puppy biting and snarling trousers and shoes

[keith]

Hello, our 11 week old Patterdale Terrier is generally well behaved, he will sit on command etc. However he sometimes bites and pulls trouser bottoms and shoes. Usually standing still and a firm "NO" is enough. Other times he will continue and start to growl and snarl in an aggresive manner. Any ideas to solve this problem. Many thanks
Keith

[Dog4life]

Never punish your puppy physically, as this will just provoke him and develop a long-term fear of you that will take much hard work to reverse. Instead, just verbalize, and ignore the puppy for a few minutes. Repeat this a few times and the puppy will quickly learn not to bit.
Also try avoiding games like tug of war or games that involve taking items out of your dog's mouth, as this can lead to biting and start bad habits.

[keith]

I would never physically punish bobby. We reward good behaviour and try to ignore bad behaviour. We are guessing the biting is attention seeking.
Cheers, Keith

[Dog4life]

All good Keith!
Wishing you all the best with your dog Bobby.

[nick_j007]

Originally Posted by keith

I would never physically punish bobby. We reward good behaviour and try to ignore bad behaviour. We are guessing the biting is attention seeking.
Cheers, Keith

Your dog is not so much attention seeking, but simply have a fun time tugging and 'killing' the trouser leg as it moves past. Terriers (and many puppies to be fair) can be sparked up my moving items at head/eye height.

Ignoring is all good and well, but if the dog continues despite your ignoring it will not be enough to deter the pups actions into the future, thus allowing the habit to grow and stress you out more and more as time goes on. Not guaranteed as an outcome...but also not unlikely either.

A simple yet effective way to address this behaviour is to place the dog on a short lead and hold it. Get another person to make repeated walk by wearing flappy trousers or the slippers that he is determined to kill each time they walk past him.

On the assumption that he'll dash in at these items, you simply stop his rush by using the lead. When he runs to the end of the lead he will self correct as he feels the lead abruptly tighten. There should be no 'yanking' on the lead during the process by the way. When he comes to the end of the lead use the words 'Leave it' in a firm voice...no shouting. A few of these and he'll get the idea it's to be stopped.

Each time he does stop and look at you for further guidance reward him verbally and if food motivated offer some special treats. This way he will soon be looking to you happily and learning to ignore the distractions.

As it improves you should be able to let go of the lead and keep his attention on you as the person walks by with him happily ignoring them. You might need to occasional repeat of the 'Leave it' command.

Good luck. Enjoy the pup!

Nick Jones MCFBA
Alpha Dog Behaviour Home page. Welcome. Dog behaviourist and dog trainer Nick Jones MCFBA.

[keith]

Hello Nick, thanks for your advice we will try that
Cheers, Keith