The Ultimate Guide: How To Stop A Puppy From Biting And Nipping
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Do you have a mouthy puppy?
Is your puppy constantly nibbling chomping destroying your hands, feet, legs, and arms?
If this sounds like your puppy then you’ve come to the right place!
Welcome to The Ultimate Guide on How To Stop A Puppy From Biting And Nipping!
I’ve raised 6 guide and service dog puppies in training (UPDATE: we’re now at 17 and counting!), worked with and trained countless other 7-week to 18-month-old guide pups, and also fostered dozens of young puppies.
Believe me when I tell you I know a little bit about mouthy puppies and their little dagger teeth.
I’ve suffered a few puncture wounds in my time. However, every little nip has really just been a normal part of puppy behavior and there are a few things I’ve learned to do to help minimize damage to bloody hands, feet, arms, legs, torso, and butt (they haven’t gotten me in the face or head…yet).
QUICK RECOMMENDATION: My puppies have drawn blood with their teeth many times. The Milunova Pupr Pals™ Dog Toy is a plush squirrel puppet toy that helps to protect your hands from those sharp puppy teeth during play.
How To Stop A Puppy From Biting And Nipping
We hear these questions all the time:
- How do I get my puppy to stop biting my hands?
- My puppy is great, but he’s always biting me. How do I get him to stop biting?
- My puppy’s teeth are so sharp! What do I do to get him to stop his mouthy behavior?
Here’s an exact quote from one of our readers:
…My wife and I just adopted a beautiful female yellow lab. Stella is 8 1/2 weeks old and we’ve had her just over a week. I want to bounce some questions off you from what I’ve read on your site, as Stella is driving us crazy…Biting. To go along with the chewing, she’s gotten more than a touch nippy. Heck, she’s snapped at my face while I was holding her a couple of times. Again, no corrections or ignoring is helping…
–Stella’s Dad
That was actually just one of a laundry list of questions Stella’s dad had about Stella the bouncy 8 1/2 week old Labrador Retriever puppy.
So the question is how do you stop puppy biting.
A mouthy, bitey, nippy, puppy is perfectly normal and I would actually be surprised if you were not experiencing some growing pains with a nippy puppy.
As I said earlier I’ve been raising puppies for a while now and some of the others in my group have been puppy raisers for 25+ years and raised a dozen or more puppies in the guide dog program.
Every time I see them with a new puppy I inevitably see little dagger-like puncture marks on their hands and wrists.
Even a seasoned puppy raiser usually ends up with some collateral damage from these playful guide pups.
There is some good news. Most puppies can be trained to regulate and minimize their biting pretty easily.
You can teach your puppy how to have a soft mouth and work on teaching him bite inhibition.
Here are some tips on things you can do to minimize the number of puncture wounds you receive from your little vampire…I mean bundle of joy 🙂
QUICK ACCESS: If you’re having puppy training problems then you should join our Puppy Training Tips email list and get instant access to our New Puppy Owner Checklist PDF. To get started CLICK HERE.
Tips On How To Stop Puppy Biting
One of the reasons why puppies stay with their littermates until they are 7-8 weeks old is so they learn bite inhibition.
If you’ve ever observed a litter of puppies playing you probably noticed that some puppies will get a little too playful with biting and nipping.
When puppies are playing, biting, and nipping each other playtime stops when one of the puppies lets out a yelp and walks away.
Over time puppies will learn that biting too hard ends playtime and will learn to soften their mouths. After all, puppies don’t ever want playtime to end…do they?
This brings us to our first tip on how to stop a puppy from biting:
1. Make your puppy think he is hurting you when he bites by letting out a puppy yelp!
Basically, you are trying to replicate the same behavior as one of the other puppies in the litter.
So, let out a nice yelp to briefly startle your puppy and stop playing with him. This will teach your puppy that when he bites too hard playtime ends.
Ending playtime is key when you do this because I’ve seen and experienced puppies that think the yelp is just part of the game and if you continue handling or playing they sometimes get more excited and come back with an even harder bite.
2. Redirect your puppy’s biting by slowly removing your hand from his mouth and replace with one of his dog toys.
This is probably our favorite technique. Whatever inappropriate item your puppy is biting whether it be your hand, arm, feet, or face (like in the example from our reader) slowly remove the item from your puppy’s jaws and replace it with his favorite dog toy or chew then leave him alone to play with his toy for a while.
We have found that it’s a good idea to have lots of different textured toys as your puppy will most likely get bored if all he has is a bunch of plush toys. Here’s a sample list of textured toys in our collection:
Other Plush Dog Toys – aggressive chewers tear up plush toys in seconds. We took away all of Dublin’s plush toys. Two we use and recommend are Dragon Chew Guard Dog Toy which is a little more durable for a plush toy and the Hide-A-Squirrel because when pups pull out the squirrels it simulates the de-stuffing.
Nylabones – we like the Dura Chew Giant, but be warned this thing will hurt if your puppy drops it on your bare foot.
KONG Toys – if you have an aggressive chewer try the KONG Extreme! Even Dublin didn’t chew through that one (although I’ve heard other dogs have).
Bully Sticks – we buy the Mighty Paw Naturals Best Bully Sticks. Even my finicky dog, Linus loved his bully sticks.
Yak Cheese Dog Chews – another favorite for redirecting bitey behavior away from your hands. We have three dogs making the Mighty Paw Yak Cheese Dog Chews the perfect size.
Deer Antlers for Dogs – we’ve heard good and bad about deer antlers and my advice is to read about them and decide if it’s the right chew for your dog.
3. Give your puppy a command
If you’ve been working on basic obedience then giving your puppy a command will sometimes get him to stop biting and go into obedience mode.
We teach our guide dogs puppies “Leave it” pretty early on and once they know what it means a quick “leave it” will get them to stop.
However, even just telling your puppy to “sit” or “down” (if they know these commands) could easily break their nippy mood.
4. Exercise your pup’s mind and body
There are two sides to this coin. You want your puppy to get plenty of exercise both physically (long walks, playing in the yard with him, etc.) and mentally (work on his training and get him thinking).
However, have you ever seen a kid who’s overly tired? You guessed it they act crazy and the same can happen with your puppy.
5. Try using Bitter Apple Spray
So how would you use Bitter Apple Spray to deter a mouthy puppy? If your puppy is in that nippy mood then spray a little bit of Bitter Apple Spray on your hand and then let him put his mouth on your hand.
Most puppies will usually take a few bites/licks of your hand then start smacking his chops licking his jowls trying to figure out where that horrid taste came from.
After doing this a few times your puppy will figure out that putting his mouth on your hand results in an icky taste in his mouth. Most pups hate the taste of Bitter Apple Spray, but some actually like it so this will not work with all pups.
One more word of caution…if you’ve already received a few puncture wounds from your pup’s little vampire teeth then you might not want to get Bitter Apple in the sores because I know from experience that it stings like heck!
A Few More Tips About Puppy Biting
At about 4-5 months our puppies lose all of their tiny dagger teeth and they are replaced with adult teeth. It’s also around this time that our pups usually stop their mouthy, biting behavior.
One more word for the wise. NEVER SLAP OR HIT YOUR PUPPY! Your puppy will probably think one of two things:
- You are playing and he’ll come back trying to bite you even harder or
- He will learn to fear you and your hands.
Hitting your puppy will most likely lead up to even bigger behavior problems down the line.
Every puppy is different some of these tips may work with your current puppy, but not with your next puppy.
We’ve experienced this firsthand with Linus and Stetson.
Yelping made Linus more excited and more likely to continue his bitey behavior.
On the other hand, the yelp seemed to startle and confuse Stetson who would abruptly stop biting at first yelp.
If you think your puppy is being overly aggressive or none of these tips are helping your puppy you should seek a certified professional dog trainer and set up an in-home training session so the trainer can experience your puppy’s behavior firsthand.
Conclusion
Always remember when raising and training your puppy to be consistent, persistent, and patient.
Puppies can be a lot of work, but the work you put in now will show when you’re pup becomes a well-behaved full-grown dog.
I hope those tips on how to stop your puppy from biting helped.
What about you guys?
Do you have a puppy who likes to bite?
What have you done to help keep his biting at bay?
Tell us all about your experiences in the comment section below.
One final note. If there was one thing I thought you should try immediately the next time your puppy starts biting your hand it would be…
Redirect your puppy’s mouthy behavior with a bully stick. We haven’t had a dog yet that didn’t love his bully stick.
Exchanging my hand for a bully stick has always worked for me. As an added bonus your puppy will enjoy chewing on his bully stick for a good 10+ minutes.
Over time your puppy will learn:
- Chewing on Bully Stick = OK.
- Chewing on Hand = No Bueno.
I hope that helps. Good luck with your puppy. Let me know if you have any questions.
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We Like: Calmeroos Puppy Toy w/ Heartbeat and Heat Packs - Perfect for new puppies. Helps ease anxiety in their new home. - BEST DOG CHEW
We Like: Mighty Paw Naturals Bully Sticks - All of our puppies love to bite, nip, and chew. We love using Bully Sticks to help divert these unwanted behaviors. - BEST DOG TREATS
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I recently just lost my 16 year old beagle that I raised from 8 weeks old. I subsequently just rescued a 7 week old blue tick beagle purebred and keeping her with her mother for a little longer was unfortunately not an option, and the rest of the litter was also gone already, it was not a breeder that I got her from it was a circumstance of her beagle and another beagle with a different owner that is a neighbor just happened to hook up.
She has started with the play biting after settling into her new forever home, and as I had my previous pup for 16 years (I still miss him so much) I had completely forgotten how to curb the play biting, she is a very sweet and cuddly pup and I knew the play biting was completely innocent in her mind but was painful for me, I let out a puppy yelp and it immediately got her attention and she stopped biting and I then stopped the play as I didn’t want her thinking it was part of the play and she calmed down, a few minutes later I gave her a scratch and praised her and the biting didn’t happen again and she just soaked up the attention so for her the yelp method seems to be perfect and I’m glad I found this article.
I rescued Charley – a German Shepherd – who they thought was three years old. Based on his nibbling, and teeth whiteness, and overall puppy-like behavior, I presumed Charley was closer to 1. When he tries to bite my hand, I actually shove my whole hand in his mouth. I doubt this is appropriate. However, he doesn’t chew my hands anymore.
I have a 15 week old GSD puppy. If he is awake, he is chewing on something and, too often, it is me. Finger muzzle or yelping makes him almost aggressive. Turning into a statue used to help, but now he bites my feet to try to keep my attention. Telling him to sit used to work, but now he just gets mire worked up. Crating him calms him down and he comes out calm and sweet but goes back into barracuda mode within minutes. Plus, he has taken to diving at me, barking and nipping when he is hungry or wants to go outside. I have raised two adult rescues and both went from nightmare behavior to being dream dogs. I have never raised a puppy before,
I have a 7 month old pitbull puppy. Most times he’s a ham but tonight on our last walk before bed, he picked up a plastic bottle from the street. I told him no and drop it. Then I tried leave it. He didn’t listen. I tried to remove it from his mouth and because he’s testing me and teething he actually bite my arm several times and jumped. How do I redirect him? He has been to obedience training and usually is well behaved but we will not be able to keep him if he continues this behavior. Should I speak to a behaviorist? I feel extremely overwhelmed. My husband was so angry he bit me on our walk that he said he wants to give him to a rescue. We’ve had him since he was 11 weeks old. If I bring a bully stick on our walks he’ll drive me nuts trying to go for it. Any suggestions? Should I speak to his former trainer? She’s also a behaviorist & I know he’s in his adolescent phase now.
We rescued a German Shepherd that was found on the street.He appears to be 7-8wks old and is a land shark.Redirecting works sometimes,but all the time.Know being away from his pack at such an early age contributes to his behavior.Any suggestions on training one so young&unsocialized?
Where do u get the bitter apple spray?
You can buy bitter apple spray from Chewy.com or Amazon.
I have an 11 week old female mini schnauzer..4 lbs. just a tiny and recently recovered from Parvo. Her biting is so constant that I can’t even enjoy her. I have tried yelping, trading my hand for a toy. Throw the ball. Nothing helps. It’s getting to the point that while I love her I don’t like her and I’ve had four other MS and never went through this. I think being so small at 8 weeks 2.3 lbs she should have stayed with mother longer but too late now. I need help. Didn’t try bully sticks yet due to she’s on a special diet for her stomach. Doing great with that.
I have a 12 wk old mini schnauzer, shes sweet and adorable, but she has my forearms looking like I’ve been in a cat fight. I almost rehomed her, but couldn’t do it. Ive tried everything.. Help!
Need some advice for a 4 month old Labrador puppy!! He is extremely nibby, and biting everyone as a greeting, or to get attention from people. We aren’t sure how to remedy this situation or discipline him that isn’t tapping him on the nose.
Any advice is appreciated!!
Hi I have a 14 week old Weimaraner & I’m losing my mind with the biting I have a 10 year old & the puppy just randomly jumps on the couch to bite her or me for no reason not even play time, I don’t know what to do honestly any advice I’d love thank you Misty
Weimaraner’s are a high energy breed. You want to make sure you get your dog plenty of exercise. When I have my puppies indoors, if they don’t know the house rules then I keep them on leash, on a tie down, or in the crate until they understand what they can and cannot do. FYI, I’m currently raising a black Labrador Retriever and we’re still teaching her house rules at 10 months old. We have small children so we keep her on leash in the house for their safety. I hope that helps, good luck with your puppy!
Hey, i have a 3 and a half old dachshund. She keeps biting all the time. Sometimes my hand skin peels off, she knows that when i say no she is not supposed to do something but when she is biting and i say No, She doesnt listen and keeps biting. How do i keep her from biting on our hands and legs?
Hey Tina, I was facing the same issue with my doxie. I tried to reinforce every time he calmed down and whenever he tried to bite or nip at me, I would ignore him but put him on a short leash. Eventually your pup will realise she is being ignored and will lie down or sit silently, that’s when you give the pup the treat, but be careful not to fuss your pup while giving the treat. That will result in putting her out of her calm/relaxed mood. Hope this helps repeated reinforcement of calm behaviour will make your pup understand what’s the desirable behavior with which she gets treats.