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TanyaG · Dec 4, 2011, 07:25 PM

I have a 9 week old toy poodle puppy, Snowy. He loves to bite and is particularly fond of my family members and my toes(which are dirty and unhygienic for a young puppy to bite). I already tried yelping loudly and putting him into his crate but after I let him out again, he would continue biting. I tried filling a bottle with coins and shake it every time he bites, but he would bark and claw at my hands for the bottle, and continue biting and snapping. I tried replacing my hand with a chew toy, but he flings the toy away and continues biting. Every time I put him into his crate for biting too hard, he would yelp and bark. But if I let him out, he would continue biting excessively. What can I do? Is this related to stress or dominance problems? If so, how can I cure this bad behavior? I am already looking for an obedience class to attend.

cdad · Dec 4, 2011, 07:40 PM

Poodles can be high strung and love to play and get attention. The biting may be part of the process. Its what they do when they are with their siblings. So long as its not an aggressive behavior (which you didn't indicate) then what you might try is a little trick I have used in the past. It works with both cats and dogs. I apply a little pressure to their tongue if they try biting. It causes a reflex and makes them back away. Like the gag reflex. It trains them not to bite when in play. They still retain the biting instinct for protection. Its just the play with me bite that they start to avoid. It takes time to get them to realize it but they get the hang of it fairly quickly. And by no means does it hurt the dog in any way. Use it with the words don't bite. They will understand shortly.

TanyaG · Dec 4, 2011, 07:47 PM

Thanks. I'll try that right now.

cdad · Dec 4, 2011, 07:51 PM

Your welcome.

Keep us posted.

Thanks for using AMHD.

Sariss · Dec 5, 2011, 05:28 AM

Good luck!
Also (I'm not sure if you did but just pointing it out) - don't let puppy out of the crate if he starts to whine or cry! Wait for him to settle and be quiet before letting him out, otherwise he will learn that he gets what he wants when he screams and carries on...