# 5 1/2 month old lab still biting... Please help me!!!



## barefootmama (Oct 27, 2012)

*<Update and a question>5 1/2 month old lab still biting... Please help me!!!*

**Update at the bottom of thread** 

I am just at my wits end with our 5 1/2 month old lab puppy. He is a big puppy (about 65 lbs.) He is sweet and gentle and smart and we love him BUT he is still biting and mouthing and yanking on my kids sleeves. He is much better with my husband and me but he asks like a bully to my three kids (ages 10, 7 and 5). He is especially bad with my 10 year old daughter. He will jump up on her while she is sitting on the couch and start mouthing and biting her head and neck. He also bites at them and backs them into a corner while they are walking by. It wasn't so hard when he was a puppy and only 20 lbs. but now he is bigger then them and I feel like I'm spending my whole day fending him off of the kids (I homeschool our kids so they are home with me all day). 

When he does this I usually get between him and them and say No! or No Biting! and often I will take him into the dining room were I have a leash attached to out table and give him a time out. Lately he seem to be either sleeping, in a time out, or tourmenting the kids. 

Now I have to say that the kids yell or cry or get angry and I think he sees this as a big game. Often when I go toward him to bring him to a timeout he runs away and then we are playing tag *sigh*. I just dont know what to do anymore. I feel like a am a big failure at training this puppy. Please help, I really want a good dog and I just don't know what to do.

P.S he is getting neutered in a couple weeks as well.


----------



## 3doglady (Jul 31, 2011)

Keep in mind, he is still very much a puppy. Although biting at 5 months-old is not normal, it also is not out of the norm He is excited and teething as well. Your puppy has a lot of energy and kids can really bring the energetic side out of a pup that age. His whole world is one big game. With 3 kids that age, you really have you're hands full. So, no, you are not a failure. Just the owner of a lab puppy and parent of 3 young kids.

Personally, I would implement NILF (google that) and get the kids involved. I would also leave the leash on while he is in the house so you can get to him quickly. Dogs love being chased, so, yeah, 'tag' pretty much sums up his mind set. Instead, teach him to come on command with the yummiest treats you can find. When he gets into something, or starts biting the kids, call him. Praise him, give him anf treat then engage him in something else, like playing with a ball, or toy. . Call him to you frequently and randomly. Give him lots of praise, a treat. Get him used to the idea that you are better, more interesting than what he's doing. Come is a very important tool and can aid you in lots of difficult situations. (just make sure you never yell or punish him when you call him and he comes) I would also do short frequent walks with him to expend some of his energy.

Ramp up and calm down sounds like something he really needs to learn as well. There is a sticky on that in the training section.

I would also find a reputable positive reward training facility in your area, sign him up and bring the kids with you, to all training classes. In fact, your 10-yr old would be the perfect person to handle him in class. See if you can get him in a class within the next month or so.

I'm sure others will chime in with some good suggestions, but those are the ones that have worked for the labs I've raised. You want to get a good training program started early, as labs can be a handful for up to 2-3 years. Training and consistency will be your best friend. A good PW trainer will be able to help you through the worst of it. (You will be over the worst of in in the next 6 months or so.)

Hang in there. Labs are so worth the extra work. When he's around 18 months, you will absolutely love him.

BTW, Patricia McConnell and Pat Miller have written some excellent books worth reading.


----------



## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

Gonna be ~110 lbs at full adult weight?

Read the Sticky: The Bite Stops Here in the new owner section. 

Read this and note the 3 days and the apology....

Some Tweaks to Bite Inhibition (to get him to stop biting when he wants to play):
1. When the pup bites, then yelp. It should sound about like what the pup does when you step on its paw... don't step on his paw for a sample . When you yelp, the pup should startle briefly and stop nipping. Praise and pet. He'll bite.
2. When he bites the second time, Yelp. When he stops, praise and pet. He'll nip again, although it may be a little gentler. ...
3. When he bites a third time, Yelp (see a pattern?). But this time, turn your back for 15 - 30 secs. If he comes around and play bows or barks, then that is an apology. This is important. Accept it, praise and pet... and cringe in expectation of the next nip...
4. When he bites the 4th time, Yelp, then leave the area, placing him in a 2 min. time-out. It is better if you can leave, rather than moving him. Then, return and interact. (He's still hungry...)
5. When he nips the fifth time, yelp, and leave the area, stopping interaction for now.

Pups need to sleep over night in order to learn their lessons. So, keep doing this for 3 days. By the third day, you should notice signficant Bite Inhibition. He may still nip, but it will be softer and he won't draw blood. Keep up the training and make sure that everyone yelps.... Very powerful method.

If you learn the technique, then you can apply the "yelp" to other circumstances, also. I believe that "yelp" is "Please don't do that, I don't like it." in dog communication. I currently use the yelp when my dog plays tug, then runs with the toy, when he fetches and keeps it out of reach or when he takes a treat too quickly....


----------



## Willowy (Dec 10, 2007)

hanksimon said:


> Gonna be ~110 lbs at full adult weight?


Probably not. . .my Lab was 55 pounds at 6 months and never got over 60 pounds. I guess they grow early or something. 

Argh, Lab pups are like piranhas. Mine drew blood on us for over a year. . .we tried everything. Well, not everything (not The Bite Stops Here method, for instance), but everything we could find in a training book or think of ourselves. No matter what you do, they think it's a big game---yay, more biting! So I sympathize and I think it's a fairly normal behavior for Labs, even at that age. Definitely try "The Bite Stops Here", I think it'll work better than anything we tried .


----------



## Canyx (Jul 1, 2011)

barefootmama said:


> Lately he seem to be either sleeping, in a time out, or tourmenting the kids.


Good advice all around, especially the NILIF method.

But I just want to add... How much training, exercise, and/or playtime is he getting?


----------



## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

Also, train your kids as well as your puppy. Kids move fast, kids have higher pitched voices, kids sometimes make lots of noise. All these things can further excite an already excited puppy. Teach your kids what it seems like from the puppy's perspective: "when you cry or yell or try to run from the puppy, he thinks it's a game. Try really hard to ignore his bad behavior, and move over to mom." 

It can't hurt to teach your kids why the puppy behaves the way he does, and teach them what will help, as well.


----------



## barefootmama (Oct 27, 2012)

Thank you all for your awesome suggestions. It has been a much better week. We put some of the suggestions into practice. I had a long talk with the kids about what they were doing to excite him. They have been trying to yelp when he mouths them and we have been doing "the bite stops here", and NILF. We have also been taking him for short walk during the day.

If he continutes to bite and starts to scrunch up him nose and show his teeth I have been putting a muzzle on him for no more than a few minutes, just until he lays down and seems calm. I am wondering what everyones opinion of this is.


----------



## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

My opinion is that I don't like restraint as a training method for a non-aggressive puppy. Most Labs at that age are very energetic and playful, they also have a sore mouth from teething as their adult teeth come in. They need to chew - a hard rubber bone, a Kong, a frozen washcloth (careful that he doesn't swallow it!) to relieve the pain. Yelp, turn your back, and leave the room for a few moments towithdraw attention and signal to him that biting you makes you go away. Three days is the start, but it can take a couple of weeks before it sinks into the thick skull of a Lab. ... I think a Lab pup has a thicker skull that a Lab adult.


----------



## Amaryllis (Dec 28, 2011)

I wouldn't punish with a muzzle, ever. If you later need to muzzle for some reason, say at the vet's, that's going to be a nightmare.


----------



## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

Same here, I don't think the muzzle is a good idea. Keep up with The Bite Stops Here, and NILIF.


----------

