Bringing a German Shepherd puppy into your home is an exciting time. These intelligent and energetic dogs make wonderful companions. However, like all puppies, German Shepherds go through a biting phase. Puppy biting is a common behavior, but it can be painful and frustrating. Fortunately, with consistent training and understanding, you can teach your German Shepherd puppy to stop biting and develop good habits.
Understanding Why Puppies Bite
Before diving into training techniques, it’s important to understand why puppies bite in the first place. Biting is a natural behavior for puppies, and they do it for various reasons.
- Teething: Like human babies, puppies experience discomfort as their teeth erupt. Biting and chewing can help alleviate this pain.
- Exploration: Puppies explore the world with their mouths. Biting is a way for them to investigate textures and understand their environment.
- Play: Biting is a common part of puppy play. Puppies often nip and mouth each other during play sessions.
- Communication: Puppies use biting to communicate with their littermates and mother. They learn bite inhibition, which is the ability to control the force of their bite, through these interactions.
Effective Training Methods to Stop Puppy Biting
Now that you understand why puppies bite, let’s explore effective training methods to curb this behavior.
1. The “Yelp” Technique
This method mimics how puppies communicate with each other when playing.
- When your puppy bites you, give a high-pitched yelp, like “Owwwwww-owwwww”. This sound should startle the puppy and cause them to release.
- When the puppy bites down on your skin, whine like a puppy until they let go. Do NOT move your hand, leave it right in their mouth nice and limp until they let go.
- Ignore the puppy for a short period after they release. This teaches them that biting leads to the end of playtime.
- Repeat this process consistently. The puppy will learn that biting too hard results in an unpleasant experience (for them, because playtime stops).
2. Redirection
Redirection involves offering your puppy an appropriate chew toy instead of your hand or other body parts.
- Keep a variety of chew toys on hand.
- When your puppy starts to bite, immediately offer them a toy.
- Praise the puppy when they start chewing on the toy. This reinforces the desired behavior.
- Redirection doesn’t teach the puppy not to bite, so when the toy goes away, they will play bite again.
3. Gentle Pressure
If you want to stop the puppy from biting rather than redirecting the behavior, you can gently pinch the soft tissue under the chin and under the tongue. Just apply light pressure until the puppy pulls away. Don’t squeeze or cause pain. This method is used to provide a neutral experience that will teach the puppy that biting results in something not so fun. It’s not used as punishment.
4. Time-Outs
Time-outs can be effective for puppies who are overly excited or persistent with biting.
- When your puppy bites, say “No biting” in a firm voice.
- Immediately stop playing with the puppy and walk away.
- You can also put the puppy in a crate or playpen for a short time-out of 1-2 minutes.
- After the time-out, resume playing with the puppy, but be vigilant for any signs of biting.
- If the puppy bites again, repeat the time-out process.
5. Obedience Training
Another form of redirection is to practice obedience training. All you need to do is keep some treats handy and when your puppy gets extra mouthy, give them a command to follow and reward them with praise and a treat. This will enable the puppy to switch gears but as with toys, it doesn’t teach them not to bite.
6. Leash and Collar Method
This method requires the puppy to wear a flat collar and be leashed. When the puppy bites, you pop to the leash and tell them no. When the puppy stops biting, you praise them and give them a treat so that they learn to associate not biting with the reward. Just like with gentle pressure, this method is not used to punish or cause pain.
Important Considerations
- Consistency is key: Everyone in the household should use the same training methods and commands. This will prevent confusion and help the puppy learn faster.
- Be patient: It takes time and repetition for puppies to learn. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t see results immediately.
- Avoid punishment: Physical punishment or harsh scolding can damage your relationship with the puppy and lead to fear or aggression.
- Socialization: Expose your puppy to a variety of people, dogs, and environments. This will help them develop into a well-adjusted adult dog.
- Supervise playdates: When your puppy is playing with other dogs, supervise closely and intervene if the play becomes too rough.
- Consult a professional: If you’re struggling to stop your puppy’s biting behavior, consult a certified dog trainer or veterinary behaviorist.
What NOT to Do
It’s equally important to know what methods to avoid when training a German Shepherd puppy not to bite.
Don’t smack your puppy: If you hit a puppy they’ll have no idea why you hit them. They’ll just think human = angry*.
- Don’t clench it’s mouth shut: If you hit a puppy they’ll have no idea why you hit them.
- Don’t encourage rough play: Avoid games that involve wrestling or hand-biting, as these can encourage the puppy to bite.
- Don’t ignore the biting: It’s important to address puppy biting early on, before it becomes a deeply ingrained habit.
The Importance of Bite Inhibition
Bite inhibition is a crucial skill for all dogs to learn. It refers to the ability to control the force of a bite. Puppies naturally learn bite inhibition through play with their littermates. If a puppy bites too hard, the other puppy will yelp and stop playing. This teaches the puppy to moderate the force of their bite.
By using the “yelp” technique and other gentle methods, you can help your German Shepherd puppy develop good bite inhibition. This is especially important for a breed like the German Shepherd, which has a powerful bite force.
Conclusion
Training a German Shepherd puppy not to bite requires patience, consistency, and understanding. By using the methods outlined above and avoiding punishment, you can help your puppy learn to control their biting and develop into a well-behaved companion. Remember that puppy biting is a normal phase, and with the right approach, you can successfully guide your German Shepherd puppy through it. Although puppy biting can be frustrating at times, remember that your puppy is just trying to have fun with you. They’re not being bad or aggressive. This is natural behavior, especially in German Shepherds.