Puppy biting

[IVFNewbie]

Hi! Is this normal for a puppy of ten weeks old?

[MiniChoc]

Shit I hope not, we're collecting a 10 week old puppy soon and your pic has scared me!

[jinxpixie]

Yep very normal. Try to have a toy and put the toy in the puppies mouth when they start - an old t towel is a good idea.

Try to distract if possible

It will pass

[Peggysgettingcrazy]

It can be. Ours have never broken skin but we only have smallish dogs. What breed is it?

Puppies bite. Its how they play. How they learn whats too hard. Other puppies yelp and squeal or bite back.

They need to be taught. Theres lots of ways people do it. You can yelp like a puppy then ignore until calm (if absolutely won't calm do time out as last resort). The puppy learns play stops when they get too rough.

When they are over tired or over excited its often worse.

Or When they start, stick a toy they can chew in their mouths.

There's quite a few ways to it. I go with yelp and stop play. But I think its most important that you are just consistent.

[FortunaMajor]

Yes, it's normal. For alternatives to chew on rather than you, try whole carrots either frozen or from the fridge, pieces of antler, frozen flannels (wet and twisted), ice cubes.

Any time the pup bites then make a loud noise like a yelp or cry to let them know it's not ok. It takes time but the biting does stop eventually.

[fivedogstofeed]

Yes. Been there. It's all about managing it at this stage.

[Iadoremylabrador]

We found a hot dog toy from Pets at home was great to shove in our puppy's mouth when he was at his most bitiest, first thing in the morning. They were happy to see you playful bites but still painful and a bit scary to the younger members of the family!

[lustforlife]

My puppy was the same (large breed). He grew out of it when he lost his baby teeth. I still have scars on my arms!

[pilates]

Yep, I did the yelping and he stopped almost straightaway.

[VladTheDictator]

Yes it’s normal and they are babies who need teaching kindly.

[EowynDernhelm]

I have several large breed dogs, and I have never had one of them break the skin and cause bleeding.

Totally normal for puppies to bite / chew at you, but we've always used a combination of yelping and stopping being involved with puppy when it happens, and using distraction - seeing the nipping before it happens and giving them something they are allowed to chew instead. I would not tolerate broken skin at all.

[GeraltOfRivia]

Yes it's normal for them to want to bite and use their mouths. You need to offer an alternative. They're a baby so don't take it personally but discourage it every single time

[ALovelyBitOfSquirrel]

Absolutely normal! He's a baby!



Shit I hope not, we're collecting a 10 week old puppy soon and your pic has scared me!

It's a puppy ffs, not a Shark 🙄

[frostedviolets]

Blimey!
What breed is it?!

I have a collie and while she put holes in nearly all my clothes she never bit to that extent

[Perfidy]

It’s ok to step,away from them if too bitey. Distract with a toy, ignore, and if v bad they are probably tired and need a nap. They nee way more sleep than you and they think. 18 to 20 hours a day.

[cheesesandwhich]

It was normal for us, mine nipped me on the nose once and broke the skin He's 15 months old now and never bites just some times pulls on my sleeve to open the back door for him. Puppy teeth are like needles!

[IVFNewbie]

...thanks all, that's most useful. He's half cockapoo and half welsh terrier, so a bit of a mix up.

[Unravellingslowly]

Yep. Puppies bite. They use their mouth to find out about the world and they are also teething. Does it have any chew toys?

www.thelabradorsite.com/labrador-puppies-biting/

[BiteyShark]

I had holes in my jeans when my dog was a puppy as he used to launch himself at me to play and hang on with his teeth

[copycopypaste]

Buy lots and lots of different chewy things. Just remember it doesn't last forever

[copycopypaste]

Mine is now 18 weeks old and has lost her front teeth. It's bliss at the moment as she gums everyone to bits at the moment

[heatseeker14]

Our puppy used to be very nippy. We tried using toys to stop him biting us. He would always prefer to nibble on us though. He would hang off my husband’s trousers when he came in from work. Eventually we had to use 2 minute timeouts because toys and yelping didn’t deter him. Ignoring him didn’t work for us. He would continue to nip to try and get our attention. My boys preferred to stay out of the way on the sofa when he went on the rampage. It doesn’t last for long though. 12 weeks was the worst point for us. Our pup started to calm down around 16 weeks. By 5 months he would only occasionally nip if he got hyped up, but it was a lot easier to stop him by then.

[vanillandhoney]

Yep, it's normal. Puppies have needle teeth and when they bite, it hurts!

[Hoppinggreen]

No idea if it’s normal but our GR was a Bitey little bugger but not to that extent. He rarely drew blood but we did have loads of bites and scratches

[CMOTDibbler]

Its normal for them to try it, so I literally have chewy toys absolutely everywhere ready to give them. Absolutely zero tolerance of any part of a human in their mouth (I often find people think its cute for a little puppy to have their finger in their mouth), so theres no confusion. I do a sharp Ah Ah, and swiftly remove the human bit and give them a chewy. They are praised for chewing the right thing.

IMO, puppies get ultra bitey and scratchy when they are over tired and over stimulated. Is yours getting enough naps and downtime?

[midnightstar66]

Yes but it's important to teach him he shouldn't be doing it. Always have a tug toy to hand. We use a stern 'ah' when she bites quickly replace with toy and praise/treat when she takes that instead