please help in ref to biting. i have a boxer 9wks old ( a singleton). last night when i was sat having a coffee the pup tried to bite it. i said no he then growled and took a chunk out of my hand. (drew blood) i did as you suggested disciplined him like his mother would do, he fought back with a vegence, this was repeated several times he is strong but i am winning every battle. is this due to him having no litter mates that could teach him when things have gone to far.
we are booked in for a puppy party next week im afraid he will get firmly put in his place by another pup will this teach him alittle doggy etiquete as he does not appear to have a clue poor thing,
kind regards emma
p.s he is excellent in every other way. down on command sits on command and is house trained

Em - you have a what is going to be a big strong pup there - I wouldn't go head to head with him physically if I were you.... he's little now, you do not want to get into fights with him.

If he bites - say "NO BITE" loudly and firmly - try and take him by surprise by saying it right in his face - then wait a few seconds, THEN give him a bone or a chew or something to play with. You must use the element of surprise - so it becomes a bit of a nasty shock when he bites you.

I had exactly the same with Willis - he was a big boisterous puppy who did not take no for an answer - and certinaly yelping or saying OW didn't work. Just a NO BITE - remove your hands etc away and ignore him for a few secs - then distract. If he carries on (which he will at some point) then pick him up and put him out for a few minutes. Make him realise its not acceptable behavior.

Willis is now brilliant - he has a very soft mouth (as danes do) so we can have biting games (i bite him and he bites me LOL) but as soon as I say NO BITE he stops :)

HTH

chloe thanks for your response i will put it into practice. its just due to his size i want it all nipped in the bud. my daughter is a bit nervous of him.
she has long hair and bradley likes to hang off it and holding onto her clothes. i must say they are both supervised at all times.
em

Em - advice on stopping pup with children:

Willis loved my son Zack (aged 3). He loved...chasing him and nipping him and jumping on him. Er NO!! So, I did the following:

Set aside ten minutes and arm yourself with the following: A wooden spoon and saucepan. A water Pistol or a Squirty water bottle (personally I found this to be more effective).
Allow pup to come in with you and your daughter
Make sure the water is hidden as is the wooden spoon and saucepan - and look innocent ;)
Watch for the first sign of puppy going to bite or chase her
IMMEDIATELY whip out the wooden spoon and saucepan and bash it to make as loud and unpleasant a noise as possible as close to pup as you can - you MUST be quick though
Pup will sit down and wonder where the hell that came from
Repeat another once if he does it again
Then swap to the water bottle if he persists - splash him right in his face

It MUST ONLY be you who does this.... and your puppy shouldn't really see it coming from you - so do it from behind. The trick is to make him associate a nasty suprise with chasing your daughter. Its also important to explain to her that she musn't encourage him, and must spend the majority of the time at the moment ignoring him. He needs to see her as a playmate on HER terms - not his :)

Best of luck
C

Edited to say it only took me 3 go's to stop willis chasing zack - and he has never done it since :)

brilliant i will try this thank you
em

Hi

I have a 14week old chocolate lab and he's going through biting moods at the moment. He has drawn blood quite a few times (needle teeth!!) and the NO/OUCH never ever works. I also tried the water pistol option a couple of times and it just wound him up even more... wasnt sure whether to persevere with this?? The only thing that seems to work is put him in his bed for a couple of minutes to hopefully calm down. :)

Hi Catherine,
If putting him in his bed for a couple of minutes works, then great! There is no single sure-fire method of stopping this behaviour quickly. Different methods work for different people (and different dogs!) As long as they learn not to do it hard enough to hurt, then it's fine by me.
Good luck.
:)

my chocolate lab seemed to learn the quickest when we put her out of the room for a few minutes with a stern no every time she bit someone
it was hard owrk becasue for the first few days she didnt catch on at all and would be let out to bite you straight away!!!

up down up down

puppies hey!!

chloe i use a wooden spoon and saucepan last night. worked beautfiully until i went to bang the saucepan and clobbered my bottle of beer which landed on my house phone shorting it. moral of the storey make a careful sweep of your wooden spoon.
em

As Chloe says, a loud shout of "No!!!" right in his face should startle him enough to make him let go. Then you can praise him in a calm, admiring tone of voice for stopping and offer him a tuggy toy to play with instead.
:)

It did take my pup (labrador) a few weeks to realise what No meant

To start with she thought me shouting at her was a brilliant game and she would just bark back and join in my loud conversation!!!

Now she certainly knows what no means but unfortunately chooses to ignore it whenever she feels like
She's an expert at selective deafness!!!!! :D

The advice above sounds spot on.
I tried droppinga tin full of stones to make her jump but the little bugger just kept running off with it!!!!!!!
so the advice to not let him see where the noise is coming from is a good one

Good Luck

Rachael

Just had a look to see what the original post was. One point I'd make is, don't allow him up on to your lap! It's fine with a young puppy but they dont stay that size for long and 70lbs plus of Boxer sitting on your lap will be no joke. ChloeH is right about not using brute strenght, you will loose in the long term, out thinking the puppy is always the best way.

Regards, John

The wooden spoon, pot and spray works. We tried it all as well. I also used an empty tin and filled it with coins. This worked the best. A quick shake was all that was needed.

We had quite a bad few weeks with biting. Now you would not believe it ever happened.

Willis gets on my lap. He's 11 stone at 10 months. He likes it there. I can't breathe mind. I have to balance my laptop on top of him.

Em - take heed of John's advice :D

:D @ Chloe !

I am just picturing it !!

Lucy
xx

no excellent advise. its all well and good him sat there with all his little facial expressions of love me, god ive had a hard life and not forgetting don't i look cute with my head tilted to one side sucking my tongue. i must be strong (his kc name is juniper jedi so he uses the force on me).
he is already growing at a wonderful pace.
i tried a few ideas for stopping him from biting he is getting much better this is only after one day. consistantancey, persurverance and sheer stuburness seems to be the key. but im alway worried about stifling his charector
em

Emma
remember consistancy as well .
Make sure you always tell him NO or whatever method you choose to use .
Doggy etiquette and puppy parties will be great for him too as they will let him know whats acceptable also.
Goodluck :)

Hi all,
Just wanted to say all your stories kept me and my hubby giggling for quite a while. As the owners of 2 boxers, Bruce, 18 months, and Lucie, 14 months, we know what you are all going through, and will continue to go through, no doubt. :)
It was only the other day our neighbours told us that as they where out in the garden having a quiet afternoon drink, that they looked up to see Bruce hurdling over the fence and then crashing into their patio table, closely followed by Lucie.
Oh, and going back to when Bruce was just a baby, who obviously didnt like his bed in the kitchen, we came down stairs one morning to find he had nearly chewed his way into the living room, via the wall.
He also looks good in make up, which we found out when he some how made it past two stair gates into the bathroom and ate my make up bag, and all the contents.
He has since calmed down one hell of alot and now obeys all, well most commands, but they are only a few of the stories, we have the learner driver, palm tree, school stories to name but a few, but we will save those for another time.
Just wanted to say good luck but don't worry they will grow into a lovely, carring and affectionate companion, as Bruce and Lucie have.
Take care,
Lou and Gary.