12-week-old puppy biting and growling

[Anonymous]

My labradoodle was so, so bitey until 6 or 7 months after he was done teething. We never corrected it and it just sort of stopped, almost overnight. The only thing that really helped as a puppy was to make sure he had lots of chews. Bully sticks smell like a$$ but they love them. Yak chews are quite hard but he loved those. Some puppies just have a really strong need to chew, chew, chew and sometimes that means chewing on their people if that is all they can find.

[Anonymous]

Use a spray bottle. Spray and say no! My dog cringes if we just show him the bottle now.

[Anonymous]

I have a poodle and I think you wait this out, for the most part. All pups are biters/constantly playing, etc. at that age. When mine turned 6-7 months old, her behavior really started to improve exponentially. By the time she was a year old, she was a dream.

I think puppy kindergarten or puppy training classes are a good idea, even if just for you to learn more about your dog. The kindergarten type classes are great for CONTROLLED socialization with other pups and getting expert feedback from trainers. We took ours to Your Dog's Best Friend in Rockville for reference. If you're not local, their website has tons of info on what to expect in other classes.

Lastly, whenever my pup was too bitey, it was almost always because she was overstimulated/tired (just like human babies). When I started putting her in a crate (or whatever safe quiet space you have at home) when she was doing too much, she 99% of the time went to sleep immediately after a minute or two.

[Anonymous]

11:42 again and i forgot to add that i didn't really correct behavior either, other than simply removing the stimulus. Sounds like your pup views negative feedback as fun, so simply removing whatever fun thing might be effective.

We also used bully sticks a LOT. She still gets one a few times a week. They really help scratch that itch (lol) for the chewing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Use a spray bottle. Spray and say no! My dog cringes if we just show him the bottle now.

Every lab/lab mix I've ever known thinks spray bottles are excellent toys. My current dog likes to catch the spray, which is hilarious to watch.

A soda can with a few pennies in it, taped shut, makes an effective deterrent for my cats and my dogs, so if the spray bottle is a toy and not a warning, maybe try a can/noisy rattle.

[Anonymous]

You’re not meant for dog ownership. Please return the dog.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Use a spray bottle. Spray and say no! My dog cringes if we just show him the bottle now.

That’s abusive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stick with it, OP. You're overthinking a very normal behavior for a very young puppy. Almost all puppies are mouthy (certainly some more than others) but the vast majority of adult dogs are not. You are teaching it limitations and the more calmly and consistently that you do it, the better. Get your kids some thick gardening gloves and make sure they are calm when they engage with the puppy. They can learn a lot from this too. There will be time for rougher, funner play when the puppy is done with this bitey stage. This shift almost always happens between 4-6 months.

In the mean time, sign up for puppy kindergarten. You'll see how normal this is and get feedback from trainers and other puppy owners to make sure you stay on track. Raising a puppy well is really not totally intuitive!

If you really don't think you can persevere, please re-home the puppy immediately while it is still cute and has a chance to find a new family with the patience to get through these normal phases.

Not really a patience thing after four weeks of your kids with broken skin bite marks. Biting is normal but without training it’s not going to magically disappear. Different training styles work for different dogs.

How old are you kids? Why are they interacting with the puppy to get bitten?
I'd say it's parenting issue, not the puppy training issue

NP. Huh? Family dogs should immediately be introduced to all puppies. Puppies should get used to children from the start. It would be one thing if kids were playing rough with a puppy, but kids should be able to throw toys, pet the dog, walk the dog. I've never had a puppy actually bite. Mouthing, yes, but not biting.

Ewww no. You’re asking for parvovirus.

[Anonymous]

Don’t be a Kristi Noem. Hire a trainer. Seriously, we got excellent advice from a trainer. Helped turn our dog into a honey who is excellent with our grandkids.

[Anonymous]

The behavior is normal. Think of them as teething too. Offer higher value chews. You can also make your own by freezing fruit in bone broth or pumpkin puree.

[Anonymous]

I was about to try the spray bottle to keep him off of the couch. He has pooped and peed on it already and that has to end. Maybe I'll try for the biting too.

To the person saying that was abusive, umm... it's a dog, not a child, and it's water.

[Anonymous]

We have 2 labradoodles, 3 years apart in age, but only the oldest was really bitey like that. Oldest one went home with us at 10 weeks but the younger was closer to 5-6 months old, so younger had a lot more time living with other puppies and dogs. The younger one was a bit mouthy when he was overexcited but was much easier to distract and he'd rather chase a ball or play with a stuffed animal than bite us.

Tried tons of tips, tricks, advice, rewards, spray bottles, and 2 different trainers but mouthing/biting was his love language and he was persistent. I wish I could say that it was something we did that finally broke him of the habit at 3 yrs old, but I'm fairly certain it was getting another puppy. He snapped out of it within just a few months of his new sibling being home, like he realized "hey guys, you know that hurts a bit?? Yikes."

NOT AT ALL advocating getting another dog but if he doesn't get better by 6 months, maybe try some consistent time at a reputable doggy daycare or set up some playdates with neighborhood dogs so he learns from other dogs how to limit the biting and how to play nicely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was about to try the spray bottle to keep him off of the couch. He has pooped and peed on it already and that has to end. Maybe I'll try for the biting too.

To the person saying that was abusive, umm... it's a dog, not a child, and it's water.

Anytime you make you dog afraid of you, you erode trust. Even if you don't believe it now, you want your dog to trust you

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is completely normal puppy behavior. They explore the world with their mouths and he’s teething.

Hire a professional trainer to come into your home and evaluate the situation to make sure the growling isn’t actually resource guarding or fear, but otherwise you just have to wait it out. When the teething ends they won’t be trying to eat your hands.

It's not resource guarding. We can pick up food and toys easily and remove things from his mouth with no issue.

If it's a wait it out thing, then why do the trainers say you have to correct the bad behavior now as a puppy or they'll take it into adulthood? Also I'm not sure I'm wiling to wait it out while my kids get constantly bit, even if he's not drawing blood every time.

Stop doing this!! Doodles are prone to resource guarding so you really need to be careful not to foster it in them. Learn about trading up and always use it with doodles!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was about to try the spray bottle to keep him off of the couch. He has pooped and peed on it already and that has to end. Maybe I'll try for the biting too.

To the person saying that was abusive, umm... it's a dog, not a child, and it's water.

Yes, it is abusive. Would you like it if someone constantly sprayed you with water? These behaviors are normal for a 3 month old puppy.