New puppy advice

[angus63]

Adopted a lab/shep mix pup in mid December. This dog is tremendously smart and after 5 weeks has every command down (sit,paw,down,stay,etc). Much smarter than my previous three golden retrievers. There is one problem I can't seem to solve. He mouths everyone he comes in contact with except me. Wifes sweaters and kids socks are all full of holes. Not biting, but grabbing hold of everyone who moves. Did the loud yell, walk away, shake a can full of coins, lotion on the hand, pin down until he concedes, etc..... but he still is "mouthy". Plenty of rawhides and soft toys to keep him busy, and he still has his needle puppy teeth so I guess he is about 13-14 wks old and now over 25lbs. As he gets bigger it may be larger issue.

Anyone have any potential remedies? Some have told me it will subside after he loses his puppy teeth and he is neutered in about two months. May run out of socks by then!!!!! Thanks!

 

[Tacklewasher]

Re: New puppy advice

The rule here is you can't ask dog questions without posting pictures.

Until you do, no one will help you.

 

[avenger79]

Re: New puppy advice

all of my dogs have stopped after a few (quite a few)stern NO's. If not they will generally stop after the teething subsides.

 

[angus63]

Re: New puppy advice

Otis 5 weeks ago @ 6 lbs.

 

[Tacklewasher]

Re: New puppy advice

Otis 5 weeks ago @ 6 lbs.

Much better.

Cute pup. When you say no to something he's mouthing, take it away and give him one of his toys. Also be sure to praise him when he goes for one of his toys first.

But he's a pup and they can be stubborn.

 

[angus63]

Re: New puppy advice

Much better.

Cute pup. When you say no to something he's mouthing, take it away and give him one of his toys. Also be sure to praise him when he goes for one of his toys first.

But he's a pup and they can be stubborn.

Been doing that but he has typical PADD (puppy attention deficit disorder) and loses interest in the toy after 15 seconds and looks for the next moving target. It was cute the first hundred times but now is just plain annoying for the victims. I see my kids alienating the pup because of this. Wife is tolerant but weary. Guests are an unknowing prime target. I think he was removed from the litter early and had little influence from his mother or siblings. Maybe the only solution is time, we'll see.

 

[rbh]

Re: New puppy advice

Just looking for attention I bet, misses his siblings.

 

[salty87]

Re: New puppy advice

exercise, exercise, exercise. a tired puppy/dog is a happy puppy/dog. i bought a 'chuck-it' tennis ball thrower and run the dogs every day that it's not raining. they get too rambunctious without regular exercise.

otis might just be in a phase. of my 2 labs, one of them stopped biting when he was fairly young (he was vicious too). the other is still a little mouthy and she's almost 5 yrs old...only with me and sometimes the mrs though. she's no longer our little puppy so we tolerate it to an extent.

i don't think there's a single answer unless you're the puppy whisperer. exercise and regular obedience and hope for the best. you might try leashing him when new targets approach.

 

[WIMUSKY]

Re: New puppy advice

Good advice above. I have a Lab who is 7, or is she 8 now, who still does the mouthing thing. May not go away with age.

 

[eastont]

Re: New puppy advice

A friend has a Retriever that has been doing that forever. The dog is 12 years old and he has tried everything one could think of to stop it without success.
The vet said it is something that is ingrained in their psyche and it is a sign of affection.
Does the dog want to grab people by the hand when they come in and bring them to his area? This is something that is also part of the breed's nature.

The good thing is the sock/underwear thing will d go away after the dog feels comfortable in his surroundings, but the grabbing won't.

Nice dog though

 

[marlboro180]

Re: New puppy advice

It was recommended to us at one point to make a high pitch YELP when they are mouthy. Make the noise jut as they make with contact their teeth . Seems they do not want to hurt the other members of the pack. Gotta speak dog sometimes I guess .
Worked well, very quickly.

 

[angus63]

Re: New puppy advice






Thanks all - I have been using the methods described above. There has been improvement but we're a long way from solved. Gonna keep working to slow down this guy. Brought him down to the bay. He drank some sea water, made a face, and puked like a fountain. All part of the learning process I guess.

 

[gonefishie]

Re: New puppy advice

shoot Ceasar Milan an email?

 

[seven up]

Re: New puppy advice

We tried lightly rubbing the puppies' gums and he loved it. And now he(the dog) likes to be led around with a finger intentionally looped around one of the front fangs. And toothbrushing. Likes it alot.

However we did go through several months of the mouthing and tearing up socks.

Enjoy

 

[woosterken]

Re: New puppy advice

how about a pop on the nose with a news paper?

woosterken

 

[ezbtr]

Re: New puppy advice

OMG he is adorable!!!! When my 1/2 wolf/Australian sheperd did that, I would knee her in the chest - not hard, enough to annoy her, and I'd say NO, she learned, but it took a few months. She was also a horrible chewer during the day when noone home and a barker. The chewing subsided with raw toys and the barking as well, AFTER I found out she was such a PEOPLE dog and let her sleep inside with my girls in their room - she was VERY protective, and LOVED people especially family and close friends. My son when he was 6-12 mos old would shove his foot, arm, right in her mouth and she would just sit there and almost laugh! , also DAILY runs in the hills, rain or shine really calmed her down, she liked/needed to be worked. And she loved being IN the pool and jacuzzi with me and the kids!
Had to put her down at 4 yrs due to poisoning....that was hard...

 

[FBPirate95]

Re: New puppy advice

I have a 7 year old lab that really never chewed on things or did the overly aggressive mouthing. But he and I did take weeks and weeks of obedience training classes together. The first thing, which you already know is you have to think like the dog. A puppy's nature is very playful and full of tussles with the siblings. So one thing like someone suggested is wear him out with physical activity....with lab pups that's almost an impossible task...lol. The next thing you have to realize is that little puppy is trying to establish his position in the pack. A lot of people go wrong by allowing their pups to get away with everything, and when they become adults, the dog now sees himself as alpha and believes he's going to call the shots. As for families, that puppy is looking to work his way right on past the kids, the wife, and sometimes even you. So the best thing is have everyone show their dominance over him so he can learn exactly where he belongs. This doesn't mean to be abusive to the dog. It means be stern. Have you ever watched the mamma and pappa dog handle the litter? They will allow a certain amount of "play" but at times they snap at the pups and even grab them by bitting them firmly around the neck. This just tells the pup "that's enough".

I love to watch animals interact with their offspring. You can learn a lot from the behaviors of the parents towards their young. The very sad thing is that if most humans would watch how animals raise and care for their young (for the most part, there are a few exceptions) and use those tactics on their own children, they would see a world of change in the child's good versus bad behavior.

Beautiful dog by the way! Makes me wish Ace was a pup again.

 

[HopeSheFloats]

Re: New puppy advice

Good lookin lil feller ya got there Angus, going thru the same here with 'Bandit'. I've been gaining ground by using a stern 'NO' and quickly closing his mouth with my thumb & index finger and repeating the 'NO' command. And as mentioned, wearing him out playing tug-a-war has seemed to subside some of that behavior...it's tuff I know, i just keep marking it up to teething...lil bugger has more chew toys than I care to admit to buying, and he still would rather gnaw on our hands or feet.

Has he tried taking you down by hooking his paw around your leg{s} as you walk...mine does and I swear I can hear him snicker while doing it..lol

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: New puppy advice

I live about 45 minutes away from here and I would highly recommend you google The Monks of New Skete and look at their books.

 

[angus63]

Re: New puppy advice

I live about 45 minutes away from here and I would highly recommend you google The Monks of New Skete and look at their books.

My buddy sent his dog off to the Monks many years ago. Dog came back able to do dishes and clean gutters!!!! Seriously a totally new dog and very obedient for a while but fell back into the old habits after being spoiled for a few months. They needed a Monk to move in fulltime : ) . Dog is about 10 yrs old now and finally okay around people.