# Mouthy Lab



## Labloverma (Mar 5, 2007)

We have a 4 1/2 month old chocolate lab that we can NOT train NOT to bite or use his mouth on us. We have tried the "no bite", the palm of our hand, the jar of pennies, toys galore, you name it, we've tried it. I'm ready to call Caesar Milan! We have had many dogs and NONE of them were this mouthy! My arms are covered with boo boos and my clothes have tiny holes and rips in them. Other pups can be petted without using their mouths. Not mine!


----------



## Ginny01OT (Dec 3, 2006)

Put bitter apple (you can get it online and in most pet stores) on your hands and clothing. When the dog bites you say "No" while crossing your arms and then turn your back, ignore the pup and walk away. Also, get the bitter apple not only for you but for your furniture and stuff--it is a spray, it really helps.


----------



## Labloverma (Mar 5, 2007)

Tried that too.


----------



## Ginny01OT (Dec 3, 2006)

Yikes---I don't know what else you can do--did you reapply it often?


----------



## shyjack (Apr 19, 2007)

Wow..interesting. We bred labs and I can tell you they go through childhood for a long time..always wanting to play. Labs take a great amount of time and dedication to throughly train in my opinion. As far as yours goes, is he getting sufficient exercise? Labs do need a great deal of regular walks and exercise or they tend to become very anxious. Take a good long walk with the pup make sure you wear him down a bit then begin the petting thing while walking. If he still insists on biting firmly say "no" and ignore him till he stops. 
Even though it may be hard you need to get it through to the dog that your not going to pet or play if he is biting. When the biting starts you stop and say "No" then try again a few minutes later. It may take quite a while before he gets it. 
Its like Cesar says, Exercise, Dicipline, Affection.....I really belive in his philosophy on this and Ive done it with all of our dogs. Once a dog is exercised on a regular basis he becomes much more receptive to training and his mind is much more focused on learning.


----------



## Alpha (Aug 24, 2006)

Personally, with the few pups or "toddler aged" pups I've come into contact with, some were pretty bad nippers, *coughROXYcough*, not one of them didn't respond to "EHT! WRONG!".

Something about that word "EHT!" just really seems to get their attention, than combined with a tone and look of displeasure, followed with "WRONG!" a word that I use for anything they're doing wrong, LOL, seems to do the trick.

I've seen people yelling incessantly though, which seems to undermine the sharp, shock value of "EHT!". 

I must say, I am wondering how the ignoring method didn't work. If your executing it properly, he shouldn't be anywhere near you to bite. And if he follows you and your continuing to ignore him, that's suprising because following someone who's ignoring you isn't too much fun! LOL

Those are the two methods, I would use and I haven't had to use anything else. If my next puppy doesn't respond to those methods, or distracting/rewarding than he'll most likely be leashed and receiving small collar pops combined with EHT and wrong.

Good luck with your pup


----------



## Curbside Prophet (Apr 28, 2006)

Often times bite inhibition programs don't work because the owner gives up too quickly. So don't give up!

The Bite Stops Here

Also look at...

Care Dog Training


----------



## onyxdaily (Apr 3, 2007)

Alpha, this may be a stupid question, but can you tell me how the EHT word you use is pronounced, as I, too, am desperate to stop my puppy from biting me and other bad behavior. If that word has always worked for you, I want to try it, but I want to make sure I'm pronouncing it correctly. Thank you.


----------



## poodleholic (Mar 15, 2007)

Julie,

It's sort've like a grunt. Or, a burp-like gagging sound.


----------



## Snowshoe (Nov 17, 2006)

poodleholic said:


> Julie,
> 
> It's sort've like a grunt. Or, a burp-like gagging sound.


LOL!!!!! 

Very true...I know my grandma and my mom used to use it when I was about to do something bad when I was little. 

It's kind of like an "Ahhhht" sound, but you growl it. 

I use it on Orchid, and she pricks her ears and stops whatever she's doing.


----------



## onyxdaily (Apr 3, 2007)

Poodleholic and Snowshoe, thank you so much. Very good descriptions, and I think I know exactly the sound to make now. I'll try it tonight.


----------



## Renoman (Mar 20, 2007)

My first GSD was very mouthy. My hands were raw and just a mess. I read every article and training book I could find. The one thing that stuck out in my mind was an article that said "if you want to change a behavior, change the way you react to that behavior". Their suggestion was this; if a dog is being mouthy, instead of pulling your hand away, which just makes it a game, try a different approach. Their suggestion was to make take your hand and push it into the dog's mouth instead of pulling away. It was the element of surprise that created the change in behavior. I tried it and all it took was once. The look of surprise on his face was priceless! He was never again mouthy. Don't know if this works with every dog, but it worked with mine. Just wish I could remember which training book it was that it came from.


----------



## kayla's mom (Apr 27, 2007)

_*Lol...boy did your post and problem have me remembering my chocolate lab, Barkley. He went through that very same phase and was a holy terror! Those sharp little puppy teeth were brutal. And he'd launch himself at you from about 4 feet away as he ran and just latch on! I was like you, desperate and ready to put him on valium or ANYTHING that would just calm him down. I can't tell you who it was I ultimately talked to but she was a doggy shrink somewhere and that woman saved our relationship.

Having tried everything else, NO, bitter apple and other products, lifting my knee to block him and so much more, I was willing to try almost anything. The solution turned out to be surprisingly simple, not threatening or painful, easy to do, inexpensive and believe it or not, only took about 2 weeks before his behaviour changed. I think it took that long because, let's face it, of all the labs, chocolates are the most stubborn. Any other breed probably would have stopped biting in 3 days lol. Ok, so on to how to do it.

I'm going to try and describe what you do and hopefully my description will be clear. First of all, take your hand and feel underneath your dogs "chin" and there is a hollow there, just like we have. That hollow is directly beneath the dogs tongue and it's mostly muscle...no bone. That hollow is where your forefinger and middle finger will be placed. Your thumb will be placed on his tongue, about midway. So the next time he starts chewing on your hand or biting, you're going to put your thumb in his mouth, depressing his tongue at the very same place your other two fingers will be outside his mouth, in the hollow under his lower jaw. The position should be such that if his tongue and jaw weren't there, the fingers/thumb would meet. With your thumb applying pressure downwards, your fingers will push upwards, just firmly enough so that it doesn't allow him to move his tongue and when he tries to wiggle or pull (and he will lol), he can't. You don't need to do this but for a few seconds and while doing so, issue whatever command you choose to use. With Barkley, it was "NO BITE" in a very firm tone. Then immediately release his mouth and while he's sitting there, probably looking a little confused but not biting....wait a second and if he doesn't bite again, praise him. 

As with everything, consistancy is the key. EVERY time he mouths, bites, chews or does anything destructive, you're going to just quickly press down on his tongue and hold him still while telling him no. It isn't painful, traumatic or abusive. The simple fact is that they HATE having their tongue held down for some reason. Even for just a few seconds. Compare it to sticking your tongue out and having someone grab the tip and hold it....about the same thing. With Barkley, the first week it was sort of off and on. Initially, he didn't get it and just kept doing his thing but pretty soon, he realized that I was going to hold his tongue down and he changed it up by trying to do a "drive by nip" so that he got in his bite but ran before I could grab that tongue lol. But within two weeks tops, he had stopped the mouthing. I was amazed...and grateful, because had this not worked, I had no idea what I was going to do with that crazed little monster. I will say that Barkley grew up to be one of the sweetest, most gentle, loving and beautiful dogs I've ever known. 

Sorry for the long post and I sincerely hope that this works for you too. I'd love to hear back from you as to what the results are. Take care and good luck with your problem child!!

k's mom *_


----------



## Tess&Coco (Jan 8, 2007)

Polite request to Kayla's Mom: please would you edit your post and un-red it? It's really hard to read.

Thanks


----------

