Our Labrador puppy is great..only 4 months old and very easy to train. The only area I am not getting through to him is during 'play time'. When I or my husband play with Ralph he goes off his toy's and starts chewing on our hands or clothes which is very painful. Does he do this because he is teething? . We have tried saying 'no' firmly and walking away but this only works until another game resumes. He picks everything else up really quickly.
Any good tips to get him to stop this would be much appreciated.

Many pups just don't understand what 'no' means - and will often pick an idea up quicker if you encourage them to perform a behaviour you DO want, rather than get cross with them for stuff you don't want.  When the pup makes contact with her teeth, take a soft toy that she *can* play with, and interact with her with that - praising her all the time she's playing with that and not your skin.

HTH

our Staff used to do this all the time when she was a pup, it was a very difficult time as it was so painful. One time just because I was so annoyed I said in a firm voice 'naughty girl'   it stopped her in her tracks. Perhaps it was the tone of my voice as I had come to the end of my tether but whatever it was, it worked from then on and eventually the behaviour completely stopped. It is a puppy thing and will stop anyway I'm sure but it is sooo.. painful I know. He is doing it becuse he is exploring his very exciting world which included you. A firm voice plus the turning your back on him should work in the long run but there's no quick fix

Our puppy went through the same phase. We used the antichew spay, you can buy at pet stores. When you have your play time, spray your hands and they realise that its not very nice. We used the same on the bottom of trousers etc, not advisable before going out or receiving visitors LOL. The good thing is it doesn't last long.

Lots of luck

We have been putting chilli sauce on house hold things that Hamish gets interested in chewing. It works brilliantly but obviously 'stains' too so this spray sounds like a great idea. What is it called?
A

Of course not all dogs dislike 'bitter bite'. One of mine went round after me licking it off. 

Sorry not replied sooner andi. The spray is made by Johnsons. Sorry can't remember the name. Fortunately we haven't had a chewing problem for quite some time now. Our Bichon is 1 year old now. However, they don't turn into angels, he now runs away with socks!!! :-)

Mine loves socks too, tights also and I once caught him running around with a pair of my knickers over his head! LOL
A

Our labs have both gone through this. First stop letting him nibble/ suck any fingers. He has to understand that hands should never be in his mouth (well only when you are checking his teeth). If he touches you with his teeth make a loud yelp, get up and stop playing. This is what another puppy would do and generally works quite well when they are small.  

Hi,

I am so pleased all puppy owners are going through the same thing, i was beginning to think i had one with an aggressive nature.   I am definately gonna try the spray thingy, that sounds like a great idea, as i dont want to be aggressive back to him which i guess would make matters worse.   Saying NO doesnt help, he thinks it is part of the game!

My labrador was excactly the same - they do grow out of it honest.  I looked as though i self-harmed! I bought some "bitter bite" and sprayed it on it smells awful but does work.  Also try sitting on your hands and ignoring him and when does not do it praise him. 
Also another thing i did was hold her firmly by the collar and said NO in a stern voice to her making sure i was looking straight at her. All of these things did work and now at the age of 15 months and with age she has grown out of it. Good luck!

We have a border terrier who is in the middle of this stage right now (he is at 9 months).  Our problem is that he mouths when he is excited, and a firm "no" just gets him even rowdier.  Because his nipping is a result of excitement, he will stop if I speak in a soothing voice and stroke his head.  I might try some bitter spray on the hands ... never thought of that!

I agree Nightingale, my puppys nipping is only when he is over-excited, and by then he is so lively NO doesnt bother him in the slightest, he thinks its all part of the excitement.  In fact, he retaliates with a  puppy growl.   Oh well, i guess i will have to invest in some thick gloves :o)

Thank you so much for all your advice.
The spray worked a treat! However it wasn't good for me when I forgot to wash my hands before eating a bag of crisps!!!! My own fault. I'm sure Ralph gave a snigger though.

Thanks to you all for taking the time out to reply.

Lisa