I made a tactical error with my furry niece Casey. I let her chew on my fingers when she was teething.
It was cute when she was a little wiggly baby who would fall asleep on my chest after we played. Now that she’s a fifty-plus pounder, it’s not quite so cute when she gnaws on my hands.
If you’d rather not be a personal chew toy for a dog of any age, try these tips.
When your teeth are coming in, it hurts… regardless of whether you’re a puppy or a baby. Something to chew on is a good distraction! Just don’t offer your fingers or hand to a puppy. Instead, try stuffed toys, rubber toys, or appropriately sized rawhides. Your puppy may also get some relief from chewing on an ice cube.
It is natural for your puppy to want to play – that means wrestling, pawing, and biting. If your puppy nips you in play, one thing to do is yelp. Do it loud, do it right away. That’s how one puppy tells another puppy that they’re biting too hard! Your pup will instinctively pull away. If you yelp every time you get nipped, they’ll learn that it hurts you and they’ll stop. (Yelping also works really well on my Lally when she starts to play a little too rough – so if you have a mouthy adult dog, give a YIPE a try.)
You can also use the N-word. A sharp NO will also cause the pup to stop and draw away.
If neither of these tricks works as well as you’d like, you’re going to have to make it even clearer that nipping is not acceptable. As soon as they get mouthy during playtime, say NO and then stop playing. Your puppy will learn quickly that biting signals the end of playtime with her family!
As a side note… I wouldn’t suggest sending the puppy to her crate as punishment; you want the crate to be a place the dog actually likes going, so you don’t have to chase her around when it’s bedtime or you need to go out.