Help Needed! PUPPY BITING

[mer55]

Hello folks!! You got me through the crate issues, and pooping frequency, need some help with puppy biting!! It's been 10 years since I have had a pup, and maybe I just forgot how trying this time is, but Bogey's puppy biting gets out of control at times and I am at a loss as to what to try. I am talking that no matter how much we redirect him, he goes right back to the pant leg, shoe or bare toes closest to him. Here is what we have tried:
1) Shake can- worked GREAT the first few times we used it. It immediately got his attention and we could redirect him. Now, it's nothing more than a wind up to more nipping! He hears the can, it's "game on". So, we put it away-possibly we over used it, but his nipping is constant.
2) we moved to a spray bottle- NOPE, he LOVED it! Thought it was the greatest thing, and almost seemed to make him more wild.
3) I have "redirected" to the point of no return. He will try everything in his power to bite my hand as I offer him a toy. We have tried sharp "no bite", soft "no bite", loud clapping, high pitched yelping- all to no avail.
4) We have tried bitter apple on our shoes and toes- HE LICKS IT OFF!!!!!!
Out of pure frustration this morning, I decided to pick him up and put him in his crate with a sharp reprimand. As I picked him up, he got very nasty and tried to bite, but he is small enough that he could not get me. I placed him in the crate and he whined, and cried, but eventually, settled down. I let him out after about 10 minutes, and for the first few minutes he was very complacent, calm, and loving. THEN, back to biting at my toes!! Back to the crate he went when I could not redirect him. Same scenario.
He finally pooped himself out, and is now sleeping like a baby at my feet!
Someone please tell me this is normal, and he will eventually catch on.!!
Any other suggestions??
He is 9 weeks old.

 

[Tracy T]

Wow, toes. If he were just biting, I'd say use a finger to push the corner of his lips into his mouth and let him chew on himself. I've done that with several dogs, including my Bully. But toes? The same thing might work- at first he'll try to turn his head to chew on your finger better, but stay firm and teach him that biting is only going to cause him pain.

 

[AubreysMom]

Aubie Shug used to drive us crazy with the biting! She loved the water bottle, too. NOTHING seemed to work on her. The only thing that we could get to work was to make her calm down. By that, I mean we would try to redirect her twice. If that failed, we put her on her side and made her lay there until she calmed down. The key part though is for YOU to be calm and not angry or frustrated. I know it's hard, but it helps them to calm down if you are calm. Once she wasn't being crazy, we'd let her up and love on her and talk softly to her to keep her calm. Anyway, most of the time that worked like a charm. If it didn't, we would put her paw in her mouth so she would chew on herself instead and she didn't like that with those sharp teeth. We stayed consistent and eventually she grew out of it. We also taught her when she got treats to be gentle and calm when taking them. If she was wild and nipping, she didn't get a treat. Now I can be playing rough with her and if she bites a little hard one time, all I have to say is "be gentle" and she will gum you and calm down.

She was the most stubborn dog I've ever had with biting, but we were consistent and it eventually worked. I think it also helped that we started with tricks early. We taught her sit, lay, stay, etc, and made her do a trick before we would throw a toy, give her a treat, or have her food bowl. We also walked her around our fenced in yard on a leash (until she was fully vaccinated and could safely go out), and sometimes that got some of her energy out.

I know we have lots of experience and techniques here. I'm sure one of us will have an idea that will work!

 

[sweetpeasmom2008]

When Lola gets outof hand which is a lot these days, I lay her on her back because that is a submissive pose and i just keep one hand on her chest so she cant get out of it and I tell her time out. Once she has calmed down i let her out of it and usually that redirects her and if it does not then we do it again tell she decides she better find something else to do.

 

[Davidh]

A lot of bully pups love to bite and play and the more tired they get the worse it gets. Try the redirect and when that doesn't work, tell them NO and you may need to hold them to calm them down a little. You can also put them in a crate to calm down and take a break, but if you do, make it a happy thing with praise or a treat and never for punishment. Usually they will settle down and take a nap. This is something they will out grow, just be patient.

 

[Hstead]

My nine week old does the same thing, loves toes and pant legs the most. I have worked hard with him and he will stop biting me with a No command now, but the rest of the family, forget it. The way I got him to no longer bite me is to place him on his side with my fingers on his neck like his mothers mouth would be. I do not use a lot of force, just enough that he gets the idea that he has to settle down. I have seen Ceasar do this before and you make your fingers shaped kind of like the jaws of mom. Before I ever watched Ceasar I used to place my hand on the pups chest but the neck seems to work better. My bulldog is still as hard headed and stubborn as can be and he will test me, but it doesn't last long now. Usually if he is testing me, he is either tired or needs to go outside. I can't wait til he grows out of it though.

 

[Tooleysmom]

Lots of excellent advice. Just wanted to assure you that no matter how bad it seems -it will pass. Miss Tallulah cut my arms to ribbons with her little needle teeth for the first month ( 8 weeks to 12) but following the suggestions you have from these bully mamas and poppas will eventually lessen the biting behaviors. I also used honey on my arms when she was relaxed and let her lick it saying "nice kisses. good kisses" in a gentle soothing voice while she licked it off. Now if she starts to mouth me I say that and she immediately starts licking instead. The only time she still gets mouthy is when she is overexcited and tired, so a gentle time out in her crate with her kong stuffed with banana and she is out like a light. I know sometimes I used to think that this was never going to end but it does. Nothing in my experience with dogs is as mouth and chew driven as a Bulldog. They need to chew like we need to breathe. So lots of chew toys for redirecting goes a long way to help too. Hang in there!

 

[Fjcattie]

This is all great advice! I'm so glad that other people with bully puppies are experiencing the same issues we are here! It's a really stressful feeling when you're not sure if its just you or if its everyone.

 

[mabel lou]

I know this sounds crazy but I learned that to pinch them back it works and stops Mabel in her tracks leaving her to begin licking my hand. I am the alpha in my home and she knows it and will always know it. Now she has no clue that I just pinched her because I always have my head down wherever I am doing it leaving her to believe I have just bitten her. It has always worked for any and all dogs I have had. They believe they were just bit and are shocked about it but it also makes her see that I am the alpha dog and she immediately begins licking my hand. And were good after that. But it is continuous repetitive acts of doing this to her that from day one she seen that you bite me and your getting bit(pinched ) back. I love the fact that she don't know it is a pinch and none of the others knew either.

 

[Vicaroo1000]

Bea was super nippy too. Patience and redirection and she got passed that too.

Teething is sometimes an issue for some pups and their little mouths are hurting so that they don't know what to do! Finding toys that satisfy that desire to chew help; like teething toys for human pups. Bea liked chewing on a cool, kind of squishy toy that had been put in the fridge. They have teething toys for puppies that chill nicely for achy jaws.....

 

[Tooleysmom]

This is all great advice! I'm so glad that other people with bully puppies are experiencing the same issues we are here! It's a really stressful feeling when you're not sure if its just you or if its everyone.

It really helps to know this is just a natural part of Bully puppy hood and you are not the problem. Anybody who has raised a young Bulldog has had to go through this. Thank goodness for EBN!!! Lots of good ideas here. I would add that a twisted up knotted terry cloth soaked in broth and frozen is another great thing for teething pups to chew on too. Love to your fur baby Lucy!!

 

[ScottFree00]

I'm new to bulldogs but what i did with my lab pretty much taught Lucy the word no and not to bite (me at least) overnight. Whenever she did it i would just say no firmly while giving a quick tug on the skin around her neck. Not too rough just an attention getter. She still chases my wife's pant legs and nips her hands but she will have to become dominant herself. Her no command is sing-songish so its all just play to Lucy. Good luck.:D

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

 

[ChanelnBrutus]

You have gotten some great advice above! Boy oh boy I remember those shark teeth! We would redirect by giving him another toy! We used toys that we could feeze and get somewhat cold. Patience and consistency is key here! Brutus was on his back so much as a puppy still does

 

[Vikinggirl]

Hi, okay where to start? I have 2 EB puppies, they are 9 months old now , and are brother and sister. I got my pups when they were 10 months old , both were biting us all the time in the beginning. I also have 6 kids in my family that are under the age of 5, one is my Grandson, and they are all cousins. I had to find a way to curb them from biting us, but especially the kids. What I did was I made sure I handled the puppies ears, I put the outside part of my hand in their mouth, gave them food, and took food away from them as well as their treats and toys, so they would be used to this if the kids should do any of these things to them. I also taught my Grandson , who is 5 and is here about 45 hours a week, to be gentle with the pups, to pet them nice, not tease them, or pull them. I taught him that animals have feelings too, and if you pull ears or tails , they feel the same pain as people do when their hair gets pulled. I also taught him not to bug them when they were eating, and to always use an open hand when giving a treat to them. If your hand is flat and open, it is impossible for them to bite your hand. The other thing we did when the pups would bite us, or our toes, or pants, etc, is we would either grab the soft skin on the back of their neck and pull back and in a firm voice say NO, or ouch, the other thing that worked is to place your thumb in their mouth and lay it across the tongue and hold it with the chin in your hand, they can't bite when you do this. We only had to do this for a few weeks, and they stopped biting us . Good luck and I hope you find a technique that works for you.

 

[LynnA]

Same thing here with my devil Otis. He's now 11 months and it is so much better, still an issue - but we also have to go the crate route because nothing else works. We let him calm down and back out he comes.