Well, that bit of freedom in the park seems to have gone to Sparky's head! He has had such a "jumpy bitey" day today. We are still sticking to our guns, stopping the game when he does it, making sure he doesn't get over-excited, no tug of war games, and so far it seems to have been working, but today he seems to have gone right back to where he was two weeks ago. I had to do the huge "no" thing today when he bit my hand (very embarrassing, as the workmen were in the back garden at the time, laying the flags for Sparky's run, and there I am roaring like a lioness) but the little so-and-so barked back and snapped his teeth, then he gave a grumpy growly yawn, sank into a down position, and it was all I could do not to laugh as I tried to ignore him, he looked just like a naughty toddler having a tantrum! After his one minute time-out was up, he started licking my toes and was happy to have a cuddle. Is he pushing the boundaries already? Stroppy teenager at 14 weeks!

Tracy

I have a theory that dogsand kids strain their good conduct muscles trying to please us then can't hold it any more and just blow:)

Tracy,
I know how you feel. Monty is now 14 weeks and has gone straight to adolescence phase! He was really good at puppy class and "came" when i told him to. No pulling on the lead either. She told me to let him off the lead on walks and he was great for about 3 days.
Now "come" is just "look at mum and keep running", "no" is "oooooh playtime! Lets see how much i can bark and attack mum".
I'm sure kids must be easier than this!!!

Sam x

I believe that dogs and kids have us sussed right from day one :D

Definitely! But today I have discovered chicken flavour dental chew bone - and he is putty in my hands!! ;)

Not sure they would have the same effect on the two kids though - hormonal 11 and 12 year olds - roll on Back to School!

put it one why i would rather have 20 dogs than my kids at the moment they are getting fed up with the dam holidays,cant wait for them to go back,they are 13,12,8,7,and 5 october.i only had a couple of grey hairs before the holidays now well a few more have appeared :)))

Been there - now the cherubs are back at school and Morse is horrified its so quiet.

Don't worry thumper ..when mine were that age I didnt even have a computer to help amuse me :D :D Mine are now 28 , 26 , 22 , 12 and 10 ;) Managed to suvive this long (with the help of the hair dye every 4 weeks :D :D )

Thanks Tracy, will try that one :)

Sam x

Hi Tracy,

Must be a day for it 12 week old Cassie seemed to be improving on the bitey/growling behaviour but today has gone mad. She has ripped the back of my trousers as I tried to walk in from the garden and the kids cannot go within an inch of her, they are 10, 7 & 3 and are always supervised with her. They are getting really upset because they can't enjoy their puppy and her teeth are starting to hurt. We've tried all the advice on here but today it feels like we gone back to square one or even further back, she seems to actually be snarling rather than growling and now she's also puncing on aour ankles and sinking her teeth inot our calves. In all honesty I feel really low because of the way she's behaving and like you say with the workmen, I think my neighbour thinks I'm mad when i bellow "NO" like an old fishwife (I use this as a last resort)...

I do think theres any more advice that I can try but we are attending our first puppy class tonight so fingers crossed.

and Tracy please tell me things don't get even worse at 14 weeks!!

Debx

Hi Debs the lady who runs our puppy classes maintains that till a pup is 6 months old it thinks its name is NO and spends a lot of time with knackered looking pup owners. I find its the emotional overload that gets me and feeling I have to have eyes inthe back of my head plus razor sharp reflexes, so I just chant the mantra These things will pass and ?!*^$ happens and this will be funny tomorrow. Hope yur class goes well.:)

I'll have to try your mantra, cos this morning feels worse again, the lady at our puppy class said a good loud "NO" will do the trick.....Cassie (12 weeks) obviously doesn't know the rules because this just encourages her to growl (what worries me is it's starting to get like an angry growl rather than a playful one)....She did it to my 7 year old in the garden this morning, as he tried to walk in and ignore as we've been told to do if she nips , she kept flattening herself then lunging at his calves and biting , I feel so upset as she has left quite a nasty bite this time, it's the first time she has actually cut the skin.....She is only small but she can be scary and I feel as if I'm coming to the end of my tether....My 10 year old has now also fled from the kitchen as he was out there ging her a treat and she prefered to bit his legs instead, again accompanied by growling...

I can cope with and fully expected the mouthing/nipping but I must say it's this kind of growling that worries me, we have never experienced with our previous dog (He passed away years ago)..

Some reassurance would be great.

Debxx

Advice given to another couple at my puppy class who have a pup who is mouthy to them and aggressive to other dogs was that when the pup mouthed or bit, to hold its jaws together gently and say a word that means hes not allowed to bite - she suggested "teeth". You might also want to practice getting Cassie used to frustration and the fact that YOURE the boss, not her. If you want to do this, a good exercise is...

sit on the floor with your legs tucked under you and have the dog sit in front of you with her back to you. Pull her in close so that shes sitting between your legs. Once you have her in this position, put your hands around the front of her chest and lace your fingers together so that you have a gentle hold of her. Hold this position for a minute and if she starts to struggle, tries to get up or bite you then just slide your hands up her neck and put your thumb and fingers around her throat in a high collar - the point of this is NOT to strangle her but to gently restrain her and so there shouldnt be pressure applied, you should just use your hands to make a cirle around her neck and keep them high, just under her jaw bone. She will no doubt struggle, growl a bit and try to bite - this is normal but once she settles, slide your fingers back down to the front of her chest. You will eventually feel her body relax as she accepts that YOU will tell her when she can move and its this that youre looking for. Try doing this exercise a few times a day so that she gets used to frustration. This may not seem like it has a lot to do with ankle biting but it sounds to me like your pup is just doing what comes naturally along with being a bit of a brat!! Although my pup will growl and yodel at me when hes told "no" and I point a finger at him, his growl is of frustration as he knows Im boss and so he'll run off and punish his kong instead!! :D

Debby read the caps again - DO NOT strangle Cassie! :DThese things will pass and tomorrow is another day........ seriously, I hope the kids are okay and not frightened of her. Can you massage dogs Isla and how do you start?

Dunno about massage but thoroughly believe that dogs are like humans - some like a gentle touch, some like it rough and some just dont like it unless its on their terms! :) There are some exercises that you can do to calm your dog...the ones I know of are...

in the same position, sitting on the ground with the dog between your legs and facing away from you, start stroking your hands firmly (but not so that it strips their skin!) down each side from shoulders to leg joints - if they make a bid for freedom then go back to holding around their chest until they relax. You can also try patting slowly on their chest cavity (remembering that youre not playing the bongos! :D) and this will encourage an excited dogs heart to slow down. Ear rubs are good where you start at the base of the ear, your fingers on the inside and your thumb on the outside and gently slide your hands to the end of the ear and massage gently on the tip which is an accupressure point. And lastly, at the top of the hind legs where they join your dogs belly, there is a membrane of skin which stretches across - massaging this area will apparently calm a dog and in times of emergency can make the difference between a dog dying of shock or not!

Logan likes his pats and strokes but his ears are so damn long that when I try to do the ear strokes, he just turns his head and starts munching on his own ears!! Darn dawg!! :)