My 4 month old golden retreiver pup bites alot, would a muzzel help when he is around the kids?

Question

I know he is teething right now, I have tried everything I know to do, need some fresh ideas fast!

Answer 1

i breed goldens and they will do that when they are teething. it will take some time but you will have to train him not to do this. what i did to keep mine from doing the same thing is that when she would want to play and she would try to grab the toy i would tell her NO and to DROP IT. keep doing this and he will know that when playing he can't bite. if you put a muzzle on him he will be scared later on when you try to have him groomed or if you play around his mouth. but when you work with him do the thing i mentioned everytime he bites tell him NO, DROP IT, and then say OUCH, these things will make him not do it because they don't want to hurt you they want to please you. he will learn very fast and as long as you do this and be consistant with it every day you will see a change. good luck

Answer 2

Muzzling is definitely not a good idea, unless the dog is aggressive, which i assume is not the case with a 4 month old. If the dog is playfully nipping, you need to teach it that this behavior is not appropriate, or at least teach it not to bite so hard. Experts will probably tell you that any type of mouthing behavior with humans should be discouraged, but one of my dogs loves to very gently gnaw on my hands and arms when we're playing and i don't mind. After all, it is one of the main ways they interact with their environment: They don't speak and they don't have opposable thumbs, so nose and mouth are pretty much it.

Dogs that grow up in the litter know when they are applying too much force with their jaws because their mother and litter mates tell them in their own language. you should do the same. if the puppy bites too hard, let out an - exaggerated - shriek or yell. This most closely simulates the reaction it would get in the litter. Also, a gentle but firm tug on the scruff of the neck will also help, as this is the primary way the mother would handle and discipline the pup. Instruct the kids to follow the same techniques if they're old enough, but make sure they know not to hurt the dog. If your kids are very young and you're concerned about them being seriously harmed, I would consult an expert trainer.

You will also have a lot of issues with chewing, if you haven't already. Keep plenty of firm dog toys around all the time - Kongs are the best, and supervise, supervise, supervise. We lost plenty of valuables with our puppies a couple of years ago.

Answer 3

I need to type this up and save it so i can just copy and paste.

A puppy (no matter what the breed) bites. Not to be vicious, but it also not acceptable.

When he bites, pinch his lip and in a low growling voice say "NOOO BITE". He will resist and naturally try it again, but pinch him a little harder next time. It's not going to kill him or turn him into a killer if you make him yipe.

This way, you are sort of simulating what an adult dog would do when showing a pup disapproval or his actions.

Be consistant. Keep in mind, running children are a perfect target for a puppy, they love the game of chase, and the child usually gets scratched or nipped, and it's the dog that gets in trouble. Kids need to be taught good behavior around the dog also. Tug toys (or twirling socks) are not a good idea for children to use. No slappy / slap boxing play either.

The only thing a muzzle will do is drive him nuts. Do not use a newspaper / magazine... that'll just make him fearful the second you pick anything up, creating yet another issue.

Answer 4

Unfortunately you have to train the kids to train the dog. Kids spaz out and play hand games with dogs raising their excitement levels. If you've ever watched dogs play together biting is a big part of how they play. A muzzle wouldn't be a useful tool in your case. I've raised many golden puppies over the years, typically when they mouth someone, you can have them squeeze their lip against their teeth and tell them "out" in a firm growling sort of tone. If you can't monitor the dog with the kids, and they can't correct the dog themselves, or you find yourself overwhelmed, you can call a trainer to come and help you out. Enrolling in a basic obedience class is a great experience, I think 6 months of age is the recommended time, anything below that age would be a puppy class that is not as regimented. If you can invest the time, a ten week obedience class is a rewarding experience and should help the dog know it's place in your pack. Whatever you do, don't banish the dog to the backyard as a solution. Try to avoid treat training based classes, 'in my experience', training based on first showing the dog what's expected then a combination of praise and correction is the most effective.

If you watch the dog whisperer you'll notice that excercize is one of the most important aspects of his methods. This is absolutely the truth, if you can't do a long walk most goldens will chase a tennis ball and bring it back to you, this is a great way to exersize them even in a small yard.

Try to find a class based around Bill Koehler's methods and follow the lessons, you can't go wrong.

Answer 5

It's part of having a puppy. Using a muzzle is not a good idea - you have to teach him that biting is not acceptable. He will get better once he's finished teething. You don't say when he's biting, is it when he gets excited, when children are running around or when you are sitting down? Each situation requires different methods. He should be going to training classes by now, so enrol him & then you can learn the best way to train him.

Answer 6

You need to deter him with punishment and reward. If he can be petted or played with for a twenty minutes at a time throughout the day without biting reinforce it each time by praising him in a high loving voice and at the end of the day give him a little dog friendly treat. If he bites immediatly reprimand him and ignore him for a little amount of time so that he understands that all will not be forgiven if he bites and if he does it too often during the first few days no treat. It is similiar to the way you train a small child to not throw tantrums...you reward when they behave through hugs and so forth and punish by sitting them in a "spot" or "The chair" as my mother called it.

Answer 7

He is just a puppy, don't muzzle him, he's still learning and that's where you come in. What we have done with our dogs when they were little, is if they would bite we would gently grab their bottom jaw, thumb inside the bottom jaw, gently hold it for a few seconds and say "no bite", or just take your forefinger and tap him on the nose and say "no bite". But you have to be consistent with it, don't leet him get away with it one time and then the next correct him. You have to do it every time, when you tell him no bite give him a toy or rawhide so he can bite on that. It takes time he's just a baby.Good Luck!

Answer 8

He's 4 months old! Those kids are more dangerous to him than he is to them. Sheesh.

At that age it's just play bites. If he bites too hard, give him a firm bap on the nose, but let your kids know they don't have the authority to do this. By "too hard" I don't mean that he draws blood, I mean if he ever seems to be getting serious with the biting. Even little pups know how hard they can get away with tussling.

Answer 9

At 3 months old it is very unlike likely that hip problems would even be there. Your golden is just to young to have that be a concern just yet. The sounds your hearing are his nails hitting the floor. Bring him into your vets and have them trim them and show you how to do it correctly. Trimming nails can be tricky and you don't want to cut them too short and make them bleed.

Answer 10

Do NOT use a muzzle, he is a puppy and its wrong, you need to keep a closer eye on him around the kids while teething, he is not doing it to be nasty, he's is only teething and dosn't understand what he is doing or if it hurts. Lots of toys,