[Sammtastic]

Hi! My little pit Zoey is about 2, almost 3 months old and I’m having some trouble figuring out if some of the things she does is normal or signs of other issues!

So Zoey, who is still struggling to learn her name, really likes to bite hands. I’ve tried yelping, distracting her with a toy, shoving the toy in her mouth and even going as far as to remove myself for a “time out”. But she still goes for my hands as if they’re the toys. Sometimes preferring them over the toys. I’m not sure what else to do or if this is common behavior for a potentially teething baby?

My other issue is she hates being pet 😞 which makes me sad cause I just want to give her love and cuddles. She only really wants to cuddle or let’s me pet her when she’s sleeping. When I go to pet her I try to use light tones, and pet her softly but she takes it as it’s playtime and I’m gonna fight your hands (tying in with the first problem). Im not sure how to establish petting is nice, and feels nice. Her skin doesn’t look irritated or anything either since I thought maybe it hurts her to be pet for some reason.

Thank you anyone who has any insights as to what I can do! She’s normally very good and behaves for the most part it’s just these little issues I’m not sure how to fix!

 

[jttar]

Hello Sammtastic. The behavior you are describing is not unusaul. Some dogs are better about it then others but the real problem cases are typically in puppy's that were taken away from their mothers before they learned bite inhibition.
It is normal for a puppy to bite when playing, that is what they do with each other. However, if a puppy bites too hard the liter mate or mother will give a yelp to warn the puppy. You do the same, give out a LOUD yelp, loud enough to shock the puppy. If the biting continues, playtime is over, no exceptions. When the puppy plays or lets you pet them without nipping reward them with verbal praise and a small treat. Teach the puppy that biting will get them nothing, treat or praise.
When ever you are training a puppy, do it after the dog is tired out from a walk or running around in the yard. Wear out some of all that puppy energy and they will respond better to learning.
One last thing, check out the behavior section of this forum. So much info there on training. Best of luck.

Joe

 

[johnoosthuizen]

With my Pitty also called Zoey whenever she bites down on the hands i just tell her in a firm and urgent voice "NO" ...she immediately stops biting and also allows me to pet her then. ...but you have to start very early with this before she makes it a habbit off ignoring you when you say no...

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