Puppies - Biting (Play) and Mouthing

Why is my puppy nipping and biting family members?

Although often thought to be a teething behaviour, nipping, mouthing and biting in young dogs is often a form of social play. Teething on the other hand, is more likely to involve gnawing or chewing on household objects. 

As play is an important form of social interaction, puppies need to be provided with ample opportunity to play, without biting. Social play with people could involve retrieve games, walks, hide and seek games as well as tug games as long as they are played using appropriate rules (any biting, even accidental, ends the game and a reliable “give” cue is in place). Although wrestling or rough housing can be fun for the people involved it can be very confusing for the dog and may lead to play that is too rough or rambunctious and even encourage biting. 

Bite inhibition is something that puppies start to learn while with their litter mates. In play, if puppy A bites puppy B too hard, puppy B will yelp and may run away. This sends the message to puppy A that bites like that will disrupt or end the play session. What they are actually learning is how much pressure from their jaws causes pain. Without this feedback, a puppy does not learn to inhibit the force of its bite. Because all dogs may bite at some time, this lesson is vital for human safety. Thus, ideally, puppies should have time to practice their social skills with other dogs before being adopted by a new owner. It can also be beneficial for the puppy to have regular interactive social play periods with other dogs or puppies in the home or in the neighbourhood, as long as these are supervised in such a way that the puppies do not learn inappropriate responses (see leaflet on socialisation). 

How can I stop play biting?

Just as pups learn bite inhibition from one another, people need to teach the same principles when interacting with their puppy, but not in the same way. People are not dogs so trying to imitate what dogs do is often more confusing for the puppy. Provided the dog is receiving adequate play, attention and exercise, you can teach your puppy that biting human flesh is not acceptable. In the beginning, owners often allow the puppy to chew on them without reprimands and the puppy assumes that the behaviour is acceptable, they are not receiving the vital message of how much force is acceptable when you put your mouth on human skin

Puppies need to learn that mouthing and chewing on human body parts not acceptable. To do this, try the following:

every time your puppy nips or mouths with any force on ANY family member

• cease all play and attention immediately.

• as soon as the mouthing has ceased offer the puppy a toy to put in the mouth and praise immediately – this should teach the puppy that putting the mouth around human flesh is not acceptable but mouthing on a toy is always rewarded

It is important to send the message to the puppy that bites are not acceptable to humans and that biting will cause play to be terminated. When done consistently this will rapidly stop play biting, but it is very important that all family members respond consistently every time any pressure of teeth is felt. It is also important to offer an alternative rewardable behaviour (such as mouthing on a toy) in order to teach the puppy what is acceptable and even desirable behaviour.

If the puppy persists, chases or immediately repeats the behaviour, walking out of the room and closing the door can help to teach the puppy that nipping leads to immediate inattention. Although it is tempting to pick the puppy up and take it out of the room, this interaction may be interpreted by your puppy as additional play and the biting may continue as you carry the puppy to a confinement location.

What if ceasing interaction does not help?

Other techniques are often suggested for play biting. Some involve harsh discipline, like slapping the puppy under the chin or forcefully holding the mouth closed. Remember, pain can cause aggression and cause the puppy to become anxious, fearful or perhaps more excited. These techniques also require that you grab the puppy when it is in a high state of arousal and this can lead to misinterpretation and even perception by the puppy that it is being threatened. Some puppies may even misinterpret the owner’s attempts at punishment as rough play, which in turn might lead to an increase in the unacceptable behaviour. Physical methods are therefore not recommended.

The use of a head collar with a remote lead attached allows the puppy to play and chew, but a pull on the lead can immediately and successfully close the mouth and stop biting without any physical force. By simultaneously saying "no biting", many puppies will quickly learn the meaning of the verbal cue. As soon as the puppy stops and calms down, the owner can allow play to resume, as long as biting does not begin again. 

In summary

Remember that play biting is a component of play behaviour in puppies and that play is a form of social interaction. It is important to accept that the puppy is trying to play and that this is important for the development of life skills. The problem is that this form of play is unacceptable when it is aimed at humans and the puppy needs to learn this.

Ideally puppies should learn that you will initiate and end play sessions, this gives you more control over teaching appropriate behaviour. Play with toys, don’t encourage mouthing of hands and feet. One effective strategy when the play gets too rough is to immediately end the play session and leave. Social withdrawal is often a very powerful tool for correcting social misbehaviour. Leave the puppy alone long enough to calm down. If upon your return the wild playing begins again, leave the puppy again.