Hi. I have a question. Alex keeps trying to go after feet and pant legs. She loves to bite on them. Xander seems to have no interest. He is much more mellow, but is still bigger than Alex. His biggest want seems to be to eat, lol. He plays, of course, but doesn't go after feet or pant legs. I know they are only 1/2 sheltie, but does anyone have any idea why she is doing this? How do I stop it?
Alex biting feet and pants
- Thread starter tgolike
- Start date
danisgoat
Moderator
Awww....she's a baby. She is just following her herding instinct and playing with you.
If it hurts you and you want it to stop, the best thing I found is to scream really loud in a distressed voice "ooowww" and pretend that it really hurts when she does it. Shelties are sensitive and they don't want to hurt you, so if you act like she is killing you each time she grabs you, she will stop.
If it hurts you and you want it to stop, the best thing I found is to scream really loud in a distressed voice "ooowww" and pretend that it really hurts when she does it. Shelties are sensitive and they don't want to hurt you, so if you act like she is killing you each time she grabs you, she will stop.
Just want to reiterate that. Scream like you're being killed each time a puppy nips you. It really does work. I also used to leave the room and stop play (sulk in a corner), which evidently is what other dogs do if play gets too rough. She has fantastic bite inhibition now. This is what we did. http://www.dogstardaily.com/training/teaching-bite-inhibition
Biting your ankles also sounds like herding behavior. Buffy will occasionally get obsessed with feet. Make sure not to reward this or let them get away with this during leash walking. Sometimes I need to pick her up and calm her down or distract her with a toy or stick to get her to stop. Also make sure to reward her looking at you and walking properly on leash.
However, sometimes I take advantage of the herding instinct. I have found that swinging at the playground as she chases my feet is a great way to tire her out!
(Have to be careful though.)
Biting your ankles also sounds like herding behavior. Buffy will occasionally get obsessed with feet. Make sure not to reward this or let them get away with this during leash walking. Sometimes I need to pick her up and calm her down or distract her with a toy or stick to get her to stop. Also make sure to reward her looking at you and walking properly on leash.
However, sometimes I take advantage of the herding instinct. I have found that swinging at the playground as she chases my feet is a great way to tire her out!
(Have to be careful though.)chase's dad
Forums Regular
Case went thru a period where if we stopped playing too soon then he would run up and grab pant legs or feet as if to say "hey we're not done playing". I would give him a stern "No" but acting like it hurt me stopped him really quick. He rarely does it at all any more but will run behind and bump you as if to say .. "a little more please".
rosesandlace
Forums Enthusiast
Oh my goodness - I thought you were talking about Brandi & Brady there for a minute ... Brandi is constantly nipping at my feet and legs (the herding instinct) and Brady loves to play (he likes when I chase him and then run away and he will chase me) but loves to eat, eat and eat!
I try to stop Brandi by putting up my hand in the "talk to the hand" form and saying "no - you are not the boss, I am" - she will back off. I used to scream but I found that it made her cower in a corner and I didn't want her to have a complex or be timid or afraid of me. She is very sensitive as well as being very vocal and a little boss. She understands the hand - she will still bark but she keeps a distance ... just far enough away from my legs to keep me happy.
Brady jumps when he plays ... and he has a silly bark when I chase him. He is a big goof ball and has taken to trying to chew on my jacket when I leave for work in the morning. It's almost as if he is saying "don't go ... stay home and play with us!"
I try to stop Brandi by putting up my hand in the "talk to the hand" form and saying "no - you are not the boss, I am" - she will back off. I used to scream but I found that it made her cower in a corner and I didn't want her to have a complex or be timid or afraid of me. She is very sensitive as well as being very vocal and a little boss. She understands the hand - she will still bark but she keeps a distance ... just far enough away from my legs to keep me happy.
Brady jumps when he plays ... and he has a silly bark when I chase him. He is a big goof ball and has taken to trying to chew on my jacket when I leave for work in the morning. It's almost as if he is saying "don't go ... stay home and play with us!"