How To Stop Dog Biting

Whether your dog is being playful or defensive, dog biting eventually leads to unpleasantness. There happens to be two basic kinds of dog biting. One is called nipping and the other one is fear-biting. It’s important to know which one’s which so you won’t get confused. So if you want to know the specifics and ultimately prevent your dog from biting, then read this article carefully.

Nipping

In puppies, biting is usually just a playful way of communicating with others. It’s most commonly known as nipping. It is not a form of aggression; nor is it a way of defending themselves. Rather, it’s more of an exploratory way to satisfy their curiosity apart from them trying to tell you something. Dogs usually learn to inhibit themselves from too much biting at a very young age. This self learning process is an instinct they learn through social interaction. Here’s an example of how they learn bite inhibition:

• Puppy A is playing with puppy B
• Puppy A bites puppy B
• Puppy B then gets angry and walks away
• Puppy A notices that his playmate does not want to play anymore
• Puppy A learns that biting is bad for him and will refrain from doing it again to his playmates

Basic Prevention

When you first get a puppy, you have to realize that the puppy has been taken away from his family and it’s up to you to retrain him. This means that you have to take on the role of being the new mommy, the new playmate, and the new master. This also means that you have to teach him yourself so he can learn bite inhibition in case he still doesn’t know yet. Below is one method that you can do to train your puppy:

• When your dog starts nipping at your fingers, act as if you’re hurt.
• Turn your whole body away from your dog and completely ignore him.
• Stand up and walk away from him and don’t show your face.
• Act as if you’re really upset that you’ve hurt him and he’ll realize that it’s not beneficial for him to bite you.

Bite Inhibition Alternatives

It’s important to know that biting and chewing are instincts that should not be suppressed at all times. This means that you have to train your dog into thinking that there are some things that are considered chewable, and some things that are totally forbidden to even lay a tooth on. Here are some alternative methods to suppressing his biting instinct:

• Give him some bones or chew-toys to occupy himself.
• Whenever he starts going for your fingers, voice out a firm NO or a little growl.
• Reward him with treats if he stops trying to nip you.
• Don’t play aggressive games with him.
• Don’t get your dog overly excited when you’re feeding him.
• Never inflict pain. Just deprive him of your attention if he nips you.

Fear-Biting

Some dogs are fear-biters. They’re not really rabid or fierce dogs. They’re actually just scared and that they’ve developed some deep psychological problems. Biting out of fear is one of their ways to communicate with you what they’re feeling. They can’t really get up and say to you that they’re afraid, you know. If you really want to know, then here are some signs you should know in order to tell if your dog is a fear-biter.

• They easily get nervous and panic
• They tuck their tails
• They flatten their ears
• They hyperventilate and yawn a lot
• Their whole body is in a submissive posture and they try to avoid eye contact
• While nervous, they poop or pee

Fear-Biting Solutions

Like all social creatures, dogs can be subject to traumatic experiences. Phobias, deep psychological anxiety, strange objects, and people that make them nervous, are some of the reasons why dogs bite out of fear. If you want to cure some of your dog’s worries, then read below for some basic solutions.

• Instill confidence by retraining him with basic obedience exercises.
• Desensitize your pet to strange objects, other people, and animals. Do this very slowly.
• Stop rushing and pushing him to do things.
• Never crowd him, give him lots of space.
• Never be angry at him or inflict pain.

It’s always a good idea to be calm and collected around your dog so he can learn to emulate you. Make sure that his fearful behavior won’t be rewarded. As a concluding advice, always be patient with your dog and be mindful of his body language so that you’ll know how to deal with your dog’s behavior problems.

More On Dog Biting:

The #1 Biting Prevention Guide – Click here to view our top rated prevention guide to finally get your dog to stop biting everything.

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