Why does my puppy bite my older dogs face?
Do you notice your puppy biting your older dog’s face, cheek, scruff, and neck while making growly noises, showing teeth and in general making the most menacing looks and sounds a dog can muster? Do your ever watch this situation and wonder why does my puppy bite my oder dog’s face?
To the untrained eye it sometimes looks like a dog fight, but make no mistake these two (Raven and Archer in the pic above) are having the time of their lives. We like to call this game Bitey Face and it can be played anyplace at anytime (not just in a doggy bed made for one).
So what exactly is Bitey Face?
How To Play Bitey Face
You’ll notice your puppies will engage in this game on their own and generally follow the rules in the list below…
- You need at least two dogs/puppies to play this game.
- Rough play is the norm.
- Grabbing cheeks, necks, scruff, faces is all part of the game.
- Growling noises while showing teeth is commonplace.
- The game of Bitey Face looks and sounds very scary, but most of the time it’s harmless play.
- Remember, a game of Bitey Face can escalate so you always want to keep an eye on the players.
Does this sound like the same game you mentioned when you were wondering why your puppy bites your older dog’s face?
Being a puppy Archer doesn’t have the best social skills and he tries to engage the other dogs in our house in games of Bitey Face. Here are the reactions of my other three dogs:
Linus vs Archer
Linus will play the game, but he has his limits and you can see as well as hear his mood change when he’s done playing. Archer will test Linus’ limits, but it’s sometimes wiser for the humans to get involved. Make sure you (the human) break up play if you see a change in either dog’s mood.
Stetson vs Archer
Archer will try to engage Stetson in a game of Bitey Face, but to no avail. Stetson simply runs away or ignores Archer till he stops bothering him. (see just like in crate training, ignoring your puppy’s unwanted behavior actually works!)
Raven vs Archer
While Linus has his limits and Stetson calls “no joy” Raven will indulge Archer for a full 12 rounds of Bitey Face. They will go head to head like a bout between Ali and Foreman. It’s the Rumble In The Jungle Baby!
Looks like a fun game of Bitey Face between Raven and Archer 🙂
How Are Humans Involved in A Game of Bitey Face
If your dogs engage in Bitey Face it’s usually harmless, but you still want to keep an eye on your dogs to make sure a real fight doesn’t break out. Here are a few things to keep watch for:
Watch your dog’s body language. You might want to break things up if:
- Either dog looks tense, moving stiffly or staring.
- Dog’s ears, mouths, tongues are not in a relaxed position.
- One dog appears to be trying to get away from the other dog.
- One dog is always on the top of the doggy pile.
Rough play will sometimes go on for too long and one of the combatants can get overstimulated or aggravated with the other.
Not all dogs enjoy playing bitey face. Always keep a close eye on your dog anytime he plays with other dogs. If he’s playing bitey face make sure to break up play every once in a while to give the dogs a break.
How about your dogs? Does your puppy grab your older dog’s face, neck, and cheek? Do your puppies enjoy a good game of Bitey Face? Tell us a little about the doggy games your furry friends like to play in the comment section below.
Why does my puppy bite my other dogs face?
Remy does this with the puppies in his training class. He tries to do it to Ace but gets growled at from the old man. He manages to lick him in the face when they are outside though, which Ace tolerates.
When Archer tries to play Bitey face with Stetson he will just lick him in the face, but Stetson will just jump up on the couch or bed to get away. Raven and Archer are another story. I bet Remy would like playing a game of Bitey Face with Archer. Although Archer can go pretty nutty. How big is Remy?
I’m not sure how big Remy is. Probably at least 25 pounds already. He goes to the vet on Saturday for 3rd round of shots so he’ll get weighed then.
Maybe we’ll have to schedule a play date 🙂
My parents dog tried to play this with me! He would play “bitey hair” while I was laying on the ground. So great to see Archer has somedog in the house to play with!! Raven and him are so cute together!
Adelle used to play Bitey Hair with you too 🙂 Archer and Raven are a match made in heaven! At least that’s what Archer thinks…Raven not so much…
My 1-year-old lab mix and 5-year-old beagle love to play Lazy Bitey Face. They just lay on the bed, not even close enough to reach one another, and do the growling and exposure of teeth. They look like they’re having a ton of fun, though!
I can picture in my mind your two playing a game of Lazy Bitey Face! That’s so funny! I guess it’s the no-contact version of the game.
We haven’t allowed any rough play since Sampson injured himself because he loves this game so much and jumps around like he was 8 weeks old. But when they did, Delilah would often times go for Sampson’s heels! She’s wise and sly that one.
Interesting observation, with my two they would get as rough as two buck fighting for the same doe, but the minute that someone yipped because play got a little too rough, they would immediately stop. I took at as they knew their boundaries, but I’m not really sure, all I know is I didn’t really have to worry about one hurting the other.
It’s the same with my dogs. They all know the others boundaries. Archer (the puppy) knows the difference between Linus’ (the old man) play growl and his “okay, I’m serious now” growl.
Yeah, my pup loves bitey face, too! My older dog loves it; just not first thing in the morning. It cracks me up when he chases him off with the doggy equivalent of, “Not before I have my coffee, kid!” The puppy adds a related game I refer to as “lion tamer” sometimes by seeing how much of his head he can fit inside the older dog’s mouth. When we first got him most of his head fit . . .
YES! Archer tried to do the “lion tamer” trick too! All a part of the fun filled game of Bitey Face 🙂
Thank you for addressing this! Sometimes I am hesitant to break up the play fight in fear that they won’t be able to work it out. In a dog pack do the Alphas stand by while the pups play and intervene if it gets too rough? Do they referee? I want everyone safe for sure but do you think puppies can learn personal space from the other dogs without us stepping in?
I think it all depends on the dogs and puppies involved. Some puppies don’t understand when to stop and some dogs are not tolerant of puppies. I make sure and monitor all play time between my dogs and puppies.
my 2 younger girls have never done this, however, they do this to one another, which is why their beards are messed up. it maybe b/c Evie is so much older than the 2 younger girls and has never really played with other dogs much. she is more a people person.
Stetson liked playing bitey face as a puppy. I even think I have some video of him battling Linus, but in his older age he avoids the game like the plague.
I’m glad I was able to find something in this but it still gives me no help. I have a VERY active lab mix puppy about 3 1/2 months who is non-stop in our older dogs face. The older dog hates it and growls at her most of the time but the pup doesn’t stop. Our older dog has even nipped at her and she cowers in defeat only to start up again 2 minutes later. This poor older dog is being harassed and we can’t figure out how to stop this behavior. Pulling her away is obvious, but she seems to have a one track mind.
Every once in a while Archer over steps his boundaries in a game of bitey face. In these situations if our dogs aren’t resolving the game on their own I will intervene and calmly put the aggressor (usually Archer) on leash and keep him by my side for 5 minutes to calm down. Hopefully that helps. Good luck with your training!
Thank you so much for this, my pup loves playing bitey face with my 5 year old. Thought she was bullying him at first, so glad I’ve found your blog.
Bitey face is Raven and Archer’s favorite game, but it can get out of control so it’s a good idea to always keep an eye on your dogs when they play.
Our puppy Lily plays bitey face with our older dogs Bella and Harley. Bella mostly avoids and ignores. Harley full on plays. He has taught her to know when he’s done though Lily can be stubborn and ignore his cues. She’s a handful! I’m hoping with training and the help of our older dogs she will become a good addition to our household.
When Archer engages Raven in bitey face nowadays she’ll jump on the couch to get away. Archer (training to be a service dog) is our only dog not allowed on the furniture so he knows when any of the dogs are on the couch or bed play time is over.
YES! Have finally found a description of what our two, now 9 month old Border Terriers do. It has been worrying me. They have two friends who they adore, a huge entire male Golden Retriever, and another huge Black Lab. Both older dogs socialised with mine when they were tiny and are EXTREMELY tolerant of Bitey Face. The Retriever occasionally joins in, but mostly both stand there being frenzy licked / nipped by two BT pups without a care in the world. Sometimes they try and walk off after a while, which is hard with two puppies hanging from your face. The pups forget they are 9 months now, not 9 weeks.
My concern is that the game gets frenzied and the licks turn more and more into nips. Not a problem, for these wonderful accepting friends, but our two have decided this is a good game to play with ANY large breed, and understandably others do it like it. Especially now they are too old for Puppy Licence.
My (neutered) male is especially drawn to doing this with new acquaintances who exude dominance, although the (neutered) bitch can join in and get as frenzied too.
I am on edge when this happens as I know one day it is going to end in disaster.
I do call them off, distract, restrain, reward etc, and with their friends they can go for walks without Bitey Face for a while if I’m on the case. However, I worry when they run off at 90mph to greet an unknown dog with the game.
Any advice you can give is VERY welcome please.
Bitey face can escalate so it’s important to always keep an eye on and manager your dogs. I’ve been lucky to have two older dogs that are totally opposite. Stetson allows the puppies to play bitey face and he just tolerates it. Linus will also play bitey face, but eventually teaches our puppies when the game is over it’s over! He will give the low rolling growl which most of our pups understand means game over.
Thank you so much for your reply 🙂
Yes, some friends they would not dream of trying it on – they have given the overt ‘don’t you dare’ signals which they have respected.
It is barrelling into new dogs with this behaviour I worry about most. They seem oblivious to subtle doggy body language, and my male dog in particular is drawn to dominant males (interesting both their usual Bitey Face ‘targets are huge entire males).
Not to mention to social embarrassment of them not leaving their friends alone(!) and fear it will go too far.
Will they just grow out of it? If there is anything I can do to help them learn faster I am willing to do it!
Many thanks
Omg love this, this is exactly what my pup and older dog does, I got worried that it’s rough and the pups aggressive, she makes some real growls. it’s put me at easy that it’s just bitey face!!!!
Bitey Face can look aggressive, but usually it’s harmless play. However, it is a good idea to keep an eye on your dogs playing bitey face to make sure it doesn’t escalate into a fight.
I swear, I thought I made up the name of this game when I first saw my girls doing it! Bitey face is simply the perfect name for it. Ever since they were puppies, they both bare their teeth and sort of scissor their teeth and snap at each other. It was scary at first, but now I realize it’s their little way of being close. They’d much rather play-fight than snuggle up to each other.
I was chatting with one of my other friends who has a boarding facility and runs a service dog school. She called the game Nom-Nom. I hadn’t heard that before, but when she started explaining it she said: “…my dogs jump up on the bed facing each other play biting going nom-nom-nom-nom…” After that it all made sense 🙂
Hi!
My SDiT is a 16 week old Texas heeler puppy and she loooooves to play bitey face with my older lab Bella. The problem is Bella is the sweetest most patient pup I’ve ever met and the puppy will sometimes bite down too hard and draw blood. Bella doesn’t seem to care but it’s very distressing and seems that the puppy doesn’t know her limits as Bella isn’t teaching her. Do I step in when this happens and remove her and let her calm down or just stop them from playing this game altogether since she’s being so rough?
Thank you for raising and training a service dog. Your Bella sounds like my Stetson. He doesn’t do anything and will let puppies hang from his neck. When my puppy starts playing too rough I step in and break things up. Good luck with your SDiT!
I have a 14 month fox lab named Bentley and he is the most submissive dog in the world. He was lonely and got a second dog. Ralph is a 13 week old husky. The love each other and get along fine. But the play fight doesn’t seem right at this point. Bentley being the older dog, does not correct Ralph or yelps with the bites only at times of real pain. He is very gentle and isn’t aggressive at all. And has always been bullied by little dogs. I have been leaving them to it because I understand they have lots of energy to burn and like to play fight. But Ralph has made his testicles bleed and his lips are all swollen or also bleeding at times. He neck has loads of dried bite scabs where Ralph has bit him. I Would love some advice as I haven’t seen anything on the net regarding this amount of damage. My vet just explains that they need to find the place in the pack but Bentley doesn’t challenge for pack position ever. The pup attacks.
So glad I read this. My puppy has been playing bitey face since we got him and has caused my older dog to get hot spots where he’s bitten him. They both love playing it, I think the younger one just doesn’t know quite when to stop.
My two 7 month old labs are each about 50 lbs and play this all the time. I get worried their big teeth will hurt one of them. But tails are wagging and the seem to enjoy this game. But..outside. Way too rough in the house!
I really feel that every dog should be thoroughly trained on remote recall. If a dog cannot obey a remote recall then it should not be off leash. This is primarily for their safety, owners’ safety as well as the safety of other dogs. This is a critical skill for dogs, and owners and can be taught by a qualified trainer.
Teaching a dog manners is a boon for everyone. I know it’s not a snap, but just like children need to be taught how to be civil, dog owners need to invest in their dogs training in order to get desired behaviors. Most especially with spirited or working breeds.
Best to all!
Just got a 3and half month lab puppy as company for my 11 month lab.Problem is little one bites at older ones face when playing.Noticed he’s marking him and looks sore.He doesnt seem to bother he is such a calm dog(11 month old)