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All puppies nip, mouth, and play bite. This is a normal part of puppy behavior and growing up.
Although puppy mouthing can be tiresome and sometimes painful, it is a VERY important part of
puppy development.

When puppies play together in the litter, they learn a lot through biting. If they bite hard, their
littermate will yelp. If they bite too hard, their littermate will yelp and then stop playing. Thus, the
puppy learns that if it bites too hard, the playmate will go away and the fun will stop. Learning
not to bite hard is called bite inhibition. Puppies that are bottle-fed or taken from the litter too
early often have a harder time learning bite inhibition because they did not get a chance learn
from their siblings. Puppies should not be taken from their litter until they are at least 8 weeks
old.

Bite inhibition is a very important thing for your puppy to learn. If a puppy does not learn bite
inhibition, the results can be disastrous as an adult dog. For example, say we accidentally shut
our dog’s tail in the door. A dog that has learned bite inhibition as a puppy may only snarl
and/or lunge but not bite. A dog that has not learned bite inhibition may give you multiple deep
puncture wounds. A dog without bite inhibition may be the most loyal, loving dog in the world
until it is injured or scared.

Another important part of bite inhibition involves interaction with other pets. Teaching your
puppy good bite inhibition is important if your dog will ever come into contact with other
animals. A dog without good bite inhibition may severely injure or kill a cat even if they are just
playing. Bite inhibition plays an important roll in inter-dog aggression. If a fight breaks out
between two dogs, you hope that both dogs have good bite inhibition or you may be paying
some rather large vet bills or lose a dog to injury.

We can teach our puppy how to have a softer mouth without using harsh corrections. Methods
such as grabbing the puppy by the muzzle and yelling, “NO”, or “NO BITE!”, thumping the
puppy on the nose, scruffing the puppy, or other similar methods are unnecessary, unkind, and
while they may teach your puppy not to nip, they will also teach your dog to be fearful of you
and your hands. These methods will not teach your puppy anything about bite inhibition. Some
of these methods often work against you as your puppy thinks it is a game to snap at your
fingers when you are trying to grab or thump their muzzle.

So how do we teach bite inhibition? We will teach the puppy the same way it would learn from
its siblings. The puppy must be taught that humans are very sensitive and have a low threshold
for pain. If your puppy begins to nip or bite, carefully judge the strength of the bite. Allow your
puppy to chew on your fingers as long as they are doing it softly. When the puppy bites hard,
yipe like a puppy or loudly say, “OUCH!” Pull your hand back as if you touched a fire and ignore
the puppy. Most puppies will be startled and stop nipping for a moment. When the puppy calms
down and stops nipping, continue play. If the puppy persists, or if it gets more excited, then
immediately stop play, get up, and move away from the puppy. Very quickly your puppy will
learn that we humans cannot tolerate teeth on skin and if they bite, all of the fun stops. It may
help to tether your puppy with a leash to something or play next to a barrier such a baby gate so
you can very quickly move away from the pup.

As you work with your puppy, begin by yipping for the hardest nips and as those nips become
less frequent, start yipping for softer nips or mouthing. Work your way to yipping for any and all
mouthing. During this process, your puppy will learn how to have a softer mouth while he
learns not to nip at all.

Because children make quick movements, funny noises, and are small, they often excite
puppies into burst of biting activity. Children and puppies should always be supervised when
playing together! If your children are too young to understand and learn how to act around a
puppy, keep a leash on your puppy during play. If your puppy starts nipping, use the leash to
gently move the puppy from the children until the puppy calms down. As soon as the puppy is
calm, allow the puppy to continue play. The puppy will learn that if she is calm and not biting,
she will get to play. If the nipping continues, use a crate, x-pen, or some other form of
confinement to remove the puppy from the play.

As mentioned before, it is only natural for a puppy to want to use its mouth during play.
Substituting a chew toy is a good compromise. Stuff a KONG with peanut butter or put some
kibble in a Buster Cube or Tricky Treat Ball. Give your puppy something else to do besides
chew on you!

Nipping