[cvgorkum1]

I have a very sweet 10 week old Border Collie that is constantly mouthing us and biting us when she plays. What should I be doing to make this stop aside from redirecting her to chew something other than our arm and our clothes? I bought her several chew toys and a KONG but she still gets over excited and bites really hard when playing. I don't think she is aware that she is hurting us so much. I even tried the yelping like another dog would when she does it and that seems to stop her for a split second but then after she rethinks it all she goes right back to nibbling us .

Help!

[Todd]

mouthing is a very common act of affection in puppies. my dog used to do this when she was a pup but soon outgrew it. if it is a problem for you, training her to not do this is what needs to be done. several methods include a firm voice correction, using a spray bottle to give her a little squirt on the face, or here's a method I've recently read about... try screeching or squealing in a high pitched tone almost like a whimper letting her no that she is hurting you. this is what the pups litter mates would do.

[cvgorkum1]

Thanks...I tried all of those except the water spray and I don't think I want to do that to her. I don't want to use any method that may make her afraid of something. I am pretty sure she'll grow out of it but I am still looking for any new ideas that come along the way. Thanks for your answer.

[Todd]

Originally Posted by cvgorkum1

Thanks...I tried all of those except the water spray and I don't think I want to do that to her. I don't want to use any method that may make her afraid of something. I am pretty sure she'll grow out of it but I am still looking for any new ideas that come along the way. Thanks for your answer.

yea i agree. i've never used any of those methods either. she just out grew the mouthing thing. most pups do.

[Lunareclipse]

Bitter apple.

[Bacis Dad]

yeah you dont want to use adversive techniques w/ pups esp Border Collies! ( I know from experience! The "yelping" does work but it is not just the act of yelping that communicates to your pup.

After you yelp you need to stand up and look away from her and completely ignore her for a few seconds! They need to know that when I bit you it hurt (yelp) and after the yelp you stop playing! All they want to do is play, so they will do anything to keep you around and not drive you away!

And make sure when you redirect, you want to redirect to an actual good toy! A kong is good to play by herself but not you! Try a long linky toy w/ lots of legs, or a soft rope toy to tug with (my BC's Favorite!)

The important thing is you stop playing when they bite, and redirect to a good interactive toy. And patience this doesnt work over night but give it a couple of weeks!
Good Luck

Cute Pup BTW!

Are you going to agility or herding?

[Lara's mom]

Have you tried putting your hand gently around the puppy's snout and saying, "no bite" in a firm voice?

[flydogs]

I think is not strange a 10 weeks old dog bitting while playing, if it hurts you, you should watch him/her on the eyes and expres your feeling, he.she will stop, dogs are understanding

[Ward9320]

I have used both the water bottle and the bitter apple stray... both have worked great for me

[Monkey Dog]

Originally Posted by Bacis Dad

yeah you dont want to use adversive techniques w/ pups esp Border Collies! ( I know from experience! The "yelping" does work but it is not just the act of yelping that communicates to your pup.

After you yelp you need to stand up and look away from her and completely ignore her for a few seconds! They need to know that when I bit you it hurt (yelp) and after the yelp you stop playing! All they want to do is play, so they will do anything to keep you around and not drive you away!

And make sure when you redirect, you want to redirect to an actual good toy! A kong is good to play by herself but not you! Try a long linky toy w/ lots of legs, or a soft rope toy to tug with (my BC's Favorite!)

The important thing is you stop playing when they bite, and redirect to a good interactive toy. And patience this doesnt work over night but give it a couple of weeks!
Good Luck

Cute Pup BTW!

Are you going to agility or herding?

The above methods have worked for my household to a point, only w the needle-shark puppy teeth at that young age, it was hard to ignore the dog. We would turn our backs to the wall to ignore him after the playful mouthing/biting, to show him that biting is not fun for him when this is the result. It worked well mostly but for when the sharp lil bites were too painful to ignore. What works best for us on a more consistent basis is to turn the dog on its side and have it lie still on the floor a very short while. This shows them that play must stop when they bite. Now that the dog is much bigger, we have to guide him to the floor by his collar and have him hold still that way (when on the rare occassion he does mouth too hard whilst playing and doesn't respond to the OFF or NO command.
Redirecting to a toy that is good to chew on has been key no matter what.