Oh my giddy god......

[HangingOver]

I can't actually believe I'm finally typing this... I think I'm getting a dog!

I've wanted one of my own my entire life. I had one growing up and look after friends and neighbours at every available opportunity as I adore dogs so much. A rescue came up locally and I thought he looked lovely, he was snapped up immediately, but came up again yesterday! Me and DP are meeting him this afternoon.

Any tips for meeting a rescue for the first time? Other than being gentle and calm? He's 8 months so a bouncy chap.

ARGGGH! So excited. 😁

You sound so lovely @HangingOver

When my puppy was very mouthy and bitey another thing that helped was keeping substitutions nearby. So when he grabbed my hand I offered him a soft toy instead to chew on. He was generally happy to accept substitutions though my hands & arms held a peculiar fascination for him.

If he’s going to spend “time out” in the conservatory I would put a second dog bed in there or at least a blanket for him to lie on, water & a chew.

You’re giving him a good chance and it won’t be anyone’s fault if it doesn’t work out.

I had a similar problem with my cocker spaniel when he was a puppy. Little sod for hanging off clothes and I think we all walked round in rags indoors for quite some time. Same as has been suggested to you, we installed a baby gate in the doorway and as soon as he started this behaviour we all got up and walked out, leaving him on his own for a few minutes. Think it was a case of the pup being overwhelmed and overtired and didn’t know how to deal with it.

Took a week or so before he realised that being an idiot made all his family walk away from him but we cracked it eventually. He turned into the most loving boy and we were all devastated when he had to be PTS last year.

It’s great you’re persevering with him OP, but I suspect this is the real reason he was returned previously, despite the story the shelter gave you. With the right training I’m certain the behaviour can be stopped, but you definitely need concise, controlled, direct training. 🤞🏻

Okay so this is great and I really hope it's what will happen to him. I'll admit, I was shit yesterday, I think some of the things I'd read from online training blogs to stop them doing this possibly weren't written with larger dogs in mind because they simply didn't work on him. Like how some people swear that when you make a high pitched loud yelping sound when they nip you it sort of startles them out of it but either I'm doing it wrong or he just thought it was funny. So now I know I have to just yank him straight out of there and time-out him.

I think we're suffering with information overload a bit because there's SO MUCH online about training but it's not at all consistent so I need a trainer to meet him asap and give me tailored advice for me and my boy. I've left messages with two trainers. Even a zoom would be good.

Thanks again for all your help and input doggy crew, you're pawesome.

OP I think you're approaching this absolutely the right way and with absolutely the right attitude. If for any reason you can't find a force free trainer who can come quickly enough then DM me with your details and I may be able to help find one. Good luck for today.

Camidy Animal Handling Gloves Anti Bite Gloves for Dogs and Cats 17. 7 Multipurpose Pet Glove for Training : Amazon.co.uk: Pet Supplies

Maybe you should get some of these for the short term

I suspect this is the real reason he was returned previously, despite the story the shelter gave you.

You could be right, however she did say "this isn't a behaviour we've heard about from him", so giving them the benefit of the doubt, it could be that the previous home saw it as a red line (especially with kids in the house) and didn't mention this specific issue so as to not get into a dialogue about it.

Or it could be that he just hasn't done it before. Weirdly, my friend's dog (a bitch) does a less extreme version of this with me, and friend reports she doesn't do it to anyone else. Given there's a fair bit of crotch shoving from both of them during landshark time I wonder whether there's some sort of pheromone thing going on...

Anyway, whatever the reason, I'll treat it as they've advised from now on.

Can I just say to all on this thread with their lovely puppy/dog pics it's lovely to see them all and the joy they have brought you and OP hope your chompy boy settles in

On a much milder note - we took in 2 rabbits from a shelter, was given a very plausible story about why they’d been given up, rehomed but returned, and were now back up for rehoming. They lied. After the first night of having them it was very evident why they been returned. They lied. And I strongly suspect you’ve been lied to too. But again, with the correct training geared very much to your dogs needs, he’ll soon became a fantastic companion. ❤️

You’ll get there @HangingOver It takes patience and consistency but you will crack it. Just make sure you do it every time, as frustrating as that is.

Ours was a little horror as a pup and adolescent. I remember doing our Kennel Club Bronze Award and the trainer taking me aside afterwards and saying it wasn’t worth going any further as DDog was such a menace. He remained stubborn until the very end but he was such a happy, friendly little chap.

Here’s one of the last pictures I have of him.

When our older dog came to us as a puppy he was a sod for this. It can be a normal part of puppy development. The kids used to wear wellies because he used to attack their feet.
Wide leg trousers were his favourite he used to launch himself like a flying squirrel and sink his teeth in.
It lasted a couple of weeks consistancy is key a firm no and separate yourself every single time.

I really hope it works out for you it sounds like (apart from the biting) you really live him already!

I would suggest that you remove yourself, not him. Slipping a lead on him and putting him in the conservatory is just going to make him see his lead as an aversive and potentially make him hand-shy. A 'trainer' called Jan Fennell made a big thing of this approach on TV a few years back and a lot of people ended up being bitten and having far more problems with their dogs after using it. Redirecting him to a rope toy or something, or walking out of the room yourself, would be a safer approach. See if you can find an APDT-endorsed dog trainer in your area who will help you using up-to-date, force-free methods. https://apdt.co.uk/

I agree. Remove yourself. It does sound like play, albeit inappropriate play. That’s one of the reasons you don’t punish or prevent pups from mouthing. They need to know WHAT to mouth. My 2 year old terrier can get like this if she gets overstimulated when we train so we just calm down with some scatter feeding and it really works. At home she has learnt to grab a toy if she feels she needs to bite or shake.

I understand about the information overload online. I eventually found what suited me and my dog but you don't have the luxury of time.

Fingers crossed the trainer is competent.

“Oh he’s never done that before “

Don’t believe that for a second.

Sounds like practiced behaviour.

Just be extremely careful about members of public/ children- Chances are he was never trained or socialised early and has had several homes that you weren’t told about.

Hard mouthed biting and ripping at clothes does not sound good.

I agree that putting him on lead and yanking him out of the room is not the solution.

I think you need to stop reading and googling. Just because someone has a book or website doesn't mean they know what they are talking about.

Barraging him with all of these different tactics is just confusing and upsetting as he tries to assimilate yet another new environment. Be patient and less reactive.

My lab used to do this when he was a puppy (a very large strong puppy). I tried distractions, toys treats etc but the only thing that worked was to walk out of the room...not easy when dog hanging onto clothing.
I once had to take my trackie bottoms off to get away because he wouldn't let go. Expected to find them in shreds when I came back but he'd clearly lost interest when I wasn't wearing them, was just standing there looking bewildered.

I am really rooting for you all OP. It does sound like behaviour that falls within the (wide) range of 'Normal' - albeit on the more boisterous end of the scale. Everything crossed that you'll make progress quickly enough for him to stay

As you say op there is a lot online, here in this thread, on forums, websites etc.

All you can do is find what works for you and your pup and stick with it. Even better with a face to face trainer.

That's not to say what works for someone else is wrong but just that it is easy to fall into the trap of trying everything and then both you and pup end up more confused than when you started and can often exacerbate a problem - don't ask me how I know this 😬

Oh that made me chuckle! Thanks for everyone chipping in with similar, glad to hear they seem to fairly quickly realise that it's no fun when their attention gets taken away.

Trainer 1 just rang, he confirmed timeout is the way to go and talked me though it. Trainer 1 has no capacity but Trainer 2 is doing a zoom session with us all tomorrow and he says he'll get us set up with a regime and then we can join his in person and online teenage dog course starting in ten days. Result! 😁

Fantastic news OP. We have two labs who are both labrasauras’s or crocodors as they were known. The “puppy” stage was a killer. We answered the door one day looking like we’d been attacked, we hadn’t - he was playing and would not take no for an answer.

Labrasauras is now a dream - but cheeky and will still steal things when he thinks he can get away with it.
Crocoador bit us less because he bit his big brother 😂 payback! But he’s also great, he’s still a very excitable boy.

You will get through it, and I’m so pleased you’re speaking to trainers rather than just sending him back.

Trainers are invaluable. Ours was a police dog trainer and taught us distraction techniques. She came and spent a morning with us and then later accompanied us and a walk. She was very into listen what your dog is telling you.

Just had a funny thought.

My oh still stands on his pants when he gets dressed. DDog1 sadly left us in June but when he was a puppy he was obsessed with underwear and would wait until OH was at his vulnerable during dressing to nip in, grab the pants and parade them round. He grew out of that pretty quickly but the habit of standing on the pants has long remained 🤣

The teenage stage with dogs sucks. No ifs or buts about it. Ivydog was notorious for ripping shoes and socks off feet while you were walking, and going for scarves and hats like they were her personal nemesis. (Nemesises/Nemeses/Nemesi… Whatever…:) Hair was fun too. My DDs and I all have long hair. I still have scars on my wrists I have had to explain to people who were very suspicious that I may not have been quite as happy as I appeared to be.

We’re raising a Lab puppy & there’s a reason they are called land sharks.

I’ve been singing Baby Shark to him since he arrived - yes I’m losing my marbles!