help with puppy biting

[kschmi1721]

Hi I am new at this so please be patient with me. I have a 13 week old male rott puppy who is very aggressive at times. He snarles and growl and then bites and boy does he bite hard. We have been trying for weeks to stop this but it is only getting worse. We took him to a trainer just last night and he gave us a few tips. One being the old pennies in a can. Which I think might help a lot because he doesn't like loud noises. He also told us to grab his collar and hold him up a little, look him in the eyes and tell him who's boss. I also have a 3 year old male black lab. They get along fairly well but they do rough house a little too much sometimes. I was just wondering if anyone has any other tips for us to try. I am very concerned he will be aggressive when he is older and much bigger and I won't be able to handle him.

[Shelby427]

Get a new trainer. At 13 weeks, you have a BABY on your hands. This BABY up until now has used his mouth to learn about the world. It's not being aggressive, it's being a puppy.

Redirection is key, each and every time he goes for your skin, pants, whatever, shove a soft toy in his mouth and praise like crazy! You'll have to do this a MILLION more times before he gets it. Holding the puppy by the collar and staring into his eyes will not show him who's boss. He doesn't know that his biting is wrong. YOU have to teach it. Positive reinforcement is key at this age. Try soaking a washcloth in water, then freezing it. Give that to the puppy when he gets nippy. Have a ton of soft toys on hand that you can shove in his mouth when he gets nippy. Make sure you praise like hell when he's chewing something he's supposed to.

Don't let the puppy and lab rough-house. Keep all interactions supervised at all times.

[haralw]

I agree with Shelby427! DO not intimidate your puppy into submission. It will not work!!!! You will continue to have a force of wills, this is with any breed. Keep plenty of soft chew devices and continue to praise, praise and praise again. Your 3 yr Lab should follow commands and help to influence your pup. Play is normal but once it is aggressive it must stop. I have 2 7 week old pups and once the play is to aggressive and they don't retreat on their own, I interfer with a "No" command and separate. It seems to be working.

[Maxxx]

I'm not an expert, but I would think holding him up by his collar, looking him in the eyes and telling him whose boss would make things worse. He won't understand what you are doing. I'm surprised a trainer suggested that. You could try yelping or turning your back on him when he bites you. Sometimes yelping eggs them on so just ignore them. And definitely stuff a toy in their mouth and praise, praise, praise when his chewing his toy!

[kschmi1721]

Originally Posted by Shelby427

Get a new trainer. At 13 weeks, you have a BABY on your hands. This BABY up until now has used his mouth to learn about the world. It's not being aggressive, it's being a puppy.

Redirection is key, each and every time he goes for your skin, pants, whatever, shove a soft toy in his mouth and praise like crazy! You'll have to do this a MILLION more times before he gets it. Holding the puppy by the collar and staring into his eyes will not show him who's boss. He doesn't know that his biting is wrong. YOU have to teach it. Positive reinforcement is key at this age. Try soaking a washcloth in water, then freezing it. Give that to the puppy when he gets nippy. Have a ton of soft toys on hand that you can shove in his mouth when he gets nippy. Make sure you praise like hell when he's chewing something he's supposed to.

Don't let the puppy and lab rough-house. Keep all interactions supervised at all times.

Thanks for the advice but he is not playing. There are times when we play and times when he is very aggressive. The trainer is a k-9 cop and I think that may be why he uses the techniques he does. The two dogs are never unsupervised. They are separted when we are not home and when they get to crazy I also separate them.

[brunie's mom]

You have a very normal puppy....he's not aggressive....he is a puppy.

Please read this thread....and the links in the thread. It's a question asked by novice Rottweiler puppy owners often.

http://www.rottweiler.net/forums/pup...nance-etc.html

[alice's mommy]

When my son, Daniel, was a newborn, I would hold him by the neck when he would pee in his diaper to teach him not to. I would yell out, "NO Daniel! No peeing in your diaper!" and he would stop peeing.

Doesn't THAT seem ridiculous?! Get a new trainer!!!! The above is, in fact, what you are being told to do to a BABY puppy! This little puppy is absolutely not being aggressive!!! I know just how you're feeling, as those little land-sharks can SEEM to be just devilish and possessed, but honestly, it will pass. Your puppy just needs to be shown what he IS allowed to chew on, that's all! He needs to bite/play/growl as part of his learning....YOU need to show him what he can bite/play/growl at instead of doing it on humans. Redirect, redirect, redirect (etc.) to an appropriate toy. My husband and I literally had a toy attached to us at all times, so that there wouldn't even be a moment without something to shove into Arthur's mouth during that age. Seriously, we had slices all over our fingers from our little monster! And now, six months old, I can barely imagine him from that time. :) They really do grow out of it.

However, BULLYING the puppy isn't going to help at all! Yelling at him, shaking him, holding him by the scruff, will only make him afraid of you. THAT can lead to aggression as he ages. No one wants to be raised by a bully.

And get a new trainer. Yeeash. :(

[kschmi1721]

Thanks for the advise but everyone on this site keeps telling me he is not aggressive. They are not the ones who have to deal with what we are. I wish I could send a video of the way he acts. He has been acting like this since we brought him home and it just seem to be getting worse. Sometimes you can't even pick him up thats how bad he gets. I always thought of a puppy as someone you could cuddle with. I'm lucky that I can even pet him at times.

When I took him to the vet for the second time she took one look at the way he was acting and told me that this was not normal behavior for a 13 week old puppy. She is the one who suggested that I take him to this trainer. The trainer that we took him to is a k-9 cop and highly recommended but many people. I think that is why he uses the techniques he does. I think I may have made what the trainer said sound worse then it is.

Believe me I don't want to make my puppy afraid of me or my husband. My lab is the sweetest dog you could ever what and I would love to have this one the same way. I am confused because so many people are telling me different ways to handle him.

I'm sorry if I just vented on you, I do appreciate the advise and I will try it.

kschmi

[nancyhq]

Hi. I'm a new puppy owner too. My puppy was biting hard and growling. What worked for me was getting several (10) soft toys and putting them in his mouth every time he bit. I'd rotate them because I noticed he'd get board with one. When he started biting harder as he got more confident I'd yell "ouch!" and turn my back on him. He'd keep trying to get my attention and I kept moving so my back would face him. When he'd bite the toys I'd over praise him and try to play with the toy and him together while rubbing his tummy. The other thing I did was put him in a sitting position between my legs while I held his chest with one hand and pet him with the other. It worked. I tried to place him in submissive positions while making him feel safe. Since he is a puppy he couldn't sit to long but I'd try to really reward him with touch and praise. The other thing that has made a difference is interactive play with my other dogs. I've noticed when he gets to rough they nip at him. Allthough supervision is necessary at this age. They don't hurt him and it has taught him bounderies. I'm not sure if what you are dealing with is a strong minded, happy pup or a pupppy that may have some difficulties. But, my advice is to see another trainer. It sounds like the trainer your seeing may be very good with dogs. However, there is a difference between dogs and puppies. If this paticuliar type of training is not working for you and your dog try another. It's true if the puppy becomes afraid of you it could lead to problems when they are an adult. They have trainers who specialize in your relationship with your dog they also have puppy classes to help them socialize. Maybe something like this would work for you? I'm researching classes for my puppy too. It's not easy. Good luck to you and your little guy.

[harleychik66]

How old was your pup when you got him? Where did you get him from? Did you meet the parents and if so how was their temperament? How was he socialized before you brought him home? Do you have contact with the breeder?

Although you have a little barracuda with legs I'm sure most of his behavior is normal puppy antics. Frustrating yes, but for the most part perfectly normal at this age.However, some of the above mentioned questions may help to determine if indeed he has more issues than just the normal puppy behavior.

[Andy Larrimore]

Redirect the biting to an object like a favorite toy. By using the loud pennies for a correction you are only teaching your puppy to fear loud sounds. Just because he is a K9 cop does not make him a trainer. Often times K9 cops get their dogs at 14-24 months old and do not train issues like this. They are also geared more towards working with working dogs and not pets. I can tell you this because I too am a K9 officer.

It also sounds like you got a puppy based on looks and did no type of true temerament test of the litter or your pup. Your dog is the way it is due to the owner allowing it. Once again redirect the biting

[RottsNScotts]

Have you spoken to his breeder? What did s/he have to say about the problem?

[TrinaJ]

However, BULLYING the puppy isn't going to help at all! Yelling at him, shaking him, holding him by the scruff, will only make him afraid of you. THAT can lead to aggression as he ages. No one wants to be raised by a bully.

I agree 100%, bullying is NOT an option, you want a dog who will trust you not fear you and run from you. Please dont stare into his eyes as dogs view this as aggression, not as who is boss. Redirection is the key and you really MUST be consistent with it. Also, do you have a correction collar, If so use it? He growls and you, correct him, a firm tug and a No. He bites you, correct him - once again a firm tug and a NO!

[Shelby427]

Originally Posted by kschmi1721

Thanks for the advise but everyone on this site keeps telling me he is not aggressive. They are not the ones who have to deal with what we are. I wish I could send a video of the way he acts. He has been acting like this since we brought him home and it just seem to be getting worse. Sometimes you can't even pick him up thats how bad he gets. I always thought of a puppy as someone you could cuddle with. I'm lucky that I can even pet him at times.

When I took him to the vet for the second time she took one look at the way he was acting and told me that this was not normal behavior for a 13 week old puppy. She is the one who suggested that I take him to this trainer. The trainer that we took him to is a k-9 cop and highly recommended but many people. I think that is why he uses the techniques he does. I think I may have made what the trainer said sound worse then it is.

Believe me I don't want to make my puppy afraid of me or my husband. My lab is the sweetest dog you could ever what and I would love to have this one the same way. I am confused because so many people are telling me different ways to handle him.

I'm sorry if I just vented on you, I do appreciate the advise and I will try it.

kschmi

If he doesn't want to get picked up, or cuddled it does NOT mean he's aggressive! Rotties aren't typically cuddlers and a lot of members would agree with me. He's got 4 legs, let him use them. He is NOT a lap dog so you should stop picking him up if he does not want it. If you wanted a lap dog, you should've researched more and gotten a lap dog.

Doesn't matter that you might have made it sound worse than it was with the trainer, any trainer that would have you BULLY this PUPPY is not good. Find a trainer that uses positive reinforcement, not bullying. K9 or not, it's not a good technique.

[kschmi1721]

Originally Posted by harleychik66

How old was your pup when you got him? Where did you get him from? Did you meet the parents and if so how was their temperament? How was he socialized before you brought him home? Do you have contact with the breeder?

Although you have a little barracuda with legs I'm sure most of his behavior is normal puppy antics. Frustrating yes, but for the most part perfectly normal at this age.However, some of the above mentioned questions may help to determine if indeed he has more issues than just the normal puppy behavior.

I got Pantera when he was 7 wks old. I got him from a breeder who has been breeding for 15 years or so. We meet other dogs from her and we were very pleased with what we saw.

I did meet the parents. The mother was very sweet with a great temperment. It was hard to tell with the dad because there were several females in heat when we were there, he didn't want anyone near his females, so he did alot of barking.

We went up to see the puppy ever two weeks until we could bring him home. We wanted him to get to know us before we brought him home. We even brought a towel with us so he could get the scent of my lab and the lab could get Panteras scent.

As for the socialization part he was with 12 of his litter mates and the breader has 3 rotts that stay in the house. One male and 2 females. Who were as nice as can be. We asked the breeder how the fathers temperment was and she said it was good until there was an incident with another rott and food.

We have been in contact with the breeder since he was brought home. She gave us a few tips that really were not making a difference. She said we can bring him out to her and she will help of with his behavior.

kschmi