| Re: Puppy Biting and Growling
It definitely sounds like he's trying to engage you (whatever reaction he might get). Does he do this all day long or is it a particular time of day - evenings perhaps?
They can nip and be quite excitable and pushy when young... at least mine was, so it doesn't sound that out of the norm to me.
Immediately after you say NO! have you tried giving him something else to chew/nip (chew-toy, puppy bone etc.), thereby re-directing him to something he can bite-on. We also used to try to tire ours out both physically, (playing with him) and mentally (training basics, like sit, come etc). When he was tired, he was a lot less bouncy.
Something else that worked well for us, was to tell him NO! then immediately remove him from the room and our company and let him have time-out on his own in another room, completely ignoring his tantrums next door. After a couple of minutes we'd let him back in the room, and if he did it again then we'd repeat the time-out, increasing his isolation time each time.
It does take a little time, but as long as you say NO! and remove them immediately AND every single time they nip you, they do make the association between the nipping and being isolated from their family. They are very smart even as puppies, but all learning (including ours) takes time and consistent repetition.
Good luck!  |