# Nippping



## janz99 (Aug 23, 2010)

Hey guys, our 8 week old girl Bella, seems to have a bad habbit of nipping. She will try to nip my hands when playing, or my clothing. I correct her every time she does it, and ive tried the yelping method when it comes to my hands. Seems to be working for my hands, but when she gets really worked up, she tries to nip everything. She even tried to nip me once when i picked her up, but only when she is really worked up.

The other problem is, if she is around another dog, she is constantly trying to nip them as well. She made my friends beagle yelp last night. She is constantly trying to wrestle/nip at other dogs, even other puppies. 

How should i go abouts starting to try and correct this behaivor>?


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## Tulip (Feb 14, 2010)

Really go for it with a Michael Jackson Ooooowww, loud ! and some fake crying will help too! Good luck


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## maple (Jul 22, 2010)

we have an 8 week old as well, and she's started to nip EVERYTHING. When she's just chilling out, or sleepy she's fine. But twice a day for up to an hour I'm convinced she's possessed, and she won't stop nipping my ankles even when I scream Ow and try and redirect her to her toys. I think it's just a bad teething stage right now. I'm hoping, because i'm completely covered in scratches from this little bugger! To tire her out during her manic episodes I usually just sprint back and forth either in the yard or our hallways. She follows me, and loves it. After about 20 minutes she's exhausted and just wants to cuddle again.

Just keep being consistent. Michael Jackson OWwwww's are a good idea. Puppies don't nip for the intention to hurt, just remember all they want to do is play! Hopefully your pup (and mine!!) will grow out of the nipping soon enough. But don't let your pup think it's ever ok to nip (but don't be forceful, she/he is just a pup). I'm hoping combinations of the "owwww's" and the redirecting will get through to her sooner than later!


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## janz99 (Aug 23, 2010)

Thats exactly how mine is as well. Its only when she is REALLY wound up and is at full tilt that she does it. Anything other time, she is perfectly fine, other then with the other dogs like i mentioned. 

Im doing the same thing, yelping and pretend crying. She does the same thing with my ankles. Most times ill gently grab her snout and give her a stern no, or yelp. Im hoping as well that she grows out of it once she is done teething. 

How long do they normaly teeth for?


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## Brodie (Feb 13, 2010)

*Re: Nipping*

If you put a bit of the jowl in their mouth (gunnr gave us this tip) and give a gentle pressure to it while saying "NO BITE", they'll start to learn. After our "No bite" we'd give him something of his to chew on. Puppies are learning their boundaries and by the other dog yelping, it taught (maybe didn't sink in though) that their nip hurt the other dog. With time, they will out grow it too  

We gave ours nyla bones and kongs while teething (Still loves them at 13 months!) Good luck!


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## BamBam (Feb 14, 2010)

I think all very young puppies nip, I grew up with basset hounds, GSP's, and my vizsla and all have nipped when that young. So do not worry, nipping is normal puppy behaviour, especially as young as only 8 weeks!
The 'OUCH' didnt work with my viz, infact it encouraged him more as he thought it was a game so I had to say no or put him out of the room, or get straight up and turn around and give no attention.
Puppies will nip other dogs because they do not know how to behave properly around them- if a puppy gets too much for an adult dog they will usually 'tell them off' with a growl and let them know this is too much. This is good for the puppy to learn that nipping is not acceptable.


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## sarahaf (Aug 17, 2009)

Agreed, "ouch" or really any response (such as clamping the jaw shut) only amped Rosie up when she was at that stage; we had to leave the room for a few minutes or turn our backs on her. The "time out" was a mild punishment for her, but also allowed her to cool down when she was overexcited. Puppies often seem to do this when they are tired or overexcited (with Rosie, we called her a "werewolf" because she'd be sweet all day and turn into a bitey-monster late in the evening).


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## janz99 (Aug 23, 2010)

Ya, thats how ours is right now. For the most part of the day she is really good. When it gets later in the day, she seems to get really worked up and nip at everything and anyone! 

How did you manage, or teach it out of her? If i try and leave the room, she will just follow me. If i shut the door to keep her in the room, she will just jump up on the door and scratch the crap out of it.


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## remmy600 (Nov 30, 2009)

I went through all of those thoughts too! I felt like I tried everything and nothing seemed to work. I was in tears a few times because of the frustration I felt!

They all do it and I think its a phase that you just have to be patient through. Stay consistent with the corrections (I agree with Brodie- we followed Gunnr's advice on that one too). For us, it just gradually got better and she finally grew out of it. Looking back it felt like it went on forever but it wasn't that long of a phase really. 

We swear by the Dura Chew Ring by Nylabone. http://www.nylabone.com/product-finder/by-product-type/dura-chew-ring-original.htm

She has had three of them so far and literally chews them for an hour or so EVERY night and she has yet to break through one. The regular Nylabones she goes through in no time (and she ends up digesting too much). These things are amazing. We are thinking about buying like 10 because we are dreading if they ever get discontinued! ;D


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