Stop Puppies From Nipping

Nipping puppies are a common occurrence. Puppies play hard with their littermates and when you bring your puppy home he transfers this behavior to you. Those sharp little teeth really hurt, however, and this is a behavior that needs to be nipped in the bud.

Nipping puppy behavior has nothing to do with teething or dominance. It is simply puppy play behavior that has gone wild. Buying chew toys and offering them to your puppy won’t do anything to deter them from mouthing people or teach the puppy to have a safe mouth around children. Safe chew toys are a great idea and important to have but they teach puppies how to chew on puppy toys instead of people things. They don’t teach puppies not to bite people.

Mouthing and nipping is usually a sign that the puppy is hyperstimulated and wants to play. They simply need to learn to play in a gentler way. Nipping and mouthing on people and having the people tell the puppy that it HURTS teaches the puppy the critical lesson of “bite inhibition” so they can learn better control over their aim with their mouth. Bite inhibition is something that puppies also learn from their dams and their littermates. Their control over their biting usually improves over time if you properly and consistently reinforce the message that you send. Your puppy will get better emotional self-control and physical coordination.

This is exactly the same lesson that 2- and 3-year-old human children have to learn about playing with other children: be gentle or no one will play with you. The goal is to have the puppy become gentler and gentler with their mouth so that being soft with their mouth becomes a habit. Or a skill. It takes time to build a habit.

You teach a puppy to be more gentle with his mouth by shrieking with pain when he nips you. You need to overdo it. Really let your puppy know that it HURTS. Follow this by immediately leaving the room and closing the door so your puppy cannot continue the biting. Some puppies may try to run after you because they still want to play so be sure to leave the room and close the door. Start out by shrieking over a painful nip and work your way to up a shriek about any tooth-to-skin contact at all. By the time your puppy is 4 1/2-5 months old they should have a very soft mouth if you apply this method consistently. This is the same method that is taught in most puppy kindergarten classes.

You are basically doing the same thing that your puppy’s mother or littermates would do when he nipped them. His mother and littermates would cry out and stop playing with your puppy if he bit them too hard. He would learn that if he played too rough there would be no more play.

If you are playing with a puppy who starts to become overstimulated or who shows signs of nipping you can take a time-out. Stand up, turn your back on your puppy, cross your arms and look away. Stand still, even if your puppy jumps on you. Don’t acknowledge your puppy. Don’t speak to him. Count to 30. If your puppy has calmed down you can praise him and resume play. If he hasn’t calmed down by a count of 30 try another count to 30. If that still doesn’t work you should calmly leave the room, with the puppy still in the room. If your puppy is still showing signs of being overstimulated you should do a time-out with your puppy in his crate for 2-5 minutes. These are ways of teaching your puppy emotional self-control. Your puppy learns to calm himself down in order to get you to play with him some more.

If you teach your puppy using these methods it should solve your problems with nipping and becoming overstimulated when playing. You want your puppy to grow up to be a dog who has good control of his mouth and teeth and who doesn’t become overstimulated and accidentally bite.

Time-outs can be used effectively when your dog is getting out of control. If your dog is barking excessively a time-out in his crate for a few minutes may get his mind off barking. Sometimes a dog may bark wildly at a squirrel or something else outside. Your dog may be overstimulated at these times and a time-out can help calm him down. There are some good ways to try to discourage barking behavior but a time-out may be the only thing that breaks the barking sometimes.

About the Author

David Beart is the owner of the Professors House. Our site covers family related issues from raising children to dog training, relationships to cooking.

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Mini Skinneeez Stuffing Free Dog Toy Squirrel $5.19 Mini Skinneeez Stuffing Free Dog Toy Everything you love about Skinneeez but in a smaller size! Mini Skinneeez are stuffing free so they lay flat, are easy to grab, to hold, and to carry by small dogs and puppies. Their animal design will inspire your dog’s natural prey drive, the soft plush and playful squeakers will stimulate your dog’s senses and keep them occupied for hours of fun. Features: . No stuffing, no mess! . 2 squeakers (head and tail) . Flattened shape hones prey instinct . Realistic features . Machine washable . Durable . Ideal for puppies and small dogs Item Specifications: Size: 15″L Style: Fox Squirrel Skunk Raccoon

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Kyjen Hide-A-Squirrel Ginormous $24.99 Challenge your dog with the Hide A Squirrel toy! This toy will occupy your dog while stimulating problem solving skills. Simply hide the six squeaking squirrel toys inside the GINORMOUS containing tree obstacle, and let your dog hunt them out. The soft plush material is durable, allowing for long lasting fun. This huge toy is great for large breed dogs. Containing tree toy measures approximately 13″ in height, with a 7″ diameter. Dogs take them out, you stuff them back in Keeps pets occupied and eliminates boredom Durable, reusable toy for endless fun Challenges and develops problem solving skills Six squeaking squirrels inside

Squirrel, Medium $4.9 If your dogs are like ours, trashing the squeaker is terrific fun! Finally someone got the right idea and made it easier to replace the squeakers in stuffed dog toys. These toys have a Velcro opening in them to make it easy to get inside. There isn’t any stuffing for your dog to shred all over the house. Instead they come with a squeaker (enclosed in a pouch) inside each toy. The squeaker pouch is simply a squeaker sewn into two round pieces of fabric. You can use the squeaker in a pouch or you can remove it and put a tennis ball inside the toy. When your dog destroys the squeaker you can easily put the squeak back into the toy. Just toss a few more squeakers inside the toy along with the pouch. It still squeaks and it’s easy to replace squeakers when they get ruined. If your dog rips apart soft toys, it will be able to rip this toy apart too. But if your dog only destroys the squeaker, this is the perfect toy for you! As always this toy should be used under adult supervision. Comes with one extra squeaker.

Kyjen Squeakn’ Animals – Squirrel (3 pack) $7.99 Kyjen Squeakin Animals are plush toys with a fun squeaker housed inside. The soft outer cover makes them ideal for safe play with your dog. These can be used as replacement squeakers for Plush Puppies Hide A Squirrel play set. You can also play fetch, or hide and seek with these fun squirrel shaped toys all by themselves! Pack includes 3 toy squirrels. Soft plush coating with a fun squeaker inside Replacement squeaker for Plush Puppies Hide A Squirrel Each squirrel measures approximately 4″ long (minus tail), 2″ wide around the body

Fling-it Squirrel $8.99 Fling-it Flying Dog Toy Squirrel! by Kyjen. The Ultimate FETCH & EXERCISE Toy! Pull the Tail and Spin Launch and Release Dog Fetches and Retrieves Repeat!

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KONG Dr. Noy’s Plush Squirrel – Cat Toy $5.23 KONG Dr. Noy’s Plush Squirrel – Cat Toy is great for snuggling or fetching. This great cat toy features a pocket for fresh catnip. KONG’s Plush Squirrel is made of high quality fur that will surely impress your cat. Includes catnip. Great for cats of all ages. Velcro bottom for ease of replacing catnip. Measures 6″ L (including tail)

Kyjen Hide-A-Toy Squirrel Junior $8.99 Kyjen Hide-A-Toy Squirrel Kyjen brings you this unique, interactive toy which has been designed to challenge and entertain your dog. The toy will help sharpen the cognitive skills of your dog, while also providing hours of fun. Encourage your dot to play with these small toys before you place them into a larger habitat. The superb craftsmanship and durable design ensures long-lasting puzzle-solving fun. Place favorite pet treats inside the habitat for additional play. Features: ? Interactive and challenging toy to sharpen a dog’s cognitive skills ? Durable design and craftsmanship ? Relieves stress and boredom ? Keeps your dog busy ? Perfect for interactive play Item Specifications: Sizes Available: ? Junior ? Jumbo Available animal theme: ? Hide-A- Bird ? Hide-A-Bee Item Dimensions: ? Junior size: 5″ W x 5″ H x 5 “D ? Jumbo size: 8.5″ W x 8.5″ H x 8.5″ D

Kyjen Hide-A-Toy Squirrel Jumbo $14.99 Kyjen Hide-A-Toy Squirrel Kyjen brings you this unique, interactive toy which has been designed to challenge and entertain your dog. The toy will help sharpen the cognitive skills of your dog, while also providing hours of fun. Encourage your dot to play with these small toys before you place them into a larger habitat. The superb craftsmanship and durable design ensures long-lasting puzzle-solving fun. Place favorite pet treats inside the habitat for additional play. Features: ? Interactive and challenging toy to sharpen a dog’s cognitive skills ? Durable design and craftsmanship ? Relieves stress and boredom ? Keeps your dog busy ? Perfect for interactive play Item Specifications: Sizes Available: ? Junior ? Jumbo Available animal theme: ? Hide-A- Bird ? Hide-A-Bee Item Dimensions: ? Junior size: 5″ W x 5″ H x 5 “D ? Jumbo size: 8.5″ W x 8.5″ H x 8.5″ D

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ChuckIt Flying Squirrel Dog Toy Large $11.69 ChuckIt!(R) Flying Squirrel Dog Toy A far flung game of fetch! Here is one squirrel who won’t mind being chased down. Just grab him by a paw and throw like a flying disk. Remember to snap your wrist while throwing to give him a good spin. His spinning feet create visual excitement for you and your pet, and the raised sides make him easy to pick up! Squirrel-shaped throwing toy with raised sides for easy pick up, glow in the dark paws, and durable rubber feet. Also floats in water! Use it in the park, in your backyard, or anywhere there is plenty of room. Item Specifications: Sizes: Small 9″ x 9″ Medium 10″ x 10″ Large 11″ x 11″ Color: Assorted

ChuckIt Flying Squirrel Dog Toy Medium $9.99 ChuckIt!(R) Flying Squirrel Dog Toy A far flung game of fetch! Here is one squirrel who won’t mind being chased down. Just grab him by a paw and throw like a flying disk. Remember to snap your wrist while throwing to give him a good spin. His spinning feet create visual excitement for you and your pet, and the raised sides make him easy to pick up! Squirrel-shaped throwing toy with raised sides for easy pick up, glow in the dark paws, and durable rubber feet. Also floats in water! Use it in the park, in your backyard, or anywhere there is plenty of room. Item Specifications: Sizes: Small 9″ x 9″ Medium 10″ x 10″ Large 11″ x 11″ Color: Assorted

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Kyjen Hide-A-Toy Replacement 3-pack Squirrel $6.49 Hide-a-Toy Replacement 3-Pack – Small Toy replacement for Hide-A-Toys. Hide-A-Bee, Hide-A-Bird will not only keep pets occupied and eliminate boredom, but they also develop a dog’s intelligence and puzzle-solving skills. Just insert the toys inside the toy for dogs to remove over and over again. Durable and long lasting. Set of 3

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Hide-A-Squirrel, Jumbo $13.4 The Hide-A-Squirrel is a plush toy with three squeaker toys that “hide” inside. There are several holes on the outside of the toy your dog can use to get at the hidden treasure inside. This is a toy that challenges and develops your dog’s intelligence and puzzle solving skills. We think this toy should only be used when you are there to watch and help. A frustrated dog might chew on the toys and ruin them. You don’t want that. You should be there to help your dog learn how to properly use the toy and replace the squeak toys once they have been removed. Then it should be picked up when playtime is over. Replacement squirrels are only available in the regular size. This tree is 8″ x 8.5″, outside hole is 2.5″ in diameter. Squirrels are 5″ long.

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Hide A Squirrel – JUMBO $19.5 Hide A Squirrel helps strengthen your dog’s eye-paw coordination skills by challenging your pet to discover how to remove the squeaker squirrels from inside. It keeps your dog entertained, active, and busy for extended periods of time, eliminating boredom. Helps to satisfy a dog’s natural instinct to search, stalk and capture its prey as your pet repeatedly removes the squeaker squirrels from inside the Hide A Squirrel. The dog toy that challenges and develops your dog’s intelligence and puzzle solving skills. Contains 3 squeaker squirrels that can be removed and replaced over and over again. For additional fun and variety, place favorite pet treats or other toys inside the Hide A Squirrel. Machine washable fabric is made with safe, non-toxic all new materials.