Few things Mouthing; growling at correction

[kywildcat581]

First off I would like to say hello, I read a lot of forums here and articles on the web but never really validated my account until today. I have noticed we have a lot of knowledgable individuals here with this breed. The last dog I had was a Rott/German Shepard mix, and loved him to death - And although you dont know it, thanks for helping me already with other forums I have read.

Now Blitz is a rottie at about 11 weeks of age, I have worked with him and I have Sit, Stay (to a point), working on lay down, he gives high 5's and will give a paw, pretty much housebroken with the occasional accident. He is also well socialized with neighbors and short walks as well as playing with the neighbors little dog on occasion while supervised. he is a really good puppy and we LOVE him to death, and had him about 3 weeks now, but I have a couple questions if you wouldn't mind.

Blitz (as all rotties) is mouthing pretty bad and I dont blame hom for this, it is nature, but with respects for my matress in my bedroom (which is my fault for him having access to) but it is getting chewed on the corner. He is an inside dog that gets a short walk a few times a week and is well exersized playing with neighbors etc. I know boredom is what causes excessive chewing and we play with him a lot as well as a lot of toys. I have tried the bitter spray from the pet shop and he seems to have grown a taste for it, I spray the corner of the matress and he will end up licking it. Any idea about how long approx this rottie should mouth? or when he will calm it down some? and in the meantime any remedies you know?

Other problem is just that his chewing on pants/socks while we are trying to walk around the house. We correct him for this with a very stern NO! and we grab his nose/mouth and give him a toy he can chew on, when he grabs the toy we praise. is this a bad way to break this?

he isnt too bad with corrections usually and he goes to lay down for a while when he knows he is in trouble. Every once and a while he will get a little bit "vocal" with a very short growl. I was reading a forum about this issue the other day and someone mentioned "trash his ass" for it, and explained what they meant. This seems to have helped with him getting vocal during corrections. so thanks!

Am I trying to train too early, do I just need to give him another month or so to mature then proceed?

Thanks!

[groupieindenial]

Don't be TRASHING your pup's ass, he's way too young. A dog that KNOWS what is expected of him, is a different story.

Yeah, anlkle biters...GOOD LUCK!! THat was my worst with him when he was little. Not much advice to give here, except to redirect with a toy. There's lots of threads on the mouthing and ankle biting if you search. Just be sure not to be rewarding the bad behaviour, you could be fueling it. Mouthing will most likely be much better after teething (5-6 months).

You really should be crating when the pup cannot be supervised. Will resolve chewing the mattress issue. However, the apple bitter did not work with my pup either, but rubbing cayenne pepper (powder) on things, made him NEVER touch my seatbelt in the car ever again. Tobasco sauce on electrical wires works too.

Let the puppy be a puppy, encourage it to investigate unfamiliar objects. Play the mine, yours game. Use a clicker and reward when he looks when called, comes when called etc...There SO much you can be doing, and young pups are EAGER to learn.

[kywildcat581]

Thanks for the advice, this is why I mentioned the "TRASHING". I was thinking he was too young, may want to give him a few more months, I thought maybe the growling right now was just due to his age and wanting to play and be a puppy. I had thought about the pepper power/juice and I wanted to check into here first for maybe lessor painful ideas LOL

H is a good pup and so smart, he shocks me with something new everyday/ and something I am VERY shocked at, although him and my 10 month old are supervised VERY well they get along great, he licks him and chews on us, which is great for him to lick him like that thanks for the fast reply

[SABELLESMOM]

www.akc.org/clubs/search/index.cfm

Do a club search. Check your area for a kennel club of some sort, and get involved. Take some classes. It will help you learn how dogs think and what may motivate your puppy to want to please you.

Mouthing is a "puppy thing!" Not necessarily related to breed. Any breed can do it. A crate would help when you aren't directly supervising. Having lots of things he CAN chew, that you can substitute when you catch him chewing something you don't want will help as well.

Lots of activity, like leash walking, ball toss, hide and seek, or chase me will stimulate his thinking. I like to play a name game: It can be done with or without a clicker, but you will need small bits of a tasty treat like cut up cheese or leftover meat. The trick is to always have some training treats on you. If you don't have treats, don't call his name. (use something else, like, come pooch!)

Call the dogs name once. Even if it takes a few a while... Reward with an enthusiastic "YES!" or a click and treat immediately when the pup gets to you. It's OK to make a bit of a fuss, but the important thing is the yes or click, and immediate treat.

Let the pup wander off and call the dog's name once, again. If you can, don't use the dogs name for anything except the name game. Do it every day for a week or so. A few repetitions at a time. Soon you'll have a dog who's head pops up no matter where he is, ready to come running.

Good luck!

[Judi W]

Please pay attention to context when reading. Most things are specific to the OP and what is appropriate for an adult (in this case 2 YO dog) are certainly not puppy training things. Do not attempt to apply adult behavior issues to your baby puppy.

You might go to the puppy forum and you will find a fairly large amount of information on working with your baby.

Rather than attempting to use adversives, crate the pup when you cannot be supervising and that should protect your mattress and other things.

[kywildcat581]

Thanks for your replies - yeah I have eased up on him and just letting him be a pup for now, not enough time for him to be a puppy, I may as well enjoy it and make it easier for the both of us. I only correct him when he really messes up for now and I keep consistant on teaching him new things; he really seems to catch onto things really quick.

I am surprised at how fast he has caught on.

Judi I appreciate your comment on the subject - with no pun intended to anyone else I have noticed you are a very knowledgable person and highly respected among these forums. (A lot of knowledgable people here, and all are appreciated) I have noticed that people take you wrong on occasion or even get a little feisty with you - but I assure you I have learned a lot from just reading your posts. I will definately get to working on your suggestion with reading on the puppy forum and willkeep an eye out for ages of rotts with similar problems/solutions. Thanks again.


Everyone is appreciated in these matters and I am going to go over some of these things with the wife - I am sure this forums help will make this a lot easier - by the way I am Dave and wife is Tiff, she says thanks also!

[kywildcat581]

yes! well update!

we got the rest of our back yard fenced in for Blitz yesterday so he can run and play in the back yard now and this keeps him out of trouble as much, he still comes in and out of the house and especially inside at night, dont want anyone stealing the little guy.

he has gotten a lot better with the chewing on the mattress - he avoids it now with the help of a little pepper powder and one swift lick - and we are working on the roughhousing with firm no's and giving him a toy. Back yard though - let a pup be a pup.

just some great news now that he has a huge back yard to play in and will probably keep him out of trouble as much! Any recommendations on th size of dog house I should need for him for those days he just wants to lay in it for shade/etc.?? thanks!