new sheltie puppy

[trufflove]

Thank you again to all the responses -

he had littermates and played with them until he was 8 weeks old. we tried to do the same yelp/ignore but it almost seems like our loud screeches become a game to him. i'm still consistently doing it, and i think we are making progress - his brain must be registering it somewhere that i can't see!

 

[Justicemom]

Thank you again to all the responses -

he had littermates and played with them until he was 8 weeks old. we tried to do the same yelp/ignore but it almost seems like our loud screeches become a game to him. i'm still consistently doing it, and i think we are making progress - his brain must be registering it somewhere that i can't see!

Ember had littermates to and was with them until 9 wks. She was the pushy brat of the litter and her mom didn't tell her off the way she should have. She would bite at my hands and I would yelp and she would bark, growl and jump back at me and bit harder. The only thing that help was completely removing attention either getting up and stomping away and leaving the room or a time out in the ex pen. I also called upon the services of her great grandma Chima(Justice's grandma). She was the alpha bitch and rule with a iron paw til the day she died at almost 16yr. One day with her and Ember had a new respect. Chi never hurt puppies but she didn't put up with rude behavior.

Ember is 5 yr now and would never dream of biting. She still plays with my feet and she never uses her teeth just mouths all the while growling fiercely.

 

[BarbV]

As everyone said, puppy bites are normal at this age. And believe it or not, they do grow out of it. It starts with nips on the hands and fingers.

The real fun is when it progresses to herding: that involves nipping the ankles. Bacca did not outgrow this until around 10 or 11 months. They'll still "herd" if I run around, but no longer with real nips on my ankles.

That doesn't mean that you put up with it while you wait for them to grow out of it. While not fool proof, I found the best technique was ignore. Turn your back and stand in one place with arms folded. If pup tries to get back in front of you, do another quarter turn. When pup finally settles, then you can move and/or give attention again.

Unfortunately this can be time consuming when you're trying to get ready to get out the door to work. When that happens, its time for a little crate quality time!

Good luck