How to Train Your Puppy to Stop Biting

Hello Brenda, It sounds like Bailey is fear aggressive, and has learned through experience that biting gets people to go away. Once a dog successfully bites people multiple times it can be hard to one hundred percent eradicate the problem, but there are definitely things that you can do to improve it, and make it more manageable. Aggression can be a hard problem to solve on your own, for that reason I would recommend that you find a local trainer in your area who has successfully dealt with lots of aggressive dogs. Bailey is small, so the aggression is less dangerous, but the root of the problem is the same as any aggressive dog's, so it needs to be treated the same way that you would treat a larger dog's behavior. With that said, here are some things you can work on either by yourself or with the help or a trainer. First, go buy Bailey a basket muzzle that is his size, so that he can work close to people without them getting bit. Make sure that it is a basket muzzle, so that he can open his mouth inside the muzzle, and eat treats or lick cheese or peanut butter off of a straw that you poke through, to reward good behavior. Introduce the muzzle with lots of treats in a calm location. Reward him every time he touches it, then every time he lets you put it partially on him, then reward when he is wearing it, by passing tiny treats to him through the muzzle holes, or by dipping a drinking straw into peanut butter or squeeze cheese and poking it through the muzzle to let him lick. Reward him again after he has worn the muzzle for ten minutes. Do this every ten minutes. Continue rewarding him until he looks forward to wearing the muzzle or will at least tolerate it without distress. Practice walking by strangers, at first from a distance, and whenever he remains calm or looks at you for direction, reward him. You will occasionally see him deciding whether to act aggressively or not, when you see him thinking about it, call his name, and then reward him for looking at you. By doing this, you are telling him what he should be doing rather than acting aggressively. In this case what he should be doing is looking at you and remaining calm. As he improves, very gradually decrease the distance between you and the other people. When you are very close to other people, then have him wear the basket muzzle when you pass by, so that he cannot bite. Reward him when he acts calm or is attentive toward you, by pausing and passing him treats or inserting the peanut butter straw for him to lick. Also, recruit friends or family members that your dog does not know, to help you. Put Bailey on a six to ten foot leash, attached to a collar or a harness, that you know he definitely cannot slip out of and will not break. Have your friend enter your home, yard, or public location where you are, and stand or sit about fifteen feet away from Bailey, and ignore him. He will likely pitch a fit for quite a while. Simply wait for him to take a break for a couple of seconds. Be patient and expect this to take a long time at first. Give your friend lots of your dog's favorite treats, and any time that he is quiet or doing something calm, for even two seconds, have your friend toss him a treat. The treat needs to come from your friend so that Bailey will learn to trust him. As Bailey warms up to the person and is doing well overtime, allow your dog to get closer by attaching the leash to something secure that is a couple of feet closer to your friend. Keep repeating this, until your dog is only a couple of feet out of reach from your friend. If your dog is still doing well, and not reacting aggressively, and wanting to meet the person, then put the basket muzzle on Bailey, and give your friend the straw and something like cheese or peanut butter to dip it into. After you have done this, allow your dog to reach the person all the way if he chooses to, while the person calmly interacts with your dog. Every time that your dog goes up to the person without acting aggressively, have your friend reward him. It is important that your dog wear the muzzle for this for two reasons. One is to protect your friend, but the other is to teach your dog that he cannot use him mouth to control people. When your dog is comfortable around your first friend, then utilize another friend's help, and practice the same thing with that person. Keep practicing with other friends, one person at a time. If your dog becomes used to people in your home but still reacts badly to people outside, then have your friend meet you in a public place, so that your dog thinks your friend, who he has never met, is a stranger. Good locations to meet could include your neighborhood side walk, in a pet store, or at the park. The more people that you can get to help you with this, the better your dog will react to people in general, rather than just being nice around a few people. Practice this the most around the types of people your dog hates. In this case men and African Americas. Even practice this around children, once your dog is doing better with people in general, but be extremely careful around kids, and make sure that the child is very comfortable with all dogs and not frightened by Bailey's barking. When you practice around children, use two leashes and have your dog wear both a collar and harness, attaching one leash to his collar and one to his harness, then attach both to something very secure. This it to make sure that there is no chance of him slipping out or breaking one confinement, and biting the child. Also put the muzzle on him much sooner, as he nears the child while improving. Doing all this may not ensure that he is even trustworthy in all circumstances. There likely will always be some management needed, like keeping him on a leash around strangers, but if you work hard, then over time you might be able to get to a place where he rarely acts aggressively, rather than rarely does not act aggressively, and that can make life with him so much more enjoyable for you and others, and also prevent the potential dangers of an injury or lawsuit. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden