German Shepard Biting/Mouthing

[ahiers]

Hi Mike,

First of all, sorry for submitting this in the "contact us" portion. I didn't see the "not dog training questions" until after I had already sent it.

Anyways, my boyfriend and I have a 8 week old German Shepard named Zeus. He is a extremely smart and has already learned sit, down, and come. He is also potty trained (atleast for now). We currently are training with him about twice a day for 20-30 minutes with breaks for play time. Currently we started teaching him leash manners after our vet told us we could start taking him on short 20 minute walks around our neighborhood. He has done great on the leash so far and the walks have helped with his energy level in the house.

Basically Zeus is doing great, but our only problem with him is that he bites everything in sight. He literally leads with his mouth. In the morning, he will be sweet and lick your face and hands for like 5 minutes and then he starts biting a ton. When he is hyper (after a nap) I can barely pet him without him biting my hands. He isn't growling or being aggressive and seems to be just playing, but his little teeth hurt pretty bad. He has already been to the vet like 4 times so we know he isn't sick or anything.

Another example, we will have a training session with him and he wont be biting at all. He will pay great attention and listen well. The second we free him up he starts walking around biting whatever he can find. Whether it be a pillow, coffee table, feet, hands, wires, wood chips or shoes.

What can we do? We know that we arent supposed to be correcting him at this age, but the biting is driving us crazy! We want to train our dog the best way possible! Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks for your help and the great website!

Ashlee Hiers

[Teresa]

Hi Ashlee,

Thanks for your patience in awaiting a response!

Sounds like what Zeus is doing is completely normal for a puppy. It is one of the most common complaints of new puppy owners, those puppy teeth can be killers! Puppies engage with each other in play and explore their environment with their mouths. Morning time and after naps when the are fully recharged can be some of the worst times ( piranha puppy- yikes!)
Puppies and adult dogs for that matter need to chew...just not on you. Make sure you have lots of appropriate chew things on hand for him to keep busy with like kong toys, nylabones, sterilized marrow bones (the kinds that are not basted in anything and are at least 6 to 8 inches long) and treat balls to keep him busy . These are just some ideas.

Have you worked your way through the triangle? If not make sure you work your way up and pay attention to toy/bone and chew toy rules in Pack Structure http://www.selfhelpdogtraining.com/P...Structure.html
Following Pack Structure rules will also help with him biting inappropriate things in the house.

If you know that he is going to be especially mouthy like first thing in the morning, don't pick this time to pet him and snuggle. Maybe play a game with him like tug or ball first and then after he has relieved some of that energy and seems a little more relaxed you can get some petting time in. Puppies usually play hard and sleep hard so it shouldn't take too much to tire him out at his age.

Giving him appropriate items to chew on (like kongs that are stuffed with food to keep them interested) and appropriate outlets for their energy such as tug and walks should decrease the nipping and mouthing alot. It will not go away overnight but you should see a definite decline over time.

How do you normally respond when he is chewing on items such as pillows and coffe tables in the house? Sometimes chewing on things in the house is an attention seeking behavior. For example the puppy has learned that if he snatches the pillow from the couch a fun game of chase ensues.

Congrats on the new puppy!
Teresa

[ahiers]

Hi Teresa,

Thank you very much for you response! Zeus is now 12 weeks and although he has made a lot of improvements, he still is biting at my hands quite a bit.

We definitely do have many appropriate toys for him to chew on such as the Kong and even a soft toy that you freeze that feels good on his gums and teeth. All of these we give on our own terms like in the dog pack structure section. He loves his toys and will play with them when we let him have them, however, he just loves hands and I have no idea why! haha! I know he is teething at this age. When should teething be over with?

My boyfriend and I have read the pack structure section many times. Zeus is very smart and knows sit, down, come and leave it without hand gestures now. He is SO good during training! You nailed it by saying the worst times are in the mornings and after naps. I definitely think I need to work on the affection portion. I definitely make him sit or come to me before I pet him, but I am guilty of petting him too long! He is just so darn cute!

Zeus does great on walks around the neighborhood (we cant take him to parks yet) and does really well with commands before he receives his food and before going out to the bathroom. He still is great with being potty trained. That is a great suggestion for the mornings! I will start playing tug or something with him to get rid of some energy.

The attention seeking behavior sounds pretty head on. Anytime he starts trying to bite things he shouldn't be we will tell him "leave it" and "out" until he gives it up. He probably thinks that is how he gets our attention. What should we do when he is chewing on items he isn't supposed to?

Also, what could I do personally to get him to stop biting my hands? He will get super hyper at random times and start running around barking and nipping at my hands. You can totally tell he knows he isn't supposed to either. He just tests the water a lot during those times. They happen a few times a week!

Thank you very much for your help!

Ashlee Hiers

[Teresa]

Hi Ashlee,

I am glad that Zeus is improving in other areas! Now for the nipping....

Yes he is teething and will be until 8 months. Baby teeth will fall out between 4 and 6 months old and permanent teeth will continue to come in until about 8 months.

It is great that he is doing so well with his obedience. Keep following pack structure rules. You mentioned you pet him too long. ( I agree it can be hard to resist such cuteness). Remember quality not quantity
Do you think he tolerates a certain amount of petting and then starts nipping? If so try to end petting before he gets to this point. If you want to increase the amount of time that you can pet him ( let's say he has been exercised, and isn't allowing hands on for more than 1-3 seconds) . You can ask him to sit , show him a treat and feed the treat while you pet. When treat is finished hands come off. For example he may only be able to lick and nibble at the treat for the first 2 seconds then he can have the treat on the 3 count. Gradually increase the length of time spent petting and waiting for treat. You can even pair a command with this called "easy". As he gets better at this you can eventually say " easy" then pet and then give the treat.

If he does have something in his mouth you should teach him to trade. You don't want him to learn to play keep away to get your attention. If he has already grabbed something in his mouth get a favorite toy or a yummy treat and show it to him ( you may have to hold the treat to his nose). Say in a happy voice "out" ("leave it" would be for something not yet in his possession). As soon as he drops it praise him and give him the treat. As he gets better at it he won't need to see the treat first before dropping the item.

It would help me to know what you have been doing up until now when he nips you. Any particular techniques you have already tried and his response? But in the meantime until I hear back from you, can he be distracted by obedience
commands at all?

Best,
Teresa