Ok, so novice puppy owner here - although not novice dog owner.
We are attempting to train pup as much as poss ourselves.. We've pretty much nailed sit and come (the latter a work in progress around distractions).
The main two things which we feel we need to work on are 'leave' ( when she is attempting to bite small DCs especially) and her lead biting when she's on it. ( I'm aware she's still very young and that it's probably sensory overload for the most part)
We do the distraction things when she is nipping etc, but often it has to be a simple case of 'leave it' when she has DS in her chops.
My questions are-
1- I'm aware of overloading her with trying to teach her too many or more than one command at a time.. Do I have to stick to one at a time and nail it, before moving on to the next one or can she be learning a couple at once? Because getting her to leave (the kids and not bite them or human beings) is paramount to us atm..
2- I am aware of the teaching of bite inhibition. DH is adamant that she needs to learn that putting her chops on skin is an absolute no no- and yet I see the need for her to learn a soft mouth. Could she learn this naturally, or does she need specific exercises in order for her to learn this (obviously she learns it from playing with dogs and our family are showing her that only toys are for biting etc).
3- Could I please ask for ideas of mental games for her- she is very bright and has worked out ages ago that the way to get cheese of of a kong is to drop it at a certain angle in the floor so the pieces fall out- so something where she is engaged with working stuff out would be great.
Apologies for length of post and if it's all a bit jumble-not much time to type, feeling very strung out- I am having serious wobbles at the moment and could do with some good, concise advice. Thanks.