Mouthing
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One of the biggest problem to overcome with all puppies is mouthing. In a puppy’s world, all they do all day is mouth each other. It is their number one way of touching and experiencing their world, & interacting with each other. Their mouth is kind of like ours hands are for us. It is an issue when they leave their litter mates no matter when they leave. They want to recreate the world of play and wrestling where that was ok. It’s especially difficult if there are children in the house because they will see the children as litter mates. Even if they learn that the big people don’t tolerate mouthing they will still try to get children to be mouthing playmates. When your puppy is in an especially mouthy mood, that is a good time to set up a training scenario. Take the puppy to a couch. I always put a blanket or towel down first to protect the couch in case they pee. Then kneel in front of the couch where your hand can be right there ready to teach them. This way you are also at eye level and they can see your face. So when they bite and you already have your hand there ready to pinch down on their tongue or under their tongue with your index finger and optimally your thumb under their chin. At the same time they can also see your displeased face and hear your harsh tone saying No bite! No bite! Again this has to be immediately after they bite or they will not put it together as a result of mouthing. They often try 3 times because they are probably thinking I wonder why that just happened maybe it’s because I bit, let me try it again. So they will come back and try again with another bite. Repeat and get harder in the pressure you apply each time. After three times they often will give you a lick. Then in a very happy face and happy voice you say ... Yes! Good puppy! Give kisses, give kisses! Then they can learn ...ok I get, I can use my mouth with you but it’s only with giving kisses-no bites. I hope that helps. If it is immediate and uncomfortable enough they will learn very quickly. We are training a male from the same litter and he really has had a strong will and protested lots of training efforts but once he realized he was not going to win, he has come around in many areas. I hope over all you are enjoying your puppy! Please let me know if you need anything else.

Some Helpful Videos on Mouthing