# Nipping, Biting, Jumping tantrums 7 mo old



## mbpunt (Oct 11, 2012)

I am hoping there are some kind people who have some advice on further training my dog against these behaviors. Please don't berate me. I want to do everything I can for this dog. 

Thor is 7.5 months old. He is obedience trained and very smart. However, in the past month or 2, he gets into these very unruly moods where he is very defiant. IS THIS JUST A STAGE? OR IS SOMETHING SERIOUSLY WRONG? For instance, he will jump onto the furntiure where we are sitting and start biting and nipping at our hands, usually not very hard, but sometimes he gets completely wild where it may be harder. He will play growl and jump around and PAW at us like crazy. In addition to this, sometimes when I am walking he will do the herding thing and bite me in the butt or bite at my ankles. He still has problems with jumping up on us when we greet him. Sometimes he will get so wild that he will run around in circles like a mad man. 

So that's what he does. Let me tell you what I've tried. I try and have him in a down stay when we are by the furniture. I am fine with him on the couch laying next to us if we invite him first. I hope that no confusion has come from this, and would love advice on how to allow this only when invited, but not whenever he pleases to terrorize us. When he does this I redirect him and praise him when he obeys. I have also tried grabbing his muzzle and giving him a firm no when he bites. I have also tried the negative reinforcer of sticking my fingers to the back of his throat. When he gets totally wild I will give him a firm scruff shake and say no, but this doesn't work either. The pawing and jumping at us is something I have no idea what to do with. Something I HAVE found to be helpful is the pinch collar, but I don't have that on him all of the time. So when he goes from "good boy" to terrorizer all of a sudden, I don't always have it on. However, this is something I am going to keep on him during the day more frequently at least while I am really trying to train him out of these habits. For jumping up I have tried ignoring an only greeting when both front paws are on the ground. Having him sit and stay. But he is so excited that he doesn't stay. I have also tried putting a knee up and holding his two front paws as this is uncomfortable for him. Again, the best thing is the pinch collar, but that's not on him when I come home to his greetings. 

One more thing. He always chews our rugs. He will drag them out right in front of me and start chewing and he 100% KNOWS this is a "no no" and he still does it. He's straight up defying...maybe attention seeking? IDK. thoughts?

So, with all of that, I am sharing with you the ugly. He is most often a very good dog. I can have him in a sit stay and hide objects in the yard for him and he will wait for me to come back and track the whole yard for these items. We play fetch with him daily and he can run around and exercise himself when we are home for short times. 

Any thoughts on WHY he is doing this and WHAT I an do would be greatly appreciated! :help:


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

Do you do NILIF?

How much exercise is he getting?

Is there a way to keep him away from things he is not supposed to have, such as the rugs?


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## cliffson1 (Sep 2, 2006)

Stop the down stay. A seven month old puppy is not going to execute a reliable down stay when on a behavior tear. So you giving the dog the command and the dog obviously blowing you off,(cause if he obeyed you there would be no problem), leads the dog to disregard others things you say for the dog to do to include stopping the current behavior. Never give a dog a command that he won't execute consistently unless you are formally training and in a position to follow up on the dog executing the command.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Agree with Cliffson1.

Your dog is a puppy. 7.5 months is not obedience trained. It is a puppy that has learned some obedience. Yes, you can get a title this early, but the pup is still a pup. He needs for you to be consistent but not overwhelming when training, follow through, do not give commands that you cannot enforce, and give him outlets for his puppy energy. 

Set your pup up for success and praise him for it. He is a little rambunctious right now. He is a puppy. That means he needs more fun games, more play, more learning tricks, more tug, more fetch and chase games, and more tasty chewies. And in time, it will get better, much better.


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## Bubbles (Aug 31, 2012)

Well, I trained bubbles get down with treats when she jumps up. My friend with a rottweiler said to gently place your foot on the back feet when they jump on you. Don't stomp or push hard. Actually I did this it worked better then get down. She eventually stopped jumping up on me. 

teething and biting... I'm still working on that. I try to give her treats when I say no and when she stops whatever she is doing I give her a treat.


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## Capone22 (Sep 16, 2012)

He sounds bored. And full of energy. I would up his exercise a lot. Also up your training. Add in some more sessions. Try puzzle toys or stuffed frozen kongs etc...Tire both his body and mind. 


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## Bear L (Feb 9, 2012)

He sounds like he needs more things to do. 

When I'm a bit lazy or busy, I do this when she starts to act like she's about to burst and explode with boredom. This requires very little effort on my part and can drain her mentally very fast. 5 min tops and she'll go lay down. Serious. 

I sit on a chair and we just do the staring thing. She's extremely food motivated even at her 10 months of age so this works. While staring into my eyes, I move my hands, i stir the treat pot, I put the treats up and down and in front of her nostrils, on top of her head... basically a lot of torturing for her. This wears her mind out a lot because she is so addicted to food, that to keep her eyes on me and not on what I'm doing with the food takes a lot of will power for her yet she will try her hardest to earn a treat. I only treat when she learns to ignore that movement. For example, if it's the mere movement of my hand to the treat pot, i keep doing it till her eyes don't follow my hands and is staring at me only, then I treat her right away. After she succeeds that, I stir the treats in the pot. Then to throwing treats in the air, etc.

I'd suggest you find the easiest things for you to keep her busy when you don't have the time or will to get up to do something with your dog. Maybe he needs more different chew things, a puzzle game given only when you don't have time to calm him down, get up and dance around with him a bit, throw things for him to fetch (while you sit there), get up and run around a little for him to chase you and go really wild for 3 min to exhaust any burst of energy he may have, talk to him as if he understood you and act interesting and tap him randomly... something new to make his mind think (or to mess with his mind... heh heh) so he gets tired while you expend the least amount of effort.


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## SukiGirl (Aug 31, 2012)

That pup is B.O.R.E.D.

We went through a similar phase around that age. The keys are:

1) Proper exercise and stimulation OUTSIDE of the house,

2) Mental stimulation, and

3) Quiet/time out when needed.

Suki needs at least 2 hours of outside the house exercise/stimulation in a day or she drives us crazy. It's amazing what fresh air, a doggy play date or just a visit to the local park can do for your dog. Second, our pups need to be challenged mentally. They are highly intelligent - but, easily bored. They will drive themselves crazy (and us!) looking for something to pass the time if you don't provide them with a job/something to focus on. A puzzle treat ball, or hide and seek game gets their mind off of destructive behavior and channels their energy. Finally, if your pup is a little too wound up and won't stop - just IGNORE THEM. Walk away. They want your attention. If you give your pup any attention, negative included, this will fuel the flames - believe me, I know . Once the pup is calm, ask them to 'go to bed', 'lay down' whatever you do to relax them on a regular basis. This little 'time out' is good for puppy and you. You can't get anywhere with a pup who is at a level 10, you have to let them bring the level back to 0 before you can make corrections.


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