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What to do when your puppy bites

Puppies use their mouths for many reasons. Teething, exploration, taste, play, and chewing are just a few. Plus, your puppy needs to learn bite inhibition so he or she can regulate those powerful GSD jaws as an adult dog. So what do you do when those needle-sharp baby German Shepherd teeth are tearing up your clothes or skin?

First, let’s cover a few DON’Ts:

  • Don’t hold your puppy’s mouth shut. Besides possibly hurting your puppy and causing him to retaliate with a hard bite, think about what puppies do when they play — they mouth each other! If you start interacting with your puppy when he puts his mouth on you, he will be likely to try that strategy again the next time he wants your attention.
  • Don’t smack or hit your puppy (on the face, or anywhere else). Besides hurting your puppy, hitting teaches him to be wary or afraid of human hands — definitely not an association we want our adult German Shepherds to have!
  • Don’t shout NO! or Stop! If this worked, it would have worked the first time, and forevermore! Instead, shouting at your puppy teaches him to be afraid of you or to ignore you (or maybe both).

Here are some strategies to try if you find your puppy is biting too hard:

  • Decide what “too hard” is. Remember, your puppy NEEDS to bite. Biting with puppy teeth is how your pup learns how to be gentle with his or her mouth. You want your puppy to bite you! However, you get to decide how hard is too hard. My rule of thumb is if the bite leaves a red mark, that is too hard. If your puppy bites too hard, say “Ouch!” in an unpleasant tone, and stop playing with your pup for a moment. IMPORTANT: You should never allow your puppy to mouth or bite babies and children. Kids aren’t capable of appropriately telling a puppy how hard is too hard, and biting can easily become a game, or could hurt the child. Have kids play with the puppy with toys or feed your GSD puppy treats for being calm.
  • Use toys. Use a tug or fluffy toy to encourage your pup to bite a toy instead of your hands and clothes. Remember to trade your puppy the toy for a treat each time you want him to give it up, so he learns to give you the toy quickly and easily!
  • Teach a desired behavior. Teach your puppy to chase a treat up and down the stairs, or to walk nicely on leash, or to fetch something, instead of biting.
  • Create some downtime. Using a leash, tether, crate or other barrier is a good way to help your puppy calm down when he or she is to excited to play appropriately. If the “Ouch!” technique isn’t working, or your puppy is disinterested in toys and only wants to bite you or your clothing, it’s time to shift to a calmer activity. Use the teaching calmness technique as above, or put your puppy on a leash, temporary tether, or crate with a stuffed Kong or other tasty chew toy. Try playing again in a little while, after a potty break!

Q&A: How to find a German Shepherd puppy

Q: I am very interested in finding a great big beautiful and healthy GSD, but I keep reading that a good breeder is hard to come by and others say I should just get a rescue dog. I don’t really want a rescue dog. I read that it’s hard to come by rescue puppies, and they’re usually already juveniles or older when they’re adopted. How do I get a nice German Shepherd puppy?

A: You’re not wrong, it is really tough to find a nice puppy without doing a fair bit of research. I recommend joining some of the German Shepherd email lists (check Yahoo Groups) and forums (such as GermanShepherds.com), as well as searching for German Shepherd or working dog Facebook groups, and get involved there. Not only do breeders hang out and advertise nice litters with pedigrees, parents’ photos, and titles, but their puppy buyers do as well — so you can get a fairly comprehensive picture of what the breeder is producing, just by talking to other GSD enthusiasts.

And of course, nothing beats the experience of attending a trial and watching the dogs at work. Look for IPO, Schutzhund, Ringsport and Mondio competitions to attend (you’ll probably have to use Google to find a regional club). Those can be a few — or several! — hours’ drive, but it’s worth it to see the dogs in action and asking their handlers where they’re from.

Best of luck!

Teach your GSD to stay

Want to train your German Shepherd to stay? Start with a really short amount of time, such as 2-3 seconds, and reward your pup with a treat for holding still while he or she is in the stay position. Release your dog with a word and toss a treat, so he or she gets up. Repeat 5-6 times, and end the session.

During training sessions, slowly build up to a longer period of time (such as 5-10 seconds), without changing anything else — don’t move around, don’t increase your distance from your dog, etc. Remember to release your dog with a release word or phrase (“Let’s go!”) when the stay is over! Once your dog is reliably holding a 30-second stay, add a little distance or body movement — pick only one — with the same gradual build-up to the next challenge.

Let’s break down stay training:

Never ask your German shepherd to stay for a longer period of time than he/she can. If your dog wants to break a stay after 2 seconds, feed a treat and release after 1 second. Your job as the trainer is to make the dog think it’s fun to wait for a treat!

Go nuts with the treats. One treat each second the dog stays is a good starting duration! We want the dog to think that staying put was the best idea she’s ever had. Of course you will start to slow the rate you give treats, as your dog learns to stay put.

If your dog breaks a stay, ask yourself how long she stayed, and what else was happening in the area. Did she stay for 10 seconds, but not 15? Or did she get up when the neighborhood cat came by? You have to release your dog before you think she will get up. If you feel tempted to say “stay” to your dog again, go back and feed her.

The more distance  between you and your dog during a stay, the more treats she should get when you return. A fun game to play is “Four steps away equals four treats, one step equals one treat,” and so on. Your dog will start to hope you go farther away, so she gets more treats!

Instead of backing away from your dog to make the stay harder, start by turning your back. In a real-life situation, we would turn and walk away.

My preference is to always return to my GSD before I release him, rather than calling my dog to me from a stay. I don’t want my dog wondering when he can get up and come find me — I want him thinking about how many treats he’ll get when I get back!

If your dog breaks a stay, you have increased the difficulty too much, or too quickly, or both. Go back to the last place your dog had success, and work from there.

Q&A: Older dog biting and mouthing

Q: I have a one-year-old GSD. He is a very sweet dog with tons of energy. I have trouble walking him, so to give him exercise I throw balls around and run him around the backyard. Still sometimes he can get bitey. I know he just wants to play, but sometimes he jumps on me and bites hard. Once he starts doing this it’s really hard to get him to stop. How should I handle this? I’ve searched for tips before online. One recommended to turn away and cross my arms but he is so big he can knock me down or will just continue to bite me anyway. How should I proceed?

Either a tether or a Gentle Leader headcollar can be effective in these situations.

Buy a Gentle Leader and train him to wear it; he should drag a leash anytime he is loose so biting, mouthing and other inappropriate behavior can be interrupted.
Here is a video on acclimating your dog to a head halter:

Teach your dog to love the head halter

Tethering him to a sturdy or stationary object while you are in the same area is another way to prevent inappropriate behavior, but tie him only using his collar or a harness, and NOT the Gentle Leader!

When your pup gets bitey, say “Ow!” in an unpleasant voice, and stop playing with him for 5+ seconds, then try again. Use toys as an intermediate when playing with him, like the fetch game you describe. If he bites you or grabs your clothing, pick up or step on the leash so he cannot reach you (if he’s wearing a Gentle Leader), or step outside his tether range (if you are not playing fetch and he is tethered). Try playing with him again in 20-30 seconds, or as soon as he’s settled into a sit or down on his own for three seconds.

Five things to do before bringing your new puppy home

Those little balls of fluff are adorable, but life can become miserable without accomplishing at least these five tasks first:

  1. Buy a crate. A crate is an indispensable tool for house training, as well as keeping your belongings and your puppy safe while you are gone. Crate-training takes a few days if your breeder hasn’t already started it with your new puppy, but most puppies take to it quickly if you are diligent.
  2. Choose your vet. If you don’t already have a veterinarian for other pets, ask your friends, co-workers or breeder who they recommend. If possible, schedule a “well puppy” visit with your veterinarian for the day after you bring your puppy home. (Most breeders will require the puppy be examined by a vet within 48 to 72 hours of purchase for the health guarantee to be honored.) When shopping for a vet, don’t hesitate to ask about recommended vaccination schedules, costs, restraint methods, and whether the clinic offers any “extras,” such as boarding or microchipping.
  3. Enroll in a puppy kindergarten class. A training class for puppies aged 8 to 18 weeks is a vital component of your new puppy’s life. These classes will not only get you started on the basics of obedience training and house manners, but should also allow your puppy the opportunity to play with other puppies. This is a must if you plan for your puppy to interact with other dogs throughout its life. Again, ask friends, your vet and breeder for recommendations, and visit the class in advance of enrolling, when possible.
  4. Prepare the menu. Decide before you bring your puppy home what food you will feed. Kibble, raw, home cooked or frozen — the variety of choices at the moment is astounding, so take some time to research options before selecting a food or feeding method. The solution is to choose an option that meets your puppy’s nutrient requirements, and that you feel good about preparing and feeding.
  5. Get some toys. What’s life with a puppy without dog toys strewn about the house? Choose sturdy, easy-to-wash toys that appeal to your puppy’s desire to chew. Rope tug toys and “puppy” chew bones are fine, so long as your puppy is only playing with them while supervised. Do not allow a puppy to chew any toy not specifically labeled for chewing (especially rope or cloth toys). Buy enough toys that you can rotate a couple sets in and out of your puppy’s life — they’ll be like new again!

Do German Shepherds ‘turn’ on their owners?

Fuzzball or future terror?

Every once in a while, you’ll come across someone proclaiming that a breed of dog (usually a large one) will grow up to “turn” on its owners. We guess this means a dog whose behavior was “just fine” as a puppy starts growling at or biting its handler once it’s an adult. Is this a real thing? Are German Shepherd puppies likely to attack their owners once they become adult dogs?

Where this idea comes from

It’s hard to say exactly how this notion started, but the truth is that a young puppy that bites or otherwise acts aggressively is unlikely to cause much damage to an adult human, unless the pup’s teeth hit a nerve or an eyeball. On the other hand, a fully grown dog of any breed who bites hard enough to break skin will do more damage, because it has adult teeth and stronger jaws.

Are all puppies “good”?

Another reason for the popularity of this idea is that many people think all puppies are playful and sociable, or that puppies who behave aggressively are “just playing.” The truth is that dogs of all ages display the full range of canine body language, including stress signals and bite warnings, and these are often only noticed by people who are trained to see them. Most pet owners are unaware of these subtle signs, leading to claims that the dog “bit out of nowhere,” when in fact the pup may have been displaying warning signs for months and months leading up to the bite.

Do German Shepherds’ personalities change as they get older?

As dogs mature, especially dogs who have not been spayed or neutered, they develop less tolerance for things that might not have upset them as younger pups. Unaltered dogs also have hormonal surges that can affect their excitement levels. (More excitement = more likely to aggress.) So while the dog’s overall personality likely stays the same, its tolerance for other dogs and for events that might not have bothered it as a puppy goes down. This often translates into a German Shepherd who dislikes other dogs starting around 2 to 3 years old. It sometimes means extra sensitivity to strangers starting at around 2 years old, as well.

A scary or unwanted experience during the puppy’s sensitive periods (9-12 weeks and again at 6-12 months for German Shepherds) can permanently alter the puppy’s personality, at least under those circumstances. We once had an otherwise-friendly-with-everyone male German Shepherd who was traumatized by a veterinarian at 8 months of age. He barked, lunged and growled at that veterinarian every visit thereafter, to the point that we ended up switching vets. Even then, it took years of training and behavior modification for him to quietly accept an examination from the new vet.

Bite inhibition

A German Shepherd puppy who was never taught proper bite inhibition can grow up to do real damage. Bite inhibition means a puppy learns to use its mouth gently. This process is taught to the puppy starting with the mother and litter mates until 8 weeks or so of age — which is why you should never remove a puppy from its mother and litter mates before 7 weeks. The process continues with the puppy’s new handler until the age of 4-5 months. If you don’t know how to teach bite inhibition, you can find numerous examples on YouTube.

Resource guarding

One common cause of dogs biting or acting aggressively towards their owners is resource guarding, which means the dog growls or bites if someone comes near or tries to take the dog’s food or toys, or tries to remove the dog from a resting place. This trait can often be seen even in young puppies, and is sometimes made worse by people taking the puppy’s food or toys in an attempt to “train” him not to guard. Thankfully, prevention in puppies is possible. If you have a German Shepherd who resource guards, it is imperative that you seek help from a qualified behavior professional right away. (See APDT.com or IAABC.org to search for help.)

Medical

Medical reasons for aggression, especially aggressive behavior that seems to start abruptly, are not uncommon. Brain tumors or other neurological problems, chronic diseases or severe pain can cause all dogs, not just German Shepherds, to act in ways they otherwise never would. We once had a client whose normally friendly, loving dog (not a GSD) bit her arm repeatedly and broke skin through her heavy winter coat — because he was in extreme pain. Once he had surgery to repair the medical problem and had recovered, he became his friendly, loving self again.

Abuse

Probably the most obvious reason, but thankfully rare, that an adult dog might decide to aggress towards its handler is abuse. While most German Shepherd owners never knowingly hit or hurt their dogs, harsh training methods can also bring out aggressive behavior. A study of training methods showed that “confrontational methods applied by dog owners… were associated with aggressive responses in many cases.” (Herron, et al)

It’s also worth mentioning that many, many dogs who are physically abused never bite anyone. But few people would blame a dog whose tolerance for abuse came to an end in the form of aggressive behavior.

Will my German Shepherd become aggressive?

The only guarantee we have is that ANY dog can bite. However, being an educated German Shepherd owner who learns about dog body language, who works to socialize and train your dog using positive training methods, and who keeps your dog out of situations he or she hasn’t learned to handle emotionally can significantly decrease that risk.

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Cited:
Herron, Meghan E.; Shofer, Frances S.; Reisner, Ilana R. Survey of the use and outcome of confrontational and non-confrontational training methods in client-owned dogs showing undesired behaviors. Applied Animal Behaviour Science vol. 117 issue 1-2 February, 2009. p. 47-54