Hello me again, tell me that this is all going to stop soon.

Our new male puppy (14 weeks) is nipping my youngest son an awful lot, I know that he is probably trying to establish himself in the family so to speak and can tell that my youngest is the weakest link if you know what I mean and therefore trying to dominate him, we have been getting my youngest to feed him and try and build up a relationship etc but it doesn't seem to be working.

The puppy is picking on him an awful lot, tonight when I got home from work my son was being attacked in the garden so to speak and I stepped in to stop my son getting nipped again and I was bitten, I know it was an accident and I am sure my puppy didn't mean it but the bite is quite deep and hurts a bit and I am just worried that the puppy won't grow out of it and to be honest glad it bit me and not my son, this is a bite I am talking about and not just a gentle nip.

We have the book Bark Busters and we throw the chain and shout BARH whenever he does this nipping but my youngest is now quite scared of the puppy and I am starting to worry that this puppy is never gonna grown out of this is and is a 100% maniac and we are just really unlucky and we have made a huge mistake. Tell me that you have been through this and it is all quite normal, we are booked in for puppy school but that is a week away and we have never had a dog before so we are really struggling.

I don't want to get rid of the puppy as it will break the children's hearts but I can't have a dog around who will threaten the safety of my children and myself so any hints and help would be great, think we have the puppy from hell and it is all quite upsetting at the moment.

Its a puppy. They nip and bite. Its what they do. Its normal and it will grow out of it. Consistency and perseverance in training is all that is needed.

Thanks that is what I keep telling myself, we went into this with eyes wide shut and didn't have a clue, a bit like being a parent really and I just hope this puppy will one day become the lovely dog it should be, we all adore him but just didn't understand how hard it would all be. I have two boys aged 9 + 11 and they run around getting the puppy excited and then the puppy starts nipping and then the husband starts shouting the puppy starts nipping more and mum resorts to a bottle of wine because tomorrow is Australia Day.

Wait till you fall asleep in front of the Telly & wake up to find he's chewed his way through the coffee table, the reading lamp flex & started on the chair spindles.
I'm still in the dog house [along with him]for not paying sufficient attention He was laid asleep on me like a little hot water bottle, next thing I know some banshee is screaming through the house until we both tried to cower under the pool table
Wouldn't swap him for the world though
If I'm three hours late back from the pub he's the only one pleased to see me, I wish he could cook & work the hoover

puppys are a pain in the neck just like young children but with sharper teeth and different games

get a water spray - when he bits, spray him with it on jet (I mean a hand sprayer not some crazy wall cleaner plug in contraption )

Also, calm him down, put him in a sit position holding his mouth gently and dont allow him to be crazy. I find people play and wind up puppies a lot in the first few days and then wonder why the dog thinks thats the way to go

I also advise not allowing him to eat until he is sitting nicely and you release him (with a verbal command perhaps). its handy at the park to stop them eating rubbish and also it reinforces the alpha position. in the beginning they wriggle and squirm but like with babies, in the beginning be a little forgiving. Get him in a wriggly sit, say SIT and then GOOD BOY or whatever your release word is going to be


they grow up and calm down by 2 but the biting should stop by 6 months or so or before if your training works

Hi!When you are playing with your puppy,don't ever encourage it to bite you in play.If it starts biting then offer it a dog toy instead.You'll also have to watch your boys don't get him too over excited because they do tend to bite more when that happens.If you offer the toy and he still bites you,say a firm "No",and turn away from him.Puppy's do obviously bite alot(teething does'nt help!!!)but you have to teach your dog its ok to bite toys,just not you.Get your boys to do the same,no and turn away and before long,he'll realise its more fun to bite the toys!Good luck and let us know how you get on!

When a puppy is first born and lives with its puppymates it plays and bites, but the other puppies will soon them it if it is being too rough. You must do the same. The best way to do this is to let of a high pitch 'yelp' when it nips, turn your back and ignore it. Doing this every time will soon make it realise this is not on. Giving it a toy will also help, but be careful not to let it think that if it bites you it'll get a toy! What it is doing is completely normal, and with some direct training can be resolved in a matter of days!

It's also important to get your puppy used to you checking its teeth and mouth area. Do this regularly, and use a signal word (i use 'teeth' with ours) soon he will learn to open his mouth for you, but it does take time. It'll also mean he will bite and nip you quite a bit, but with the 'yelp' and ignoring it'll soon learn to stop, and the sooner you get this out of the way the better.

Ours is a labrador and I found www.labradorforums.co.uk/forums.html extremely helpful. It's obviously lab specific (not sure what breed yours is?) but this topic is covered heavily in the puppy area, as is toilet training and many others, and the same rules apply for all breeds. And everyone is so friendly and helpful.

Hope this helps.

And a bloody good kick up the arse

Our retreiver did this for about 4 months ; ripped a few of my sons tops in the process. The dog just wanted to play- just like children - so put the time in training and give them enough exercise and they'll soon stop.

Dog or kids

Both