How to Train a Puppy to Stop Biting Other Dogs

How to Train a Puppy to Stop Biting Other Dogs
Easy difficulty iconEasy
Time icon3-6 Weeks
Behavior training category iconBehavior

Introduction

Training your puppy when you bring him home with you is generally the number one task on any new dog owner’s list. From obedience to house training to preventing separation anxiety, there are tons of issues to tackle during his journey through puppyhood, and managing them all at once is not always easy. There are bound to be things here and there that fall through the cracks,

One of the issues that puppy owners come across often is the painful nipping that comes along with some rough play. Puppies have sharp little teeth that can cause some discomfort for other dogs if they’re uncertain of their own strength. Socialization with other dogs is important for puppies to develop good manners, but dealing with a nippy puppy can be a chore all on its own for both the owner and the other dogs in the area.

arrow-up-icon

Top

Defining Tasks

Biting and nipping is natural puppy behavior and it is common for a puppy to not have manners when it comes to interacting with other dogs. Puppies learn manners from their mother and littermates and sometimes, the provided role models are not quite what we’d hope. Puppies can also pick up bad habits from their environment, whether it was accidentally reinforced or not. Despite this, your puppy should learn the appropriate behavior as soon as possible, starting from when you first bring him home, and should be reinforced for at least three to six weeks in order to assure that the better, more appropriate habit is established.

Positive reinforcement for the appropriate behavior and interrupting bad manners are both tools to utilize during this training, as it can keep a small problem from developing into a much larger one later on.

arrow-up-icon

Top

Getting Started

Before your training begins, make sure your puppy is fully vaccinated. Puppies shouldn’t interact with other dogs outside of their litter until they’ve received all of their vaccinations in order for them to stay happy and healthy.

Once that is done, invest in a few chew toys and other items that are good and healthy for your puppy’s teeth. Treats and snacks that are made to be a little tough and chewy are ideal, but remember not to get anything too hard, or this could damage the teeth! Use these items often for downtime, play time, and rewards.

arrow-up-icon

Top

The Socialization Method

Most Recommended

1 Vote

Ribbon icon

Most Recommended

1 Vote

Ribbon icon
1

Wait to bring your puppy home

Ideally, your puppy should be kept with his mother and littermates until at least eight weeks of age. This is where he will develop some of his bite inhibition and manners.

2

Start socialization as early as possible

Once your puppy is home and vaccinated, begin exposing him to plenty of other dogs and people.

3

Use good role models

Focus on meetings with dogs that are calm and well behaved, as they can help teach your pup good manners and how to properly use his teeth without causing harm.

4

Have continuous play dates

Have play dates as often as possible! The more exposure your puppy gets to other dogs, the better.

5

Avoid dog parks early on

Dog parks are notorious for being free-for-alls where both good and bad influences are likely to mix. Avoid bringing your puppy to a dog park where you aren’t sure of the sorts of confrontations he may come across. Biting at a cranky park visitor can result in some extremely dangerous circumstances.

The Bite Inhibition Method

Effective

0 Votes

Ribbon icon

Effective

0 Votes

Ribbon icon
1

Watch for inappropriate behavior

Keep an eye on your puppy as she plays and interacts with other dogs. Supervise each and every time to prevent any incidents from happening without you knowing.

2

Stop play when necessary

If she begins to bite and nip excessively or inappropriately, put a stop to play time as soon as you see the behavior.

3

Separate

Take your pup and place her in a separate area, away from the other dog for a few moments. This will help teach her that as soon as she starts biting, playtime is over.

4

Reintroduce when possible

Once she has calmed down some, bring your puppy back to the play area to continue to interact.

5

Repeat often to offset bad behavior

Continue to separate your puppy whenever she exhibits bad manners with her teeth. Eventually, she will realize that not using her mouth will get her what she wants: continuing to play and interact with the other dog.

The Redirection Method

Effective

0 Votes

Ribbon icon

Effective

0 Votes

Ribbon icon
1

Offer plenty of alternatives

Set out plenty of toys and other things for your puppy use his teeth on other than the other dog.

2

Rotate options out

Take out and put new toys into the area often so your puppy always has something exciting to explore.

3

Reward for appropriate use

Toss in some treats on occasion when you notice your pup behaving appropriately.

4

Prevent instead of interrupt

Keep hands and fingers away from your puppy’s mouth and teeth to discourage biting. This can translate over to his behavior with other dogs and he may be less likely to use his teeth.

5

Use ‘leave it’ to your advantage

Use obedience training to teach your pup to ‘leave it’ when you don’t want him to bite something or someone. Reward him for focusing his attention on you instead of the thing he wants to bite.

By TJ Trevino

Published: 04/13/2018, edited: 01/08/2021

Training Questions

Have a question?

Training Questions and Answers

Dog nametag icon

Zoe

Dog breed icon

laberdoodle

Dog age icon

One Year

Question icon

Question

Thumbs up icon

0 found this helpful

Thumbs up icon

0 found this helpful

Zoe go to the park every day and there’s about 10 dogs there and there’s two dogs that she’s constantly biting at their ears or when they’re either running for the ball or running back with the ball. Both dogs are very docile. She tried it with one of the older dogs only did it once and she never did it to that dog again. I read in your article that I should take her outside of the play area when she does that.

Sept. 24, 2023

Zoe's Owner

Expert avatar

Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer

Recommendation ribbon

1133 Dog owners recommended

Hello, When this happens at the dog park, I could take pup out for a calm down period, simply to help her arousal decrease, opposed to as a punishment. I would focus the most on setting up specific non-dog park training times to practice pup leaving others ears alone as your main training goal though. I recommend teaching an Out command and Come command. Out - which means leave the area: https://www.petful.com/behaviors/how-to-teach-a-dog-the-out-command/ Come: https://www.petful.com/behaviors/train-dog-to-come-when-called/ Once pup has learned those commands, practice them often using a long training leash, 15'-30' long and a padded back clip harness. Gradually work up to more and more distracting locations. You can even practice pup's recall at places where the are other dogs that can't get to your dog, like regular parks or outside a dog park (don't go inside the dog park area though since having pup on leash in there isn't safe and could lead to fights). Once pup is really good at Come and Out on the long leash, recruit a friend and their friendly dog. Have the dogs play in a controlled, fenced area without other dogs around, while they are wearing a back clip harness and drag leash. Periodically call the dogs away from each other when they are not entangled wrestling. Have each person call their dog from different areas of the yard so the dogs go in different directions when they disengage. Use the drag leash to carefully and quickly reel pups in to each of you if they don't obey when you call. Once your dog gets to you (because they obeyed or because you reeled them in with the leash), have pup obey a couple commands like Sit or Down, and give high value treats - this is why the dogs are being called to separate locations, you don't want competing for the same food while aroused from playing). After both dogs are focused on their people and calm from the obedience practice, allow the more timid of the two dogs to go first, telling them "Go Play" and releasing them. If they still want to play, let the second dog go also, telling them to "Go Play" as well. Practice this for 10-30 minutes a training session, often, until your dog will obey Out and Come consistently while in the middle of playing without having to be reeled in. While doing all of this, I would avoid going to the dog park where pup could ignore your command and that would undermined your training efforts. Once pup is very good at obeying while aroused, then you can use the new commands in real life to help pup manage their behavior at the park. Learn how to read the body language of other dogs if you do not already, so you can easily spot when the dogs are getting too aroused or one dog wants to stop and isn't being allowed to, and you can intervene before things get tense, moving your dog to another part of the park and letting them calm back down again, before playing with a new dog while that one rests. Be aware that some dogs need the play to end for the day when they get to that point because their ability to control themselves will decrease the more tired they get, even though they seem to be getting wound up instead of tired. For those dogs, it's best to end the play for that part of the day, and if you find they still need exercise, use some structured obedience practice to wear them out mentally too, which can also get their minds back into a calm state before going home. Do obedience practice outside of the dog park fence though, for safety reasons. Use that out command to pause play when the biting is either happening or you know pup will start it soon because are getting too mouthy in general as excitement builds. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Oct. 9, 2023

Dog nametag icon

Clay

Dog breed icon

American bully

Dog age icon

10 weeks

Question icon

Question

Thumbs up icon

0 found this helpful

Thumbs up icon

0 found this helpful

We have two pocket American bullies. Our ten week old won’t stop nipping and biting our 5 year old pup. He goes for his tail and all his bits! I can’t seam to leave them alone with out the little one biting him so hard that he bleeds. We have penalty of toys that we rotate so they won’t get bored but of coarse they always play fight for the same one. Any tips on how to manage this?

April 20, 2023

Clay's Owner

Expert avatar

Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer

Recommendation ribbon

1133 Dog owners recommended

Hello, First, I highly suggest crate training the puppy. Almost all puppies will cry the first two weeks of crate training - it is new to them and they have to be given the opportunity to learn to self-sooth and self-entertain to prepare them for environments they will have to be in later and prevent dangerous destructive chewing habits that happen without confinement. Use the Surprise method from the article linked below to gradually help pup learn to be calm in the crate and to relax by using rewards for being Quiet if pup isn't already used to the crate. https://wagwalking.com/training/like-a-crate Crate pup at night and when you leave, and you can use an exercise pen with some toys in it also. When you cannot directly supervise the dogs together, puppy should be crated or in the pen. When you are supervising, teach both dogs the Out command (which means leave the area) and make whoever is causing issues leave the area as needed (which will be mostly puppy at this age). Out command: https://www.petful.com/behaviors/how-to-teach-a-dog-the-out-command/ I also recommend teaching Leave It. Leave It method: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-bite Decide what your house rules are for both dogs and you be the one to enforce the rules instead of the dogs. No aggression, no pushiness, no stealing toys, no stealing food, no being possessive of people or things, or any other unwanted behavior - if one dog is causing a problem you be the one to enforce the rules so that the dogs are NOT working it out themselves. For example, if pup comes over to your older dog when they are trying to sleep, tell pup Out. If puppy obeys, praise and reward them. If puppy disobeys, stand in front of your older dog, blocking the pup from getting to them, and walk toward pup calmly but firmly until pup leaves the area and stops trying to go back to your older dog. If your older dog growls at your pup, make your older dog leave the room while also disciplining pup by having them leave the area too if needed. Be vigilant and take the pressure off of your older dog - you want puppy to learn respect for your older dog because you have taught it to pup and not because your older dog has had to resort to aggression or has to hide all the time. If you want pup to be free but don't want to chase after them while you are home, you can also clip them to yourself using a six-foot leash, so that pup has to stay near you and not wander near your other dog. Whenever puppy enters the room, give your older dog a treat while pup is not looking. Whenever they are calm, relaxed or tolerant of puppy also give them a treat. Try not to let the puppy see you rewarding them though so that they don’t run over and overwhelm your older dog. Right now your older dog probably feels overwhelmed by the puppy and because of pup's age it’s harder for them to handle pup and keep up with their energy. They need to feel like you are the one managing the puppy, protecting them from pup pestering them, and making pup's appearance pleasant for them. If you can take the pressure off of their relationship and help their interactions to be calmer, then they may adjust to pup's presence as pup grows, especially when they calms down when older. Don’t expect them to be best friends. The goal right now is calm, peaceful coexistence. Enrolling pup in a puppy play group, class with play time, or moderated puppy play time with other friends' puppies, can also help pup learn how to control the pressure of their bite and give breaks when another dog indicates they need one. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

April 24, 2023


Wag! Specialist
Need training help?

Learn more in the Wag! app

Five starsFive starsFive starsFive starsFive stars

43k+ reviews

Install


© 2023 Wag Labs, Inc. All rights reserved.