toys, don't wear something your not prepared to have torn, STOP PINNING HER, no alpha rolling, stop with corrections entirely!

My older son found out the hard way that "fighting" with him when he grabs clothes just kicks him in drive, and Leo gets a thrill out of "fighting" (he thinks it's playing lol).

She needs to be managed, control her environment so that she has the opportunity to chew on what she is supposed to. Drag line and collar until she can control herself. (No leash corrections) She is in a new environment with new rules, a new pack leader, and doesn't know whats appropriate. Besides the fact that she is 9 weeks old! She should be tethered to you anyway for potty training.

How you react to her when she gets in her mouthy mode is going to dictate how she reacts to the situation. Don't play tug with her using your clothes because it's going to make her tug harder. Be calm (as hard as it is), hold the article of clothing still and try to redirect onto a toy she is allowed to play with (I even used long pieces of grass at one point, he loved those!).

Kongs (frozen or not) like Tracey mentioned are great, if you google search for Goughnuts, those are good too for chewers. Give her an antler to chew on.

Leo is my working line KNPV Dutch Shepherd who had quite the mouthy streak when he was a young pup. I've got more torn clothes then I care to mention, but we worked through it, he knows whats expected of him, and is a happy camper.

He still loves to "fight", but in the right setting with the appropriate toys, and only with me. Now that I know 100% that he knows what is expected, I use a squirt bottle with water to "correct" any behavior that he starts up with. He gets the point quickly. Don't forget to reward for good behavior, sometimes that gets lost in the mix.

What kind of pup do you have? Whats her name? Pictures!

Just went/going through the same thing... what I have learned.
Carry a stick or a braided rag for distracting the puppy. (to bite/chew on)
Carry treats for the puppy. Work on position commands.
WEAR OLD CLOTHES. Buy neosporin.
Keep puppy on a line when you're working with her, in her crate or ex-pen when you're not.
If puppy is getting cranky and you're sure she's getting enough play, she might be getting a little too much play and may need a nap (I'm an idiot and didn't figure this one out until yesterday)
A homemade flirt pole is great for keeping the pup's teeth engaged at more than arm's length! (3' pvc plumbing line, 5' nylon rope strung through it, a rag tied on the end)
When your patience is about gone, or hers is, put her up and take a break.
Also got a 'foraging' toy, he gets part of his morning and evening meals in it to burn out some of his mental energy and bite the heck out of it while he's really hungry - once it's empty he gets the rest of his meal as a reward. She might be a bit young for that yet.

Kristin,

I agree they can get cranky when tired. Some puppies are mellow and will just fall asleep. But others, like ours will keep on playing and get cranky!!

BTW, what is a "foraging toy"?

I guess I'm translating to what they call them with parrots - a toy they have to play with and chew on to get kibbles out? He actually picked this one out:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=12296710&lmdn=Dog+Toys

Though there are tons of others. Treat dispensers, puzzle toys etc.

 Quote: Kristin Muntz

Just went/going through the same thing... what I have learned.
Carry a stick or a braided rag for distracting the puppy. (to bite/chew on)
Carry treats for the puppy. Work on position commands.
WEAR OLD CLOTHES. Buy neosporin.
Keep puppy on a line when you're working with her, in her crate or ex-pen when you're not.
If puppy is getting cranky and you're sure she's getting enough play, she might be getting a little too much play and may need a nap (I'm an idiot and didn't figure this one out until yesterday)
A homemade flirt pole is great for keeping the pup's teeth engaged at more than arm's length! (3' pvc plumbing line, 5' nylon rope strung through it, a rag tied on the end)
When your patience is about gone, or hers is, put her up and take a break.
Also got a 'foraging' toy, he gets part of his morning and evening meals in it to burn out some of his mental energy and bite the heck out of it while he's really hungry - once it's empty he gets the rest of his meal as a reward. She might be a bit young for that yet.

Marcia;

Trust me... if anyone knows about this, it's Kristin!!

P.S. Good job, K! I especially liked the neosporin tip. I'm guessing you got by without the punching bag?