Stop Puppy Biting

How to stop that puppy biting.

It is so exciting when we get a new puppy. Here at NZ Dog Food we have been through 2 litters of lovely pups as well as 6 dogs in their time including rescue dogs and our own pups. Often the most frustrating part of owning a puppy is their biting. It can be very sore and quite stressful at times, especially when young children are involved. So how do we stop this?

Step One

Puppies are a live in the right now sort of animal. This means that if you are sitting down their first instinct is to grab your loose fingers or clothing. They don’t actually know when they are young that they should go get a toy – this needs to be taught. So as soon as they come towards you and grab something they are not allowed say “owwww” and then go grab a toy.

Step Two

Now that you have the toy you can start playing with the puppy. As soon as they ignore the toy and try you again say “oww” again and grab the toy again.

Step Three

If they then ignore the toy again and grab you say “oww” and then walk out of the room and close the door for about 30 seconds. Once 30 seconds are done repeat from step 2. This takes a couple of weeks for the puppy to understand. If you have young children just get them to try and sit up high out of the way and make sure when they play with the puppy they always have a toy.


 Tips and tricks:

  • Only have a few toys out at a time and rotate the toys every day.

  • Don’t play rough and tumble until they have learnt not to bite you.

  • When the puppy has just gone slightly bonkers and just wont stop – take a break, put them outside or in another room while you go and grab a coffee.

  • With kids around try to keep a leash on the dog, this way you can quickly grab the puppy and move them away.