How to Get Your Puppy to Stop Biting!

By Lisa Gold

Dog training problems can stump many pet owners, but how to get your puppy to stop biting? Well, that one is a very common complaint among puppy owners and I'll explore it further in this article.

Biting is a defense mechanism for animals, including our domesticated dogs. A dog needs to be able to protect himself from attacks from other dogs and biting is a natural response. Dogs are also carnivores and in the past had to be able to tear apart their food to eat. Keep in mind, too, that puppies are getting new teeth and are teething. When this occurs it feels good to the puppy to bite. Puppies first learn to bite when in the litter. Have you ever noticed how rough they play? They are learning what is acceptable biting as the other puppies will squeal if the bite is too hard. This feedback helps them to learn how to control their jaw and develop bit inhibition or "mouthing" instead of biting hard.

If you want to know how to train your puppy to stop biting, you can start off by thinking like a dog. When your pup's biting hurts you, squeal to let your pup know. Sometimes that might get them more excited so if that's the case, try your own negative tone instead.

Just as with any unwanted behavior, you should reward attention to good behavior and ignore bad behavior. If your puppy is nipping at your feet, don't give her attention until she stops. Try walking away from her without giving her notice.

You can also try substituting a safe toy for biting, instead of your body parts. This will help them learn what is acceptable and reinforce the good behavior. When she starts biting you, hand her a chew toy instead.

Please do let them know that it's not okay to bite. One way to do this is to give them a tap on the nose and say "no bite" when they start biting. Eventually they will make the connection that this fun biting thing gives you displeasure and they should stop.

Remember that puppy nipping behavior does not start out as an act of aggression; it is just a fun activity for young puppies. Learn more about how to get your puppy to stop biting at http://dogintraining.info and grab your free tips while you're there!