# How long was you pup mouthy and nippy?



## Bimmergirl84 (Jun 15, 2009)

We're a proud owner of a 5mo old GSD pup. We've had her since 8 weeks. We knew we were in for some mouthing but at 5 months it's still a pretty big problem. She draws blood from me maybe every other day. They're not deep puncture wounds but more like scrapes from her sharp teeth. When she was younger she would draw blood daily. We've done the yelping, the time outs, spraying bitter apple on our arms, etc. Just about everything in the book but the mouthing and nipping still persists. 

Is this normal? And when did your puppies stop mouthing?


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## Xeno (Aug 16, 2009)

hey...
well im also the owner of a 5mo female GSD " Zoe " and it's sad to tell that im still facing the same problem...and tried all the ways that i read about but still not working ..hope that someone will offer some ideas about tht..

thanx.

john.


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## Brightelf (Sep 5, 2001)

Never. Grimm was a freak. Never nipped, mouthed, never destroyed anything. A freak.







However, lots of folks here work on *re-directing, consistantly over a long period of time, with a toy*. Has that method been used with your pup? That just might be your answer right there! Good luck, and I am sure many in the forum who have survive the mouthiness phase will chime in with good guidance for you. Good luck with your puppy!


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## bmass01 (Apr 7, 2005)

Dallas was like that! The bitter apple spray worked, but I had to actually spray it on my arms and occassionally directly in his mouth. He never drew blood but if you look at me cross eyed I bruise so I looked like some had beat me up constantly! I hate to say he was over a year old before it stopped....

Dakota was easily redirected with a toy. He is 10 month and does not mouth.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

my dog is 2 years old and he nipped me this morning.
my GF was getting out of bed and he got all excited.
he walked down the hallway nipped me and ran to my GF and jumped on the bed. 

when my dog was nipping constantly i would hold him by some neck
fur and say "no biting". then i would rub his mouth/face. if he nipped again (which he always did) i would pull him back again
and say "no biting". i don't know if my method worked or did he just grow out of it.

don't worry your pup will stop before you're misiing body parts.







.


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## MassiChewSits (Mar 10, 2009)

Jedi is 4 months and is nippy at times. He cannot be easily redirected with a toy, he always found hands and feet more interesting that a dog toy. He drew blood a few times and I have a few small scars. Sometimes grabbing the treat bag and doing a training session(sits and downs) was the best way to redirect.
He has been getting better, but we think that is because he is getting more dog-dog contact. Puppy K gives him lots of exercise and plenty of opportunity to use his mouth.Also, meeting older dogs that are somewhat standoffish I think has taught him that not everyone wants to play fight like puppies do. He is starting to understand everyone wants to play in different ways.
Remarkably, he doesn't use his mouth on strangers he has just met (thankfully). I'm not sure why this is, I think it is because he chooses to reserve the use of his mouth to communicate with his pack-my wife and I. We have noticed a connection,at times, with him being mouthy and his need to relieve himself outside and when it is close to mealtimes.


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## ernie18 (Jul 21, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: doggiedadmy dog is 2 years old and he nipped me this morning.
> my GF was getting out of bed and he got all excited.
> he walked down the hallway nipped me and ran to my GF and jumped on the bed.
> 
> ...


ive read that actually punishing nipping is more harmful than letting the nip happen

dogs need to know their bite limits, or their bite inhibition. 


lucy still nips while we play she just turned 4 months , i let her do so but to a limit then redirect. she needs to know how hard she can bite before it hurts, and she hasnt drawn any blood from biting.


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

Stark is also 5 months old. He only nipped a few times when playing when he was about 8-9 weeks old. With redirection to an appropriate toy, he stopped. 

That is not the norm I would say though, usually puppies need a little more redirection than that.


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## BucksMom (Aug 13, 2007)

Mine are 1 and 3 and they both do not nip me, but do nip my hubby on occasion. 
What they do, do to me is walk by or even walk beside me and snap their teeth together. 
My other 3 year old does none of that. 
They have loads of things to do and get plenty of exercise. I also try not to get them into excitement mode. That will start loads of mouthing and nipping mostly with each other...

Try more redirecting, exercise, and loads of training with yummy treats. Is you pup in any puppy classes yet?

Good Luck


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## London's Mom (Aug 19, 2009)

London still nips at 8.5 years old, but not nearly as bad as when he was a few months younger. I try not to be aggressive with reprimanding him becuase he seems to get more aggressive himself. I re-direct and also use the bitter apple on my arms. But I have seen a vast improvement as of the past few weeks.

ANd, yes, LOTS of exercise makes a HUGE difference! It calms him down and makes him sweet.

My other 2 shepherds NEVER put their teeth on me. I was really concerned with London's behavior, but I guess this is typically for a GSD. Very mouthy.


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## raysmom (May 22, 2004)

Kaiser did the mouthing and nipping thing for quite awhile with my husband, but not with me - he did draw blood quite often - just by scraping those pin-point teeth along DH's arm, but DH was getting a little tired of it!

What helped us the most was increasing his exercise. He had a ton of toys and we would redirect him when he started the mouthing and nipping, but increasing the exercise really seemed to be the key. I started playing "Chuck-It" (here's a link in case you're not familiar with the Chuck-It ball launcher - http://www.caninehardware.com/products/chuckit/chuckit.html) with him for short periods of time several times a day when I was home, and a few times a day if I was working. It made a huge difference and made for a much happier DH!! 

Good luck - this too will pass - eventually!!


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## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

If your girl is from working lines it may go one for quite some time.









The best thing to do is redirect to a toy.

Mauser is from working lines and almost a year. Just this morning he did the 'grab mom's feet as she's walking' bit and I almost fell! It's been awhile since he did that so I was off guard.


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## Debbieg (Jun 7, 2009)

Benny was a real land shark and my family nicknamed him " Jaws". My son even would hum the theme from the movie when the dog was let out of the crate!







He nipped and mouthed constantly, ripping pant legs drawing blood and I also tried yelping, redirecting leaving, bitter apple ( tiny bit in his mouth) because that it what the trainer in puppy obedience told me to do. All of these things helped somewhat but what helped most was time. He will be 5 months tomorrow and now only does this when he is really excited and in super play mode. When I say " no bite" he stops. If I am petting or cuddling and he starts mouthing I say "Ah Ah, and then kisses and he switched from biting to licking. I think with maturity, combined with training they get a little more self control over those instincts.


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## zyppi (Jun 2, 2006)

At five months, I consider 'game over!'

My pups get a stern no and then I leave the room or make it plain that play time is over.

They soon get the idea --- nip is not wanted.

That said if nipping is in context of play that's gotten a bit too exciting, learn your pups ability to stay in control at his maturity stage and try not to ramp him up beyond your ability to call halt.


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## SunCzarina (Nov 24, 2000)

What Anne said. 

You could try poking your finger nail in her tongue or the roof of her mouth. They don't like that. Especially if you wear acrylic bonded nails like I do.

Sometimes I do a time out if he's really ramped up. If he's just being goofy and wants to play, I"ll get the booda tugs out. Sometimes he nibbles on me or my older female becuase he needs to go outside. 

Like Lauri said, if this is a working line pup we're talking about, it could be a while. Otto is 15 months old. He still likes to put me in his mouth but he doesn't bear down anymore.


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## katieliz (Mar 29, 2007)

redirect, ignore, time out, and/or what anne said.

then be patient, it might be awhile. good luck!


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## lucymom (Jan 2, 2009)

When Zuzu was two-3 months, I thought I had a baby barracuda on my hands. Constant nipping. LOTS Of consistent redirection, turning away, leaving the room, telling her "no bite." Problem was other people--visitors who think it's fun to buff the puppy's face around, growling, thinking this is appropriate play. I remember when I did that too.

So make sure that nobody is doing this to your pup, it works them up and their natural response to being roughed up is to nip.

Some folks don't use the crate as time out so they don't associate it with punishment. I did, I didn't yell or "throw" her in there, she was quiety put there until she could be calm.

She'd also get nippy when she was overtired, at night. Like a kid whose had too much activity. In the crate she went...fell asleep.

Now, at 4+ months, she's MUCH calmer and has a good amount of self control with the nipping. I see her eyes getting" that look" like she wants to pounce and nip, and can "see" her correcting herself. I think that being consistent was the key to getting her to "get" it.

She gets a LOT of exercise, no matter how I feel, she gets plunked in the car and taken someplace she can play with other dogs or at least run off leash. I'm lucky to have lots of places like that nearby. If for any reason I don't get there, then lots of playtime in the yard.

This I think, makes all the difference. I had a trainer by recently and she commented on how calm Zuzu is--at least she was then. When she needs a good romp, her manners go backwards and she can get mouthy and pouncy again.

You may already be doing all of these things, I am just fortunate it works fairly well for us.

IT's frustrating, isn't it? Have you gone to a class at all? We start "basic manners" this week as it's ME who needs some training and direction. I think it will help build respect too, as sometimes I can let her get away with too much.


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

Normal, normal stuff. My 4 month old makes us cry like little babies every day. I have never had one grow up to nip or bite though. Its a puppy thing. Begin to show them what you want with redirection. Mine usually wants to do something entertaining when this starts so we do puppy training with treats or play with a toy. direct the energy to a good endeavor or put them away. 

A friend just rescued a shepherd pup about 4 months old. She saw me and came over, eyes big, looking terrorized. LOL I knew what was coming... I said, 'getting bitten?" She said she had no idea and she couldn't believe this is what shepherd puppy owners go through. Yup, we have no good sense!


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

Masi is my first GSD (and I"ve had quite a few), that was as mouthy as she is),,She is now 17mths old, and still can be mouthy, but has a much softer mouth than previous...

Her mouthiness now, is when she is trying to lead me somewhere, or get my attention, she's never broken the skin, and I attribute her mouthing me, is attention getter))


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## Doubleminttwin (Aug 21, 2009)

o man reading how long I have to wait till Baya stops mouthing is depressing lol, I am so tired of getting those sympathetic looks from ppl who think I self injure


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

there was no punishment for nipping. i gently pulled him back and said "no biting". i don't think my puppy thought he was being
punished because pulling him back didn't stop the nipping. i think nipping is like going to the bathroom, they have to do it.











> Originally Posted By: Ernie18
> 
> 
> > Originally Posted By: doggiedadmy dog is 2 years old and he nipped me this morning.
> ...


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## Daisy1986 (Jul 9, 2008)

Shadow can still be mouthy at 2, if he gets excited. Not nippy though. 

It helps if I say OW, really loud. It is not as bad as when we got him at 6 months. He has learned his bite force...I think.


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## Bimmergirl84 (Jun 15, 2009)

Thank you all for the encouragement and stories. I've been worried sick that I'm not raising her right with all of the mouthing and nipping. She draws blood regularly but not so much from bite pressure but from her sharp teeth dragging across my skin. I REALLY hope that she's one of the pups that stop at 6 months instead of 12 months... my arms, ankles, and shirts can only take so much! 

As others have suggested, if I redirect by bringing out the treats and starting some obedience training, will this be confused as getting attention from the biting? I just don't want to confuse her. 

And a few times when I would scoop her off the couch or lift her up to take her to the kennel for bed she would actually bare her teeth at me and growl. Is this a sign of aggression/dominance? 

Thanks again everyone!


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