New to the Bullie world!!

[mickeedz]

I just got my husband an English Bulldog puppy for Christmas. He is now 10 weeks old and is a cutie pie! However, we have never had a bulldog and are new to how different they are then other puppies we have had in the past. For the most part is a great loveable pup, but he loves to bite. Not only does he nip here and there, but when he gets a hold of a hand or clothing, he locks down and starts to growl. When we try to get him off of whatever is in his mouth, he growls and snarls aggressively. The screaming "ouch" method does not work on him as it did my other dogs. He just bits even more. Distracting him with toys he can chew on helps a lot, but I'm not sure if there is anything else we can try. If toys don't help, we put him back in his "playpen" for a "timeout". It works in that he eventually calms down and we let him back out. Any suggestions??

 

[Bella'sMom]

Welcome to the world of Bulldogs. Getting him his toys is the best way to distract him. I don't agree totally with time-out since it puts his crate as a "bad" place. Just keep distracting him, he will eventually get it.

You have found the best place for Bully families, Welcome and a warning, you better get photos up real quick, you will be bombarded with request if not.

 

[BruceP]

to EBN Mickee....... Glad you joined. We have some really experienced puppy people so I hope they see your plea and help you out. Our Princess Gracie was 3.5 yrs old when we got her so Im no help but wanted to welcome you to the bully madness.

 

[Davidh]

Welcome to the site, and yes bully pups love to bite on hands, feet, and pants. Redirecting them is the best. If they get too rough or persistent they are getting tired and need a nap. You can put him in his play pin, for a nap, just make it a positive thing with a toy or something so he will not think his pin is a bad thing. Just be consistent. If you have not please read the post about bringing your puppy home. it is a well written article with lots of good info. Here is the link.
http://www.englishbulldognews.com/forums/content.php?r=354-Welcoming-Home-Your-New-Bulldog-Puppy

If no one has told you, we love pics so

 

[LariP]

they all go throughh the biting phase. But offer good strong toys to bite on as alternatives. And usually something with a squeak diverts their attention faster than anything.

 

[2BullyMama]

Welcome to the wonderful world of bulldogs and EBN!!

[MENTION=2071]Davidh[/MENTION] has given you the best advice... redirect the biting with one his toys

 

[Fontanafox]

Just wanted to welcome you to the EBN Forums!

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[2BullyMama]

just wanted to welcome you to the ebn forums!

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that picture rocks!!!

 

[acarabias]

Wecome to the forum, it's great here!

Just wanted to welcome you to the EBN Forums!

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This is awesome!

 

[LisaMarie]

Welcome!! And you are on the right path by coming to EBN!!! I have always said that bulldogs are not like dogs.They are more in between dogs and humans. You are in for the time of your life!!!!:D

 

[luseaann]

Maybe I shouldn't tell you that my puppies are still a bit nippy when they are sleepy or hungry. One thing, though, is try not to let yourself sound like the most funnest squeaky toy in the world when he bites or you will be!

I forgot to tell you how very cute Jax is. Yes, we will need more photos.

 

[mickeedz]

Thanks everybody for the advice!! I feel so much better that we are not alone and we are on the right track with his training. As for his "timeouts", we do give him his toys to play with while he is in there. What you all said about not wanting him to think it is a bad place is exactly what we were thinking too. It makes perfect sense that his aggressive behavior and persistent biting would most likely be due to him being tired and needing a nap. Almost every time we put him in "timeout" due to his bad habits, he almost always goes in his bed and goes to sleep.

I do have one more issue. We also have 2 cats and 2 toy Yorkies. One Yorkie (a male) is about 3 pounds (age 5) and the other (a female) is about 8 pounds (age 4). My male Yorkie seems to want to be friends with him or at least have a civil relationship, but my little bullie after a few sniffs will either try to nip his legs or will push him with his head. Even after a couple warning snips by my yorkie, my bullie keeps at him. Will this get better with puppy training or age? My little bullie also does this with one of my cats. The cat is actually very loving with him and will rub up against him and let him sniff, but then my bullie wants to put his paw on the cat or try and nip. The cat has swatted him a couple of times with no claws, just as a warning, which startles him and makes him afraid of the cat, but it is only temporary and he will go towards the cat again.

The frustrating part is that we have never had a bulldog and so all the other training methods that we have used on our Yorkies and a Boxer we had before, do not work on him. We are planning on starting puppy training as soon as he gets his second round of shots.

 

[LisaMarie]

The cat will put him in his place!! The thing about bulldogs is their tenacity and intensity. While other dog breeds might get it fast, the bulldog is so stuborn that it will take him longer to leave it or stop the unwanted behavior. They are smart, they are just so stuborn!!! You need to take a deep breath and have patience! Read about English Bulldogs as much as you can> You need to get Him as many durable chew toys as you can because this is what they do in this stage of their lifes. If they dont have specific toys for this you will be left without drywall or furniture.Supervise your bully so that you can make corrections when he goes for things that arent his toys.The Bully is a BULLY!!! Thats what the breed is all about!!

 

[2BullyMama]

A lot of what [MENTION=1710]LisaMarie[/MENTION] stated is true..... stubborn!! What you have explained sounds like your baby bullie is playing, it is how they play -- nipping at the other dog legs and nudging with the head - he is just going to be too much for Yorkies and the cats will take care of themselves - Jax will eventually get it, but the Yorkies he may always try to play bully style. Try the water bottle with that as well.... whatever you want him to know is not acceptable.

 

[Vermont Millie]

Welcome! Jax sure is cute! I had similar issues with my bullie Millie as a puppy and I often times lost my patience with her. Millie seemed to be always biting visitors too hard in an attempt to play or pulling on clothing. Now I realize that she's just a big chewer. One toy that really worked for us was the Kong which I would freeze with a little peanut butter overnight. Whenever she would get too nippy with our fingers I would give her the Kong in a different room which she'd lick/chew on for a while.... and then she'd mosey back after about 15 minutes. I think it worked as a nice distraction when she realized PB was more tasty/ interesting than our hands or sleeves! She's a year old now and doesn't nip or growl like she did ... but she does have a slight peanut butter obsession ! I hope that helps!

As far as your cat/yorkie situation- it will just take time for them to adjust and I wouldn't stress about it too much. One day soon you will be sitting in a room and look up only to realize they are all sitting/snoring nicely together !