Bite!

Our little new addition is adorable and full of life! She is doing well with training with us and walking and house training (well getting there - she goes to the back door etc!). Anyhow all these things are great and she is pretty good obedience wise with myself and my husband - that is to a degree, obviously if she can see a shoe she'll go for it etc but tends to listen to us if we tell her off, however it is a different stsory where my kids are concerned! She runs rings around them, I can hardly leave them for 5 mins in a room before she is trying to bite them etc, don't get me wrong, she is not nasty at all, it is all playful, but she obviously doesn't seem them higher in the pack than her and doesn't seem to listen to them as she does me and my husband! Is there anything at all I can do about this? Although she's only a puppy she can't half hurt with those little teeth, and she does bite me when excited but tends to listen when I tell her to stop!

Thanks, any advice appreciated!

I make a yelping sound like a dog does when it's hurt to discourage biting. When I do it Saxon immediately starts licking me, as if to apologize. I'm sure there are a million different ways to do it, though, and you'll have to find the one that works best for you and your dog!

Thanks, to be honest she loves the kids, waits by the kitchen door in the morning for them to come down, but all she wants to do is play with them!! She is pretty good with us, and still very young I know, we are stern with her when she bites but my 7 year old isn't very scary I guess! The thing is they were out the garden yesterday and where she was playing she jumped up and bit through his trouser leg and it pierced his leg! I know she doesn't mean to be nasty but it's hard - letting her play but also teaching her she can't bite!

Congratulations on your new addition and welcome to the site!

Sounds like you are doing really well with most things and she has already got the idea about house training. This is one of the hardest things about having children and puppies, they wind each other up! Both are very excitable and unfortunately when a puppy gets excited it usually starts using its mouth and nipping.

There are a few things you can do to combat this. First try to get your children to do some basic training (you dont say how old they are but I do this with nephews and neices who are 2years +). This will enforce it in the puppy's mind that they are higher than him in the heirarchy and will also teach him to have some control around them. Give your children a couple of treats and get the puppy to sit, when she is settled and not squirming too much get the children to treat her. Dont let her snatch at the food, if she tries to then calmly close your hand again and once again give the comman 'SIT'. Try this and try and teach a stay too (starting off 1-2 seconds and increasing time between command and treat, dont give her the treat if she moves!). When she gets too excited in future you can get your children to stop all excitable body language (stand still, keep arms still and no looking at the puppy as this will encourage her) then they can say 'sit' and treat her if she settles and sits down.

If she still doesn't calm down then a minute of two out of the room can help. She can then be returned when she has calmed down, any more jumping or scratching and she can be taken out of the room, put behind s tair gate or something and brought back in when she is behaving!

Oooh and we want to see lots of photos! They dont stay small forever

Thanks for that - I will upload pics when I'm at home later. My son is 6, will be 7 in July, and my daugher is 8, 9 in August. We have taught Nala to sit and give paw, so when the kids come through the door in the morning I do make them try to tell her to sit and do paw and then to praise and stroke her but not to do it when she's jumping up. I let them taker her out for her toilet sometimes, and then let them praise her and treat her, also when she sits and gives paw they do do this, however I have to say, she was less willing to do it for them initially than for me, she would do sit paw for me every time but not them! It's so funny how they have their own personalities!

I have the same problem with Roxy (now 14 wks) but it's not just with the kids, it's everybody. She sees it as one BIG game, but it certainly is'nt much fun for those on the recieving end. She has put holes in 2 pairs of my PJ pants and 4 pairs of trousers. ( NOT...HAPPY...JAAAANNN )

I hope you find a method that works for you and your baby so your children can enjoy their Pup too

Good Luck

Hi and welcome.
I have a 7, 5 and 2 year old and did have similar trouble however we have corrected the behaviour with my older 2 children but sometimes we have issues still with the 2 year old. Anyway my older 2 were instructed to shout no, replace whatever was being bitten with a toy and then ignore which they both managed to do and being consistant with it was the key. Bodhi now does everything my 7 your old says, she has been the one who has taught him to sit, shake paw etc. The kids are also in charge of feeding which they take it in turns doing including my youngest.
It did take time and patience but they get there eventually, good luck and await some pics. x