Stop Puppy Biting - Hi, How can you Stop a Rotterman Puppy (6 months old) from jumping at you and biting your hands?

by Amil
(Lusaka, Zambia, Central Africa)

How to Stop a Puppy Biting your Hands and Feet

I have two Rotterman Puppies. They are great little chaps, but have a bad habit of jumping up and grabbing my hand and arm like they want to bite me. Also they bark at me when I command them to stop and nips at my feet. Any ideas on how I can train them to behave would be great. Thanks. Amil

Hi Amil thanks for your question - puppies just love to play - just like a small child playing games and stimulating your puppy will keep your pooch occupied and stimulated. The very best method to stop a puppy from biting is actually very simple and works exactly the same way as a puppy would react in the litter i.e. as soon as a puppy bites another puppy in the litter the reaction would result in a loud YELP - this is would stop the other puppy from biting again and this is what you should do.

As soon as your puppy bites you say 'OUCH' not really loud just loud enough - the last thing you want is for your puppy to think that you are playing which may result in more biting. So say 'OUCH' and get up and walk out of the room - this should happen at the same time as your puppy barks. This will tell your puppy instantly that any biting or barking will result in play stopping immediately. This is very important and needs to happen at the exact moment your puppy bites - not two minutes after but at the exact moment it happens. Use constant obedience training to stop your puppy from jumping up - use the 'Sit' command and reinforce positive behavior i.e. as soon as your puppy stops jumping up reward this positive behavior with praise and a treat.

Hope this helps - we have provided some links on how to stop puppy biting and barking below.

Dog Obedience Training Online Guide

How to Stop your from Puppy Biting

Dog Barking Control