A common topic regarding puppies often involves how to stop a puppy from biting hands. Puppies often display a behavior known as “mouthing”. Mouthing is when a puppy approaches someone or something and softly nips them. Mouthing is often playful and is not a painful bite. When learning how to stop a puppy from biting hands, there are several approaches which can be taken:
Preventing Mouthing in Puppies
Preventing mouthing behavior is fairly simple and you can get rid of the behavior quickly. When your puppy reaches over to mouth you, you should direct his or her attention to another object. A toy, for example, works perfectly. After several times of doing this, your puppy is likely to begin to understand you do not enjoy the behavior and would rather she or he play with her toy than mouth you.
Ignoring the Mouthing in Puppies
To prevent mouthing in puppies, you can also ignore the mouthing behavior. If your puppy is not gaining any attention by mouthing you, she or he is likely to discontinue mouthing and find an action which does gain your attention.
Make a Sound to the Mouthing Puppy
Making a sound which makes the puppy believe he or she is harming you when she is mouthing is also a possible action to take in the prevention of the mouthing behavior. When you feel your puppy’s teeth, make a loud, high-pitched scream and walk away. You should then ignore the puppy for at least one minute to make him feel as if he harmed you.
Learn more about how to prevent dog bites
Amber Johnson, Animal Behaviorist
Miss Amber Johnson has many years of experience with pets and is a licensed cat and dog nutrition and behavior specialist. She currently collaborates with PetPremium where she counsels clients in pet behavior and nutrition. The statements made in this article are the personal opinions of Miss Amber Johnson and based on independent experiences and could be different from the opinions of PetPremium Pet health Insurance or any other pet health insurance provider.
