A puppy is probably the cutest thing in the world, but if it’s an issue, you need to stop puppy biting as quickly as possible. Many owners don’t realize that this behaviour can lead to issues with dominance and aggression later in the dog’s life, no matter how cute it might seem when your puppy is rolling around on the floor.
In fact, most puppies learn to stop biting when they are still very young. Because they have so many brothers and sisters in their litter, they quickly learn that when they bite, they get bitten back. By the time a puppy is eight weeks old, it should already know not to bite. The problem then is that the mother doesn’t always get eight weeks to stop puppy biting.
The Early Days
If you take home a puppy that is less than eight weeks old or that simply did not learn not to nip and bite at your fingers before you got it, it’s important to take quick action to stop the biting behaviour.
First thing’s first. Never hit your puppy in response to the bite. If they don’t think you’re playing, they may become afraid of you, developing serious phobias and anxieties that can lead to aggression issues later in life.
To truly stop puppy biting, you need to address the root of the behaviour. To do this, you should encourage them in any good behaviors and discourage any negative behaviors. Don’t confuse the puppy by playing games that might lead to this kind of aggression. Avoid wrestling, tug of war, or chase games that will lead to nipping by the puppy.
Consistency will be very important in training your puppy. If you really want to stop puppy biting, you cannot grow soft or let the dog get away with anything. You’re doing this all for its own good.
The Training
When you start training your puppy, try to enrol them in obedience or socialization classes. There are actual bite inhibition classes where trainers will mimic the behaviours of the puppy’s mother, teaching it that the bites are not socially acceptable. Socialization is good for many other reasons as well. It teaches your dog to respond well to other dogs on the street and will reduce any aggression they show toward other dogs.
Early, when you try to stop puppy biting, redirect the behaviour to something constructive like a chew toy or bone. If you say “No!” and then give the dog a toy to chew on instead, they will often learn very quickly that the finger is not okay, but the toy is.
Another good method is to make a small, hurt noise whenever the puppy nips at you. This will replicate the response a dog gets when it bites its litter mate. A soft whine or yip will tell the puppy that it has caused you pain, something it doesn’t want to do. Startle the dog enough that they let go and leave you be.
Training to stop puppy biting is a very important part of the relocation process, especially if your puppy is very young. Ideally, your puppy should understand that by the time they are 10 weeks old, biting is not okay. It will make the years to come much less stressful and the risk of potential aggression the future much lower.
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Inside you will learn...
- 5 simple steps to minimize your dogs barking and the one step you should NEVER take!
- The real reason why dogs becomes aggressive and the 1 secret to fix the problem
- 4 easy steps to control your dog both indoors and when in public
- How to stop your dogs chewing habit and how to tell if your dog is chewing due to poor health
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Schutzhund dog training is a sport that developed in Germany in the early 20th century as a way to test various German Shepherd breeds for potential use as police dogs. Rather than using a dog’s appearance as a means of determining if the dog would be effective, Schutzhund allowed trainers to find the best suited animals for the job. Today, many breeds are permitted to participate in Schutzhund training, though very few dogs actually pass.
The Basics of Schutzhund Dog Training
Schutzhund training is a very rigid, highly structured process that has evolved over the last 100 years. It is markedly less abusive toward the dogs than when it started, but still just as strict, as is necessary to fully evaluate each animal. While in the past, most of the Schutzhund training that took place was based on a handful of manuals and organized courses, today there are DVDs and videos that help dog owners start the training process.
The actual training will test a dog in many different specific behaviors that are ideal for police work, including tracking, sniffing, protection, and retrieving. Most Schutzhund dog training will begin when the dog is no more than a few weeks old and will last for weeks or even months to ensure the dog is well suited for the job.
The Essence of Schutzhund
There are many different aspects of Schutzhund training. The course you use will also depend on which videos or obedience program you prescribe to. Most Schutzhund courses will focus on the following, however:
- Clicker Training – Not all Schutzhund trainers will use clickers, but it is considered a nearly universal method that works extremely well with German Shepherds and other Schutzhund suitable breeds. Training with a clicker should be begin at a very young age – around 10 weeks.
- Obedience – Basic obedience training is the first true test in Schutzhund dog training. There are 10-11 basic obedience commands used in most programs. These include “focus and attention”, “sit, down and stand”, front, pointing out of an object, targeting, heel positioning, heeling, retrieving, jumping, motion exercises, and “go out”. Full completion requires mastery of all 11 training points.
- Tracking – Dogs training to track different objects, including drugs, bombs, and cadavers, will be trained exclusively in tracking methods. Using the “targeting” and “pointing out of an object” obedience cues, Schutzhund dog training will teach the dog to recognize the specific scent of their target and then to pursue until called off.
- Protection – Dogs may also be trained to protect, as is the case with police dogs, attack dogs, and guard dogs. They are trained with specific commands to both identify a threat and attack that threat. Alternatively, they can be trained to protect a specific object or person without commands.
The essence of Schutzhund is to provide a dog with a very highly specific set of skills they can use to complete a given task quickly and efficiently. Dogs in official training programs might complete training at a rate of 20% or lower. However, Schutzhund dog training can be just as effective as an obedience regimen for dog owners at home.
If you’re considering using Schutzhund to train your own dog, be sure to research the various training courses based on their success rates and the underlying philosophies used.
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Inside you will learn...
- 5 simple steps to minimize your dogs barking and the one step you should NEVER take!
- The real reason why dogs becomes aggressive and the 1 secret to fix the problem
- 4 easy steps to control your dog both indoors and when in public
- How to stop your dogs chewing habit and how to tell if your dog is chewing due to poor health
|
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Related posts:
- Dog Obedience and Training Tips
- Bulldog Puppy Training Tips
- 5 Important Dog Training Tips
- Dog Clicker Training Tips
- Mastiff Training Tips
