One of the most important socialization skills for a puppy to learn is that he should never bite his human companion. You must train your puppy not to bite because a puppy who bites may grow into a dog that bites. An adult dog who bites humans faces the terrible possibility of being destroyed as a dangerous animal.Training your puppy not to bite at an early age will help your dog not resort to biting out of fear when placed in a stressful situation.
Puppies, like babies, are very oral when they are young. Everything seems to go in the mouth to be tasted, tested and chewed. Biting and chewing is normal playtime behavior for puppies. If you observe puppies at play, they spend much of their time biting and chewing on each other. Without fail, one puppy will eventually bite another too hard. The puppy who is bitten will yelp loudly. The biter lets go and learns not to bite so hard next time if he wants to keep his playmate.
One easy technique you can use to train your puppy not to bite is to yelp loudly and scold your puppy firmly every time he bites. Use this technique regardless of how hard or softly he bites. If you apply this technique consistently, your puppy will learn to control his urges and will not bite. Not only can you train your puppy not to bite in this manner, but you will also be discouraging dominate behavior. Your puppy must learn that his human family is at the top of the "pack" and that all commands are to be followed.
Here is another successful technique that can be used to train your puppy not to bite. Since puppies will most often bite a moving hand or foot, hold that body part very still. Use your other hand to point at your puppy and in a deep, gruff voice say, "NO" or "Don't Bite". When the puppy lets go, praise him in a happy tone of voice and give him a little treat. Not only are you teaching with positive reinforcement, but this teaches your puppy to control his natural instinct to chase and catch prey.
Most puppies will outgrow the annoying behavior of biting and chewing on inappropriate things if it's not allowed to develop in the first place. The key to training your puppy not to bite is to choose one training technique and apply it consistently. Puppies learn best with a single technique that is repeated. Train your puppy not to bite and you will have an enjoyable companion for many years.
Rebecca Welch is a successful Webmaster and publisher of How-To-Train-Your-Puppy.
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