New puppy, desperate for help

[polopolopolopoo]

11 week old pup, very settled in for last 2 weeks with us. For last few days she's turned into a monster and I don't know why or what to do!

It's the constant biting and attacking, she jumps up on the sofa next to me and then goes for my head with teeth and claws, biting and pulling my hair. She bites my hands, my arms, anywhere she can reach.

I've tried to ignore, I get up immediately and turn my back to her. I've put her off the sofa, I've left the room, I've put her in the hallway. Nothing works. She keeps attacking. What do I do? Last week she was the sweetest floppiest furball who slept on me all day.

Is this normal??!

Puppy needs more stimulation and is treating you as another puppy with the play fighting.

Mental stimulation is important as well as physical exercise.

Don't forget that puppies have teething stages and it's natural to want to chew to relieve any teething pain.

Here are some suggestions for toys to give you an idea -

www.horseandhound.co.uk/buyers-guides/best-puppy-toys-806316

More likely that's it's over stimulated and needs more sleep!

How much is she sleeping OP? Is she having proper undisturbed naps through the day?

Puppy Kong is great and you can freeze them to make the contents frozen.

https://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/dogs/dogtoyssdogtraining/kongs/puppyykong/139220?variantid=139220.3&gbraid=0AAAAAD9Xn6Wdt-GlmE7oGh08pI3hUtMa6&gclid=Cj0KCQjwnMWkBhDLARIsAHBOftpCFTZ82OaNdDEx9GoubXGuW6zdMkJCqIzi7hqqJGWM3hKmzdbbB9MaArBjEALw_wcB

We used to call this the 'land shark'. Suddenly a set of teeth come out of no where at you!

Mine is 18mths now, so over that stage, but it wasn't great. Just know that it does get better. I far from any expert BTW, but we had a toy that could be frozen and presumably was more interesting to chew on- maybe helped with teething aches. Bought a puppy conch/kong thing. I found cooker, chopped chicken the best because it could be compressed firmly inside and took ages to be licked out.

I forgot (how could I!) that sometimes our puppy would get the zoomies, then go into an almost manic phase- biting, running, biting, jumping and looking for next thing to do. Sometimes we had to just hold and calm her, because she was just over tired and didn't know what to do with herself.

I agree, that it is possibly from not enough sleep.

Puppy sounds over stimulated. Does he have a puppy pen or a crate where he can go, can’t keep attacking and just eventually fall asleep?

All helpful suggestions thank you. She had lots of chew toys but will try frozen treats.

I think you're spot on that she's not resting enough, she does nap during the day but I will try to put her in her crate which might make her feel more rested for a longer period.

Thanks everyone 🙂

Puppies need about 18-20 hours of sleep per day - you need to enforce naps and lots of them

Sounds overtired. I would put mine in her bed and stroke her until she fell asleep. Sometimes she got up a few times but i'd put her back and we'd get there eventually. Shutting curtains can help too.

That’s what puppies do! If you have Facebook I would check out the dog training advice and support page. It’s run by qualified behaviourists and the idea is you read the guides and if you’re still struggling you can post and get help. There’s also a premium group you can pay for and get much more help

She’s just being a puppy. She’s not over or under stimulated, she’s just being a playful puppy. That’s what they do, bite with their little razor teeth, jump, chew, play and play tug.

Ok so if it is normal puppy behaviour then what do I do when she attacks? Is it best to ignore, punish, put in another room, try to calm her?? I've tried all those but nothing works. Do I just put up with it and wait til it passes?

I don't have FB but we are doing a local training course in July.

Oh the training group also released a book which you may find useful.

I would say ignoring your pup is likely to frustrate her which means she is more likely to escalate trying to get your attention so it will get worse. She’s trying to play with you. With my pup the best thing to do was to get a long bit of cloth and play tugging games with him. Make it long and soft so she can bite it without biting you - like a dressing gown cord or similar, wiggle it across the floor so she pounces on that. I used to tie mine round my waist so if my pup started attacking me I had the toy immediately to hand.

she will grow out of it

Dog Training and Behaviour Solutions: The stress-free way to live in harmony with your dog https://amzn.eu/d/7ZnP1mV

This is great, thank you I'll try that! And thanks for the book link 👍

Good luck! I thought my dog would never stop but they do grow out of it - I find with my dog instead of telling him no, he’s much better if I give him a cue to do something else like sit or lie down. Still there’s a reason why they’re called land sharks!

Yeah I’d say this is normal puppy behaviour and it lasts for months! My GSD is 12 months now and is calm as anything but those first few months were tough and I have the scars to prove it. Learn to shrill screech with the biting to teach no. I had a routine of play or walk, drink of water then in the crate for a nap. If you can stand the mess a pile of boxes for them to shred is a good distraction. Mine loved a raw carrot for teething. Good luck! YABU to not include a picture btw

Don't punish her - she's just being a puppy.

If she's behaving that way and can't be distracted then I would either leave the room until she calms down or put her in another room until she calms down,

It's normal, partly excitement partly teething. First part, always have a toy to hand....to swap for your leg etc, second,yelp, like the litter mates do to show it hurts

Normal puppy behaviour. It gets worse when they're overtired - they seem to lose all impulse control and just turn into explody teeth demons.

Pop her in her crate/bed and sing her lullabies (or songs with rude words, your choice) til she falls asleep.

1. Never ignore negative behaviour. That reinforces that it’s okay.
2. Say “No!” firmly and in a growly voice while simultaneously giving the pup a firm but gentle push on their bum to deflect them away from whatever they’re jumping on or biting. (Obviously NEVER hard enough to hurt the puppy, but this is what mother dogs do.)
3. Give the puppy that they are allowed to chomp on and play with, while saying “Good girl!” and reinforcing this every..single…time.

Will Atherton has some fabulous videos. I really like his attitude which creates well socialized, socially confident and appropriately-behaved dogs.

Agree with @Fraaahnces - stop any contact, eyeball her with a very firm NO (just that word, don't use her name or any other words) and wait for her to look away. The moment she does give lots of praise and cuddles. My 10 month old learnt very quickly that play was over because she'd gone too far.

Oh, and don’t “talk” to your puppy. That all becomes white noise to them. Give them cuddles, play, etc, but use simple, repetitive commands, like “Wait”, “Sit”, “Eat”, etc. Your puppy wants to please you, but they’re not able to reason in the same way we are. Watch some of Will’s videos. Arm yourself with useful dog training tools and take puppy to classes to socialize as soon as you can.

We had this with our staffy when he was a puppy. We basically had to "show him who's boss" and any time he tried to bite or attack us we said NO and held him firmly to the floor until he calmed down. We didn't hurt him or do it forcefully, just enough so he didn't move. Once he calmed down we let him go and gave him praise for any good behaviour.
He's a lovely boy now and wouldn't hurt a fly.