When my 4-month-old infant feels like playing or interacting with me, he bites me really forcefully. I’ve tried every tip in the book, including telling them it’s okay to scream, stopping play, rerouting, and ordering them to sit so I can give them rewards, but nothing has worked. It’s as though he loses control of himself once he enters that state. I’m attempting to grow through this exercise, however, at this point, my arms and legs are terribly injured. Please lend a hand to a hyperactive dog and a tired mom. Is this typical?
Yes, this is normal. My puppy went through a similar phase around 4-6 months old. Those needle-sharp puppy teeth can do a number on your arms! It took a while, but once he finished teething, it got much better.
My dog is almost 2, and we’re still working on gentle play, but he’s definitely improved.
What worked for me was redirecting his attention to a toy whenever he’d bite me and leaving the room if he got too rowdy. I found that positive reinforcement and time-outs were more effective than yelping or turning away. Good luck!
My family’s puppy benefited greatly from reverse timeouts as well. But eventually, all I had to do was turn around and cross my arms. She seems to be able to understand bite inhibition by learning to tolerate milder bites.
Although my puppy is still only 13 weeks old, she isn’t particularly biting, but from the moment I got her, I made sure to give her toys whenever she put them in her mouth and would give her a big happy puppy party. I left her pen if she dropped it and refused to pick up another toy.
These days, before she comes over to play, she always grabs a toy. Not only is it adorable, but it’s also taught her that playing with me only happens when she has a toy in her hand.
I also think the pen is quite helpful. I can simply walk away and let her play with her toys by herself when she becomes agitated and overstimulated. She never leaves her pen until we are exercising or going outside, so I believe management is a huge help.
I tried that, but if there’s a problem between me and my dog, she freaks out. She refuses to spend the night in her box for the same reason. She wants to lie as near to me as she can.