# Ankle biting dog - Please help!



## Leighan_m (Oct 11, 2012)

My puppy has just hit the 6 months old mark and despite knowing how to sit, stay, lie down and all the basic commands, she just won't stop biting our ankles.

She has plenty of toys which she chews on all the time, however, at least twice a day she thinks that our ankles are toys. We have tried the yelping (for about 4 weeks until we realised she wasn't concerned with us constantly yelping at her) and currently we are trying rattling rocks in a tin (loud noise distraction) and also spraying her with a water spray (combined with a loud growl and "No" command) as recommended to us by our puppy school trainer. However, she then becomes more aggressive and jumps and attacks us with her teeth, despite our best intentions.

We find it's in 2 particular areas, the hallway of our house and if we happen to step onto the grassed area of our yard.... I don't know if it's possessiveness of these areas or if she just doesn't like me!

She tends to focus more on me than my husband.

She also last thing at night becomes really nippy, focused mostly on our hands, and despite doing everything we've been told, she doesn't appear to respect us.

Can anyone help please? I'm at my wits end and my skin cannot take much more.


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## Nuclear_Glitter (Jun 20, 2012)

I personally don't like the things your trainer is telling you to do, and the fact that her behavior is getting worse confirms these are bad methods in my opinion. I gave you a link to "The Bite Stops Here" in your other post, and that still applies. 

However, I want to take the time to explain why the methods you're using aren't the best. First, learn that the whole "alpha" concept is wrong; it has been proven many times over that dogs don't see humans as a "pack leader". So don't worry about her seeing you as "dominant" or something. The yelping and growling thing doesn't really seem to work for anyone. Some people have success but not enough for it to be reliable, in my opinion. My thoughts on this are, "The puppy knows you're not really a dog". 

The loud noise distraction is bad in my opinion because it's a negative thing. When it comes to negative things, dogs associate the experience with bad stuff, so begin to hate whatever causes it. It's quite possible she has learned to hate your ankles because she experiences bad things around them. Not saying that this is a definite thing, but it's possible. The water is also a bad experience.

Okay now I want you to think about something. How many things do you tell your dog "No" for? I'm sure ankle biting isn't the only thing you tell your dog "No" for, therefore she has no idea what "No" means. Dogs don't speak English, or any other language, they simply learn to associate a word with an action, like "Sit" to the dog means "Put my butt on the floor". Also, I would assume you didn't start telling your dog "Sit" until she knew what it meant, that way you didn't ruin the word. At least I hope so, anyway. 

Now, moving on. I would recommend that you start using positive methods to get what you want. Don't correct bad behavior, reward the good behavior and you will basically begin to transform her habits. Examples of this are, she's laying down, chewing a toy. Reward her with a treat, because this is the good behavior you want. Another time would be she's just laying on the couch doing nothing bad, reward her with a treat for being good. 

I have come across several trainers who try to make people feel guilty about treating their dogs, and I think that's horrible. I am not saying stuff your dog with a million and one treats a day, I am simply saying use them for good things, and in training. 

Now, of course there will be times when she still bites your ankles. My advice here is to distract her with a good thing, such as a toy. Carry a toy of hers around with you, and when she bites your ankle distract her with some toy play. 

Another thing that helps bad behaviors is "time outs". You can do this one of two ways; either you leave the room when she starts biting, and stay gone for 1-2 minutes (don't stay gone too long or else she will forget why you left) or you can put her in a sectioned off area away from people for a minute or two every time she bites. I had to use the time out method with one of my dogs humping. When he humps he gets SUPER excited and gives himself hives. So, humping means all fun ends. 

Consistency is one of the most important things, too. Pick one method and stick to it. For example, you choose the time out method, anytime the dog bites your ankles, you must remove yourselves, or the dog. You must do it EVERY TIME, no exceptions. 

I hope this helps you out. Also, I'm sorry if I sound rude, or anything. I have a hard time explaining stuff so I often do it in a very robotic-like way and for some people that sounds harsh. However, I promise I just am trying to be helpful.


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## blenderpie (Oct 5, 2012)

Kikopup is amazing and she talks about ankle biting specifically in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c77--cCHPyU

She also talks about what Nuclear_Glitter was talking about (why punishing methods don't work) in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cdcyrOMehg

Training your dog an be summed up in teaching your dog what you DO want them to do, rather than waiting for them to mess up and correct them. And, if the dog isn't ready for some behaviors, prevent it from happening (ie, block off the hallway that she finds so stimulating, etc).


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## Nuclear_Glitter (Jun 20, 2012)

I also vote for the kikopup videos! She has an amazing wealth of videos which are very helpful.


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## wickedpup (Oct 11, 2012)

I also found this on WikiHow, which is all about stop your dog from biting and barking:

WikiHow: How To Get Your Small Dog To Stop Biting And Barking At You

Maybe this will help you a bit, especially if she bites your ankle.


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## HollowHeaven (Feb 5, 2012)

wickedpup said:


> I also found this on WikiHow, which is all about stop your dog from biting and barking:
> 
> WikiHow: How To Get Your Small Dog To Stop Biting And Barking At You
> 
> Maybe this will help you a bit, especially if she bites your ankle.



_"However, be warned - nipping is a sign of dog aggression and it should never be taken lightly."_ Not necessarily. 
_"Small dogs tend to have a Napoleon Complex, meaning they think they are bigger than they are. This is why they naturally pick fights with much larger dogs and why they bark and bite at humans. It is a mind set that will take time to lose."_ Seriously?
_"Some dogs are so firmly entrenched in these undesirable behaviors that stronger measures are required - shock collars seem cruel, but they can be effective if used judiciously, and are far less cruel than sending a pet to the pound or euthanizing one who got too excited and ended up biting a child in the face (which is what can end up happening unless you address this problem and persevere to fix it now)._" I actually laughed at this one.
_"Mild—repeat, mild!—physical discipline can be used as well, in retaliation for physical violence toward you on the part of the dog. No, this does not mean hit the dog in any serious way. But a mild finger flick in direct immediate retaliation to a nip, accompanied by a firm "No!" can be effective." Good luck with that.
"An alternate method is that, when the dog bites, you grab its lower jaw by putting your thumb on its tongue and forefinger underneath the jaw. Apply enough pressure to the dog's tongue to cause discomfort, but be careful not to hurt the dog. Say "No." Release the dog immediately, and only repeat should the dog again bite you first. The idea is to cause the dog to associate biting you with discomfort and with "losing," in the sense of being the vulnerable party--not to injure the dog in any way."_ Again, seriously?
_"Small dogs are especially delicate, so that you must take extra care not to exercise any physical discipline too roughly."_ Eh.
_"A dog that nips is exhibiting scary behavior. It is either (A) Aggressive - which is bad and has to be corrected for everyone's sake, or (B) Nervous and Fearful - which is even more dangerous, because it's more difficult to predict what will set a nervous dog off. Aggressive dogs are generally attempting to dominate another animal or human, or to protect territory (and a person can be territory to a dog)."_ Well that's a nice load.

Just a few things about that article that are irritating and poor information for owners to follow.


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