puppy biting - Page 1

We have a 9 week old GSd that is constantly trying to get everything that she can get a hold of. We are constantly giving her chew toys and playing with her. She does it most of the time when she's excited. She even accidently bit my nose one time. I blame myself, because my face was too close to her. Is this common for this breed?? will she grow out of it?? any suggestions would be appreciated.

She will grow out of it eventually. It's normal for the breed. The scars will go away!

Is this common for this breed?? --- Yes.


will she grow out of it?? --- Eventualy, yes.

She will only grow out of it if you learn her it's not acceptable to bite, what you have to remember is that is how they communicate with each other as they cant talk and dont have hands, the earlier you clamp on it the better, a rattle bottle can be quite a useful tool!!

Peggy is right, she will grow out of it ONLY IF you teach her it's not acceptable to put teeth on human flesh.

If you don't teach her this, how on earth is she to know it's wrong?  And when she weighs 70 lbs. and has big teeth it's not going to be funny, and it won't be her fault.

She's a dog, she has no idea that biting isn't totally normal and acceptable.  She thinks she's doing the totally normal thing, so you must teach her.

Tess, I don't actually think that's true. I want my dogs to feel absolutely no inhibitions on their biting because of later schutzhund work, so I just let them bite or when I get sick of it I get out a large tug to divert their attention onto that. I NEVER tell them to stop biting me, but they always do eventually, like around 6-8 months of age...and as Red Leg says, it doesn't hurt as much after they are 6 months anyhow!

Im with vom.

what is the purpose of this dog and the intended use?

My pupps get no correction til they are much older. My newest addition didnt recieve his 1st correction until 15 months.

If the purpose is work I would only redirect biting not prohibit it as you want the dog biting in later stages. However if you are looking to develope the dog for work you can never start to young and you need to consult someone who is experienced and proven in developing working dogs. Depending on the dog one wrong move can leave lasting impressions that cant be severely detremental to the developemnt process in working dogs.

House pets. i say let her grow a while then show her what is acceptable to bite and what is not. such as balls tugs what have you but only in your games. But again consult someone who understand developement of pups for home life.

"Tess, I don't actually think that's true. I want my dogs to feel absolutely no inhibitions on their biting because of later schutzhund work, so I just let them bite or when I get sick of it I get out a large tug to divert their attention onto that."

I hear this a lot, and I've also heard that if you are going to inhibit a dog's drive by not letting it bite you in play, then the dog doesn't have enough drive.....

I do know some really tough SchH 3 dogs that bite like steel traps but were never allowed to chew on their owners hands as baby puppies.  Their handlers thought it actually increased their biting on the field, as biting human flesh in play was not acceptable, and they so want to bite something that when it's directed onto the field it's pretty strong.  The Training Director where I train now does not ever tolerate his dogs using him as a chew toy, ever, and he & his family have awesome SchH dogs, so they certainly never got inhibitions from behaving.

Also have seen puppies that really aren't interested in being distracted to a tug - they'd much rather bite your hand or arm, so if the OP's pup is like that I can understand how that isn't acceptable.  Plus people have other family members who may not enjoy being chewed up.

Interesting discussion, though.  I'd like to hear more about peoples' experiences, since I have heard both sides: people who say let them bite you, and others who say that's ridiculous to raise a puppy to have no respect for you and use you as a chew toy whenever it feels like.  And both sides seem to raise decent dogs, so I guess like always:  It Depends on the Individual Dog.

 "think id rather get bit by a full grown dog than a puppy with those razor teeth."

Not if it was my dog (LOL).  Trust me, you'd pick the puppy razor teeth any day.