Hi I was wondering how to stop a 6 month old pup mouthing people (on the verge of biting nearly). He is a labrador so it does hurt, I say no sharply but he keeps doing it over and over.  I don't want him to get into a habit doing it.  I have just got him so it is the previousl owners who have let it get out of hand.  Any advice would be grateful.

hi peaches ,have you tried putting dry peas in a tin or emty pop bottle ? when he does it you shake it !! and say NO very clear and loudly ,you must be firm with him and keep doing it and soon he will look before he does it !! if he goes to do it say no and if he still does it then go back to shaking the bottle ,it might take time but it worked for me !!!
good luck x

I have no expertise or vast experience.........but, we had a labages ago who was more happy with something in her mouth than when it was empty.
Consequently, she had a cuddly toy which she was given to hold and carry for  when she was excited about anything.

Karen :)

Thanks for the help guys, as long as it is solveable I feel better, that is the main thing. I will try both the things and see how it goes.

Hello,I always find  rolled up newspaper smacked across the table does the trick.They dont like the sound.

> Hello,I always find  rolled up newspaper smacked across the table does the trick.They dont like the sound.

Please do not use this method, it can & does make dogs very sensitive to some sounds.

Better to use the newspaper to hit yourself on the head with when you get something wrong with your puppy, it quickly makes you more careful in training & rewarding the good behaviour

Hi, we had a pup who liked to greet us with a bit of hand holding (and jumping), it was just family members and I appreciate he was very keen to say hello!  As I didn't want to create excited behaviour at homecoming or at doorways in particular we developed a routine to minimise the greeting behaviours.  We would just place our hands flat on our thighs and ignore him, take him straight out into the garden (without talking) and then when he comes back in, usually after a pee,  we'd ask him to sit and then reward with a biscuit and, if he's calm, a pat.  The minute he thought about jumping or grabbing again we all ignore.  The children follow this rule too, they still do not greet either dog when they get home from school and only pat the dog if he sits.  My older dog, terrier type, still struggles to curb his enthusiasm but my youngest no longer grabs hands and will always sit if he's asking for a hello!

Have a look at your dog - when is he doing it?  Are you rewarding the habit with further attention?  If it works for him he will continue.  Some dogs are orally fixated and do like to have something to chew or carry.  Swapping your hand for something is a great idea but to try to get another behaviour in between, like a sit, or wait.  You don't want him to associate the hand biting with a reward.  Rather the calm and sensible behaviour gets the toy reward.  I think that whatever method you choose, consistency is the key.  Identify a strategy and ask everyone in the household to follow the same steps. 

So could it be a long term problem and if all the family does the ignoring bit and then rewarding when he sits how long do you reckon it will take.  Worst case scenario might he not grow out of it?

Hi peaches123

> So could it be a long term problem and if all the family does the ignoring bit and then rewarding when he sits how long do you reckon it will take.  Worst case scenario might he not grow out of it?

Our puppy stopped hand holding within week or so.  If you flatten your palms against your side he has no target to aim at and the sit shouldn't take your lab long to learn at all.  As soon as he realises that's the way to get your attention/ a treat/ or a toy he'll soon be putting it into effect.

The general greeting behaviour is more of an issue with our terrier type mongrel (a rescue at 10 months).  He is a jumper when he wants to say hello - he doesn't put his paws on us but springs up for a snog and can catch you unawares if you bend to talk to him.  We figure that if his bottom is on the floor he can't spring up in the same way so we never greet him unless he is sitting.  Going into the garden developed as a necessary part of toilet training the puppy but even now at 13 months he will walk me straight to the back door when I come in and then come back for his sit and hello! Because of this it makes sense to treat both dogs the same and neither gets any 'hello' attention until we say it's ok and butts are on the floor. 

Are you going to classes?  Having been a sceptic about clicker training I found my youngest dog really took to it and his learning was much faster as a result - mine too!!

Regarding the toy in the mouth trick. My first TT used to pull clothes scream and jump up to get attention when I came home - giving her a toy to hold worked so well she now goes off to get a toy for me when I come in.  I swear she holds it so she isnt tempted to pull at my clothes lol

> Better to use the newspaper to hit yourself on the head with when you get something wrong with your puppy, it quickly makes you more careful in training & rewarding the good behaviour

Had to lol (proper belly laugh) at this.  Blimey if I'd have done that when our's were youngster I think I would have brain damage by now ;-)

Theres been a couple of methods reccommended that I just wanted to comment on,
The person who said about hitting the paper hard on things to create a scary noise, thats actully quite cruel!! :(
I wouldnt reccommend anyone do that at all, scare a dog?
Why not just train the dog to begin with rather then scare the poor thing???!

Also the bottle which you shake like a rattle?
Thats reserved for professional trainers, so dont do it yourself unless your trained to do so as it is down to absolute timing and if you keep getting it wrong as you dont know what your looking for or exactly when to do it you will do way more bad then good!!!

I would just train him/her not to do it anymore and like said, hit yourself with the newspaper like I did LOL!
Training from a young age is so important so we dont need these extreme methods of training which are in my eyes damned right cruel!