It is completely normal for puppies and dogs to bite as they grow. If you don’t stop your puppy from biting, it can lead to serious consequences. Your puppy may not learn to control its bite and may do harm to you, your family, friends, other people, and other animals. Therefore, it is extremely important to train your dog not to bite. You can refer to the following effective methods which you can use to stop your dog from biting.
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Give a Negative Reaction to Biting
When your dog is still young – a puppy – it will be normal for it to try to bite you, especially your arms when you are playing with it. This is the best time to train it not to do that. You should react negatively to biting by firmly saying “No” with a disappointed reaction and body gesture in order to signal to your dog that it is wrong to bite. You should then walk out of your dog. You can also give a vibration stimuli to the dog using a dog training collar. Doing this will be an effective punishment for your puppy.
When your puppy bites too hard, it may help if you can yelp. Sibling puppies tend to play with each other by biting each other in certain parts of their body. They know that their sibling doesn’t like their bite if it yelps. Hence, you can do the same. You can signal to your dog what is acceptable and what is not.
Use Toys
Young dogs really do tend to bite a lot especially if they get too excited. Another effective method for training them not to bite is to first have them calm down. When they do, play with them and use chewing bones toys or chewy cow ears which they can bite with their mouth and satisfy their chewing desire. Let your dog know that you accept it biting their toys but not your hand. Have fun and play fetch with it.
Don’t Play Roughly with Your Dog
Roughly playing with your dog will encourage its aggressive behavior, hence biting. That is why it is advised not to play rough with your puppy. More so, you should not use your hands as toys to your dog and teasing to bite it with it. You should also tell your family and whoever else is living with you and your dog to not play rough with your puppy.
Use a Taste Deterrent on Your Hands or Feet
Before you play with your puppy, it could help if you use a taste deterrent on your hands or feet, depending on which part your dog likes to bite. With this compound in your hands and your puppy bites you, it will immediately react to the foul taste and stop biting. When it does, give it praise and continue playing with it. This will let your dog know that you like to play with it and that you are happy in doing so if it does not bite you.
Use a Water Spray for Serious Cases
There are some serious cases when dogs bite too hard that it can cause wounds. If your dog belongs to this case, then you may have to resort to more extreme measures like using a water spray on your dog whenever it bites you. When it does, spray the water on its face to startle it. This will signal to your dog that you are defending yourself from its bite because it is harmful to you.
But remember that when doing this, you are not to create fear for your puppy. You do not want to get scared of you as its owner.
If this doesn’t help, it may be wise to seek help from an expert. There are people who specialize in training dogs, including stopping them from biting.
Reward Your Dog for Good Behavior
And last but definitely not least, you can make your dog stop biting by rewarding it when it has good behavior. You can give it treats, snacks, or play with it more. You should also give off signals like “Yes” or “Good Boy” to express that you are happy with it not biting. Complement that with a pleasing facial expression and body gesture so that it will really know that you are happy that it is not biting.
