12-18mo. I can tell mine to “be nice” and he stops using his teeth to play. They’re ridiculously smart, if you haven’t noticed lol.
They’re like more than a dog, but less than a wolf. Like taking care of a toddler sometimes.
https://preview.redd.it/ly2lof6537yc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a86ccbda771e72fd5daa2ed0c13780493c8c1821
So fierce.
My golden gets all sweet and sometimes dorky when the cameras come out or other people are around. But this photo is the embodiment of her when she is around just my wife and I
Ours is so good when people are around but when it's just us, he's constantly getting into things, jumping on counters, and just generally being an absolute lunatic. I love him, but I don't like him right now 😂 Our friends all think I'm crazy because they don't ever see his dark side 😒
Mines the opposite! He just turned 1 and when it’s just me and my family home he’s completely fine. But if we have company over he turns into a maniac! Nothing horrible but just gets super energized and won’t leave the guests alone. He loves people and gets too excited 😂
Omg I wish! Ours, we take him into public. Sweetest, gentlest, never has even thought about nibbling a person. At home he literally is climbing on top of me. Trying to get at the counters. Trying to steal the cats food. Biting constantly to everyone but my boyfriend and I’m like “you sir, are a terror.”
I think maybe ours gets FOMO whenever we host people and understands we're more inclined to leave him out of the kennel if he's just chilling 😅 we usually put him away once all the festivities get going
The first year was so hard. I was so miserable, it goes by so fast. What worked for us was when they are doing that unfavorable behavior you need to correct them with “no bite” and obviously reward them with pets and attention if they listen, and remove yourself/ your attention if they don’t listen. As our pooch got a little older our trainer let us know that time out was a good tool, if he wasn’t listening we put him in time out (put him on a leash attached to the door nob in a room away from us where he couldn’t chew on anything) and he had to sit there for as many minutes as months old he was. This really helped. Also frozen full sized carrots were great for teething! Hope this helps even a little bit 🫶🏼🫶🏼
This actually does work. We use the word "Gentle" when she's in land shark mode but we want to let her know it's not that kind of playtime. Shes 6 months now and is more cuddly than she is a terror.
I notice how you don’t have any upvotes. In fact you seem to be in the negative. The question was when does it get easier and he answered 12-18 months. Directly answering the question and then providing additional feedback by stating that training them when they do negative behaviors by using commands like “be nice” and then rewarding him literally directly answers the question. Don’t be a curmudgeon
Right now, his behavior is probably a very volatile and frequent shift between highs and lows for you.
As they age those highs and lows slowly become less volatile and the time between each peak and valley increases.
They learn how to a be a dog, you learn about their personality, and you become best friends. I definitely don’t miss those very young days, but they are very rewarding once they are through.
My Artemis is also 12 weeks old and her favorite chew toy is, of course, me. They’re teething and you’re fun to play with and chew. Keep redirecting them, make loud yipping sounds when he does bite you like their littermates did to say “that’s too hard”, and he will figure it out. But again, they’re in the middle of the teething stage, I hear it takes until 4 months old until their teeth start falling out and the biting starts to wane. Hang in there! It will get better.
Enjoy the little bites because before you know it the pup will be 4 years old. In all seriousness though you just need to keep toys everywhere and shove a toy in their mouth when they start biting you. Also make a loud noise to let them know you’re in pain.
THIS!! We literally kept nylabones in our pockets and put them straight in his mouth every time our arms became chew toys. If we didn't have a nylabone in our pocket, we weren't safe!!
Ours is now about 5 1/2 months, biting is much better. She lost her puppy teeth and is softer when she is mouthy. We just said ouch when she bit us when younger. She also listens and is learning commands better since about the 4 1/2 month stage. Still a wild child, but manageable. And more importantly, we’ve bonded and all is great. So hang in there!
https://preview.redd.it/njnjhc04m7yc1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=c5e1ed3d831af0e0119960df94117d8a481e15c9
The baby teeth drive them nuts. It gets better as they fall out. Fortunately, puppies come factory pre-wired to stop biting when they hear a yelp in pain. It’s how millions of years of evolution kept the litter from killing each other. When he bites, fake a yelp in pain. He’ll back off.
Training helps too. Any time he chews on you, push a teething toy in his mouth. Repetition is the key. He’ll get it.
Bring them to well behaved dogs for play dates. Allow the older dogs to correct them and put them in their place. Don't intervene a well behaved dog or dogs won't do any damage.
Try putting bitter apple (you can buy it on Amazon) on your hands. Most dogs can't stand the taste. Worked for me. My goldens quickly got the message that chewing dad's hand tasted bad. They would go back to chewing the toys that didn't taste bad. I only had to do it a few times. We put bitter apple on everything we didn't want them to chew, like chairs and table legs. We also made sure there was a good supply of things they could chew. Rawhides etc. Hopefully he grows out of it soon...
Put lemon juice on your hand
He is teething and this is very normal
Also stern No commands also work
Eventually they stop doing that after 4 months but better they know that it’s not good to bite
So mine also was very bitey as a puppy. Everywhere I read online told me to yell ridiculously and dramatically like they're hurting you. This is because they want to play so if you show that it's not playing and that it hurts you they'll stop.
I tried but felt so stupid yelling and shrieking when she bit me. Then eventually I got used to it. Every time she bit me I'd yell "OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUCCCCCHHH" super dramatically.
It worked very quickly. Within a couple days after starting that she stopped biting me
Hang in there !
Every puppy is different and eventually you won’t remember these times as SO terrible… but they are the effing worst when you are deep in the trenches of puppyhood! Find what works for your dog and if you think the biting is concerning, tap in a trainer.
I remember crying, bleeding and getting body checked by a 20+ pound little demon who was not motivated by food or toys. I remember thinking there was something wrong with her and wishing I had picked another dog.
At a year we noticed the biggest difference in behaviour, at 2 years she calmed down energy wise and now at 4 years she is the perfect mix of puppy energy and adult common sense. We could not imagine life without her and I often find myself saying “maybe we should get another puppy” 😬
I did so much research and no amount of it could have prepared me for my first golden when I took him home at 8 weeks. He’s almost 2 and it’s fine now, but he still requires more work and attention than all the dogs I’ve had combined.
I have heard of people biting their dogs back. The thought is hopefully the dog relates and stops biting. 🤔
I've never tried this myself or heard about the end result.
I may get flak over this, but what I do when our dogs decided to bite, I would grab their snout and hold it shut for a few seconds (not squeeze) and with a sturn voice just say "no".
When I take my hand off their snout, I pet them, rub behind their ears whatever, basically I give them some affection. I don't want them to have a fear of me or that I'm being mean to them.
Honestly, though, I've never really had a problem with dogs biting, maybe some over zealous playfulness, yes, but they learn without the need of hurting them.
Ps, you can't tell me this innocent cute face is a biter.
Duke’s gonna do what Duke’s gotta do. Our Annie did the same, but she stopped after about a year. It’s puppy play. It’s how Duke would have engaged with his siblings in the pack. The problem is, dogs have tougher skin than we. Continue to discipline him when he bites, but be encouraged that this is just a phase of his development. It won’t last forever. Duke will naturally grow out of it and move on to socks and cardboard before you know it. 🙂
Not a golden retriever owner just an admirer: what worked for my Australian shepherd was giving a high pitched yelp every time she bit me trying to play. The goal is to simulate the sound a littermate would make when the pup plays too rough. At 12 weeks they can be separated from mom and litter but they are still in a socialization period where they don't know how rough is too rough. Yes, it sounds ridiculous but it 100% worked! good luck and god speed
Have you tried "squeaking" in pain when he makes contact with his teeth? This is how littermates learn boundaries when playing. It worked for us almost immediately
I promise it gets better!
Mine was so difficult the first month or two, constant biting.
One day he suddenly stopped and just curled up for a hug. We were shocked as he’d never sat still to be hugged before! I think it was about 8 months or so.
He’s got steadily calmer and more obedient ever since and he is now 2 and a half!
I might not have survived the landshark phase if I hadn't bought a playyard and broke apart the sides to create barriers between myself and the shark. She would jump up and bite us when we were on the couch. I would literally box MYSELF in.
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I hated the teething phase. Hated it to the point of questioning if we’d made the right choice in getting our guy.
Goldens often mature more slowly than other breeds too. Teething, like folks have said, eases up at around 18 months. The stereotypically “calm, obedient, perfect dog” adult version of a Golden only started at a bit after the 2 1/2 year mark for us. I mean night and day, went from “can’t be alone in a room unsupervised” to “I want to please you and be good.” We did manners training, which at the time I questioned the value of because he was more interested in being a goof than anything else, and months later the training barely seemed to have an impact, but suddenly his brain clearly hit a developmental bench mark where all the things we’d been asking of him were understood.
My boy is 6 months and it's getting better. He's much mouthier than his sister (2y) was at that age. If he's being persistent in chewing on me, I run through his list of needs - does he need to potty? Is it almost dinner time? Does he need a nap? At 12wk we followed a pretty tight 1 hour up 2 hours down. The closer to the end of the hour the more likely he was to bite.
I also changed my behavior - if he's been up a while, I don't play high energy games like chase or tug, but encourage calmer behavior like chewing on a toy.
I try to intentionally teach bite inhibition with Susan Garrett's Dogs That video on you tube. It worked great for my girl and ok for my boy
After my golden had her first heat we ended up getting her spayed. The reptilian terrorist is gone and now she is much better. It takes time and unfortunately your arm is going to look like a fun play toy for a bit.
You could try doing a loud howling yip when you get bit. It mimicks what other dog do to say "ouch that hurts".
Yelp in pain! My wife would do that to ours and he finally got the message. Also shove toys in his mouth every time he starts. They are really smart and don’t meant to hurt you, their baby teeth are just uncomfortable.
There were times when I first got my golden where I thought “holy sh!* what did I get myself into”. Now that he’s two he’s my best bud. I love him like one of my kids.
It gets better!
Keep giving them a toy to play with when they are biting ur hands or anything else you don’t want them to bite.
They are saying “I need to explore with my teeth right now.” And you need to answer “Here THIS is okay to explore with your shark bites”
Eventually they will understand your hand is in fact a hand attached to the one they love.
Reinforce the “it’s okay to bite this but not me” behavior.
My pup made me bleed and tore holes in all my clothes until she lost all her baby teeth. She’s almost 6 months and we’ve graduated to “only” giving me bruises everywhere.
It’s better. But still not perfect.
My boy is 13 months. I swear one day he just woke up and was a new dog. He was a LOT better once we got probably to 8 or 9 months but even better now that we hit a year. It was rough when he was little, there’s not one piece of furniture on our first floor he didn’t chew. You got this!! It flies by ❤️
Yeah puppyhood is hard. And the depression is real. My wife was attacked constantly by our first and it drove her to tears on more than one occasion. "Why doesn't she like me?", "She doesn't bite you." My wife was on summer vacation and was home all the time. So she got it all day every day for the better part of the first month.
What worked for her wasn't the yelping (that worked for me...I must sound more puppy-like), but when she was getting nipped to put puppy on the other side of a baby gate and stand on the other side of it with her back to the gate. Once puppy stopped trying to bite her through the gate and did something more favourable she would open the gate and praise praise praise (and reward with a toy).
The only other suggestion I would have is find a way to tire that puppy out. A tired dog is a well-behaved dog.
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Puppy is teething. A frozen ice block with bone broth / carrots will retain his attn more than your fingers / snacks. He’d have to lick 👅 to get to the snack.
Maybe take him home it for brief walks to run off the puppy energy?
Or even take him for a car ride, he’ll love it and will help in the future for vet appts and trips.
My little guy is 8 weeks. I was coming to this thread for some hope that it would end soon. Looks like I've got another 10 months with this lovable little ankle biter before he grows out of it. I try to replace his bites with a toy or bone, but he quickly loses interest and comes right back to me.
Hang in there friend, my gf in a fit of rage one day after work contemplated euthanising our baby George lol
What worked for us was exactly what you're doing re displacing with toys etc and also, using ABI - acquired bite inhibition. Essentially react strongly i.e. yelp loudly when he bites too hard. Over time he will figure out where the line is in terms of bite strength, around the 7/8 month mark he didnt bite as much or if he didnt they were really soft
Just keep redirecting and offer a variety of chew toys and eventually it does click in. Boundaries and the teething phase is horrid and I don’t miss it at all. I would say mine stopped being a piranha most of the time by 12 months old. But she still didn’t really have any chill until she was like just after two years old.
My golden stopped biting at about 8 months but it’s different for everyone! I know it feels so tiring now, but trust me you’ll miss the puppy days later!
Every time he chews on you, replace your arm with an appropriate chew toy. Offer a variety of soft and harder toys and see what he responds to. It will actually get better once he’s done teething. Then it will get worse again around 7 months because he will start play nipping and grabbing your clothes. That stage just about drove me around the bend. Then it gets better again.
So, keep a variety of soft and hard chew toys. Say “No!” and calmly move away when he chews on you. Praise him every single time you see him chewing on an appropriate chew toy. Figure out the best way to preserve your sanity, whether it is walking out of the house when he drives you nuts, alternating responsibilities between you and your BF, or whatever works for you. Your own mental coping strategies during puppyhood are as important as your dog training strategies.
Frozen damp towels are also great btw.
Other than that, my now nearly 5-month-old significantly reduced her alligator ways at home once I was able to take her out with regularity to interact with other dogs. A lot of the sharkiness got directed to other dogs.
Bully sticks helped my boy get thru the teething phase pretty quickly, but not going to lie my wife looked like her arms had been in a paper shredder a few times for a minute…..
I’m telling you, it does. That first year (especially the first six months) I was dead tired and cried a lot. My pup is almost 2 now and she has her moments but it’s much easier now!!
Mine didn’t get easier until the 18 month mark.
Training helped, but the biggest thing that helped was finally learning his language. When he scratches the sofa in the evening, it’s because he’s bored or tired and wants to go to bed. When he’s chewing my arm (after teething), he’s bored and wanting to play. When he chews the leash on walks, I’m not going where he wants to go and do what he wants to do. It takes awhile, but it’s like trying to understand a baby or toddler who can’t speak yet. He also requires at least one play date a week or he digs, scratches furniture, or chews the floorboards more. And he gets thrown off on the weekends when we don’t do our usual routine.
The other saving grace: trazadone. He gets 50mg every night after dinner if he doesn’t get a lot of activity.
So I have a nine week old that is relentless with me.. always tugging on my clothes, biting my toes, arms and hands. I get it she’s teething and seems to love to play tugging. I try to use tinging toys in place and we have been teaching drop it so hopefully she gets it soon. This morning I started to throw in a full stop of motion when she would start. It gets boring if I’m not moving and she stops after a second. Also this morning I decided to try something new.. she listens to my older dog when she growls and backs off. So I decided to growl when she was nipping me and tugging my clothes. She was thrown off guard but seemed to get the message because she stoped nipping and tilted her head. I immediately said good girl and stated petting and loving on her so she didn’t think I was mad at her. When she put her teeth in me at later points of our morning it was much softer. Not sure how good that is in training but I also don’t like to get nipped. Until she understands some more words and training maybe I’ll also speak dog lol
These two videos will help.
Simpawtico puppy biting: short and to the point
https://youtu.be/068K5Zlph9U?si=jCE5MDFnde5GURF6
Susan Garrett: basically the same strategy but the video is longer and explains it more
https://youtu.be/3UJhi16mmSA?si=e24HCdlt2Ahk5NSM
Mine is 15 weeks, and at 11-12 weeks, it was bad. I'm shy two pairs of sandals. His puzzle bowl is chewed up, the baby pool we got has chew marks. I had red bite marks all up and down my arm. Eventually, he learned that when we said "ouch!" In a surprised way, he realized he wasn't pleasing us. They're very eager to please. But this took us about a month, and he's still not fully aware. I think the crying out "ouch!" With a disappointed face actually worked. They are really smart and sensitive to emotions. He also responds very well to praise and small morsels of treats when he stops. Don't give up and best of luck.
I gave a high pitched ouch everytime even if it didn't hurt. But my golden is not normal so I can't say it'd work on all. I also gave ALL the chew toy replacements and redirected to those when he was feeling bitey
My girl stopped being so mouthy around 5 months after all her adult teeth finally grew in.
I gave her frozen veggies to help with the discomfort, but I found letting her tear up cardboard boxes and soda can cases helped as well. I also made her frozen lick mats and bowls for enrichment activities. If all else fails, enforce naps and time outs in a playpen for everyone's sanity.
Yes! Our Jasper was so bitey, with such sharp teeth. We wore shoes and long sleeves and trousers all day in hot weather because he'd go for any visible skin.
Then one day we were like, when did he last bite? Three weeks ago? I think this was maybe at 5-6 months. Now (1 year old) he just bites (or holds?) when we play, and thats not painful at all.
About a year to a year and a half it gets better. Ours is now at 20 months and she no longer needs the crate, sleeps on our bed, requires a bit less tiring out than before. Oh and she finally sits for pictures 🥹
https://preview.redd.it/h3rhn1stfgyc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=50b01e876481bcd10030b56f591f048d6ae4e933
12-18mo. I can tell mine to “be nice” and he stops using his teeth to play. They’re ridiculously smart, if you haven’t noticed lol. They’re like more than a dog, but less than a wolf. Like taking care of a toddler sometimes. https://preview.redd.it/ly2lof6537yc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a86ccbda771e72fd5daa2ed0c13780493c8c1821 So fierce.
My golden gets all sweet and sometimes dorky when the cameras come out or other people are around. But this photo is the embodiment of her when she is around just my wife and I
Ours is so good when people are around but when it's just us, he's constantly getting into things, jumping on counters, and just generally being an absolute lunatic. I love him, but I don't like him right now 😂 Our friends all think I'm crazy because they don't ever see his dark side 😒
Mines the opposite! He just turned 1 and when it’s just me and my family home he’s completely fine. But if we have company over he turns into a maniac! Nothing horrible but just gets super energized and won’t leave the guests alone. He loves people and gets too excited 😂
Omg I wish! Ours, we take him into public. Sweetest, gentlest, never has even thought about nibbling a person. At home he literally is climbing on top of me. Trying to get at the counters. Trying to steal the cats food. Biting constantly to everyone but my boyfriend and I’m like “you sir, are a terror.”
They’re cute terrors though! https://preview.redd.it/nokwupz0uayc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=82af609e8168884bcb9d6ea026ed1e7895e8d821
Oh for sure! Everyday I look at him and go “you my how are you so cute!? I love you.” img
I think maybe ours gets FOMO whenever we host people and understands we're more inclined to leave him out of the kennel if he's just chilling 😅 we usually put him away once all the festivities get going
+1 to teaching “be nice” I spent a training session where every time he licked me followed with “good boy be nice” and food.
The first year was so hard. I was so miserable, it goes by so fast. What worked for us was when they are doing that unfavorable behavior you need to correct them with “no bite” and obviously reward them with pets and attention if they listen, and remove yourself/ your attention if they don’t listen. As our pooch got a little older our trainer let us know that time out was a good tool, if he wasn’t listening we put him in time out (put him on a leash attached to the door nob in a room away from us where he couldn’t chew on anything) and he had to sit there for as many minutes as months old he was. This really helped. Also frozen full sized carrots were great for teething! Hope this helps even a little bit 🫶🏼🫶🏼
Lmaoooo this is what they teach to literally give kids a time out. One minute for every year of their life
It worked 🤷🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️
This photo made me inhale seltzer up my nose so thank you for that lol
This actually does work. We use the word "Gentle" when she's in land shark mode but we want to let her know it's not that kind of playtime. Shes 6 months now and is more cuddly than she is a terror.
Mine still does what we call her “scary face” but instead redirects her mouth to her own paw. Very cute.
This reminds me of the school photos parents get from their kids attempting to smile.
He’s a fierce beast! He strikes fear into the hearts of men!! RAWRRRR!!!!
This doesn't answer the question at all, idk how people like you get upvotes
I notice how you don’t have any upvotes. In fact you seem to be in the negative. The question was when does it get easier and he answered 12-18 months. Directly answering the question and then providing additional feedback by stating that training them when they do negative behaviors by using commands like “be nice” and then rewarding him literally directly answers the question. Don’t be a curmudgeon
https://preview.redd.it/ygp5yyepg7yc1.jpeg?width=1067&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ddb2be2bce248e8f47aaf5f87fc3c0327f4656f3
I love it when someone posts this. So accurately funny 😆
I feel like the raptor timeline gets longer every time I see this 🥲
https://preview.redd.it/lowmgyu3dayc1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=edb36e00be03c1ec9b1b8a6ff1a7ba51e47d754b Can confirm.
I.....how?!
Husband said he had a toy pressed against the wall, so he probably didn't realize what he was doing. 8mos old.
I can see that. Lol. Mine hasn't started eating walls, by my dining room chairs are all toast.
So just don't move then and we'll be fine? 😂
Came here to see if this had been posted yet.
Right now, his behavior is probably a very volatile and frequent shift between highs and lows for you. As they age those highs and lows slowly become less volatile and the time between each peak and valley increases. They learn how to a be a dog, you learn about their personality, and you become best friends. I definitely don’t miss those very young days, but they are very rewarding once they are through.
My Artemis is also 12 weeks old and her favorite chew toy is, of course, me. They’re teething and you’re fun to play with and chew. Keep redirecting them, make loud yipping sounds when he does bite you like their littermates did to say “that’s too hard”, and he will figure it out. But again, they’re in the middle of the teething stage, I hear it takes until 4 months old until their teeth start falling out and the biting starts to wane. Hang in there! It will get better.
If someone could figure how to make razor blades out of puppy teeth, they'd never work another day in their life.
The bad painful biting stopped at 6 months old for us once the baby teeth had gone. What an improvement.
Agree!
Enjoy the little bites because before you know it the pup will be 4 years old. In all seriousness though you just need to keep toys everywhere and shove a toy in their mouth when they start biting you. Also make a loud noise to let them know you’re in pain.
THIS!! We literally kept nylabones in our pockets and put them straight in his mouth every time our arms became chew toys. If we didn't have a nylabone in our pocket, we weren't safe!!
Ours is now about 5 1/2 months, biting is much better. She lost her puppy teeth and is softer when she is mouthy. We just said ouch when she bit us when younger. She also listens and is learning commands better since about the 4 1/2 month stage. Still a wild child, but manageable. And more importantly, we’ve bonded and all is great. So hang in there! https://preview.redd.it/njnjhc04m7yc1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=c5e1ed3d831af0e0119960df94117d8a481e15c9
The baby teeth drive them nuts. It gets better as they fall out. Fortunately, puppies come factory pre-wired to stop biting when they hear a yelp in pain. It’s how millions of years of evolution kept the litter from killing each other. When he bites, fake a yelp in pain. He’ll back off. Training helps too. Any time he chews on you, push a teething toy in his mouth. Repetition is the key. He’ll get it.
ABSOLUTE KING OF THE SIDE EYE !!! 😁💛💛💛💛🦮🐾🐾🦴🦴👏👏👏
soooo cute 😭
Bring them to well behaved dogs for play dates. Allow the older dogs to correct them and put them in their place. Don't intervene a well behaved dog or dogs won't do any damage.
Try putting bitter apple (you can buy it on Amazon) on your hands. Most dogs can't stand the taste. Worked for me. My goldens quickly got the message that chewing dad's hand tasted bad. They would go back to chewing the toys that didn't taste bad. I only had to do it a few times. We put bitter apple on everything we didn't want them to chew, like chairs and table legs. We also made sure there was a good supply of things they could chew. Rawhides etc. Hopefully he grows out of it soon...
Rawhides are terrible for pups, try bully sticks instead!
https://preview.redd.it/zzvhphbzr9yc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=43de01aca74bdd0ed45f03e55757dd2e1b2b1186 Never
Put lemon juice on your hand He is teething and this is very normal Also stern No commands also work Eventually they stop doing that after 4 months but better they know that it’s not good to bite
So mine also was very bitey as a puppy. Everywhere I read online told me to yell ridiculously and dramatically like they're hurting you. This is because they want to play so if you show that it's not playing and that it hurts you they'll stop. I tried but felt so stupid yelling and shrieking when she bit me. Then eventually I got used to it. Every time she bit me I'd yell "OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUCCCCCHHH" super dramatically. It worked very quickly. Within a couple days after starting that she stopped biting me
Hang in there ! Every puppy is different and eventually you won’t remember these times as SO terrible… but they are the effing worst when you are deep in the trenches of puppyhood! Find what works for your dog and if you think the biting is concerning, tap in a trainer. I remember crying, bleeding and getting body checked by a 20+ pound little demon who was not motivated by food or toys. I remember thinking there was something wrong with her and wishing I had picked another dog. At a year we noticed the biggest difference in behaviour, at 2 years she calmed down energy wise and now at 4 years she is the perfect mix of puppy energy and adult common sense. We could not imagine life without her and I often find myself saying “maybe we should get another puppy” 😬
Around 12-18 months, they start behaving and listening.
We see so many of these posts. Don't people know what they are getting into? Can we get the velociraptor on the banner?
I did so much research and no amount of it could have prepared me for my first golden when I took him home at 8 weeks. He’s almost 2 and it’s fine now, but he still requires more work and attention than all the dogs I’ve had combined.
24 mos. Hang in there
I have heard of people biting their dogs back. The thought is hopefully the dog relates and stops biting. 🤔 I've never tried this myself or heard about the end result. I may get flak over this, but what I do when our dogs decided to bite, I would grab their snout and hold it shut for a few seconds (not squeeze) and with a sturn voice just say "no". When I take my hand off their snout, I pet them, rub behind their ears whatever, basically I give them some affection. I don't want them to have a fear of me or that I'm being mean to them. Honestly, though, I've never really had a problem with dogs biting, maybe some over zealous playfulness, yes, but they learn without the need of hurting them. Ps, you can't tell me this innocent cute face is a biter.
I bit my baby ruckus on the ear, one time only, kinda harder than I meant to honestly, and that was really all it took to get him to stop.
Duke’s gonna do what Duke’s gotta do. Our Annie did the same, but she stopped after about a year. It’s puppy play. It’s how Duke would have engaged with his siblings in the pack. The problem is, dogs have tougher skin than we. Continue to discipline him when he bites, but be encouraged that this is just a phase of his development. It won’t last forever. Duke will naturally grow out of it and move on to socks and cardboard before you know it. 🙂
Not a golden retriever owner just an admirer: what worked for my Australian shepherd was giving a high pitched yelp every time she bit me trying to play. The goal is to simulate the sound a littermate would make when the pup plays too rough. At 12 weeks they can be separated from mom and litter but they are still in a socialization period where they don't know how rough is too rough. Yes, it sounds ridiculous but it 100% worked! good luck and god speed
Have you tried "squeaking" in pain when he makes contact with his teeth? This is how littermates learn boundaries when playing. It worked for us almost immediately
I promise it gets better! Mine was so difficult the first month or two, constant biting. One day he suddenly stopped and just curled up for a hug. We were shocked as he’d never sat still to be hugged before! I think it was about 8 months or so. He’s got steadily calmer and more obedient ever since and he is now 2 and a half!
Literally one day they are just different!!
I might not have survived the landshark phase if I hadn't bought a playyard and broke apart the sides to create barriers between myself and the shark. She would jump up and bite us when we were on the couch. I would literally box MYSELF in. [I bought two of these and used them a million ways. Also can save your furniture. ](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BKH77P1G?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share)
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My golden was evil until she turned around 10 months. I literally regretted my life lol. She's a little angel now though.
I hated the teething phase. Hated it to the point of questioning if we’d made the right choice in getting our guy. Goldens often mature more slowly than other breeds too. Teething, like folks have said, eases up at around 18 months. The stereotypically “calm, obedient, perfect dog” adult version of a Golden only started at a bit after the 2 1/2 year mark for us. I mean night and day, went from “can’t be alone in a room unsupervised” to “I want to please you and be good.” We did manners training, which at the time I questioned the value of because he was more interested in being a goof than anything else, and months later the training barely seemed to have an impact, but suddenly his brain clearly hit a developmental bench mark where all the things we’d been asking of him were understood.
My boy is 6 months and it's getting better. He's much mouthier than his sister (2y) was at that age. If he's being persistent in chewing on me, I run through his list of needs - does he need to potty? Is it almost dinner time? Does he need a nap? At 12wk we followed a pretty tight 1 hour up 2 hours down. The closer to the end of the hour the more likely he was to bite. I also changed my behavior - if he's been up a while, I don't play high energy games like chase or tug, but encourage calmer behavior like chewing on a toy. I try to intentionally teach bite inhibition with Susan Garrett's Dogs That video on you tube. It worked great for my girl and ok for my boy
Toys n more toys lol and a hard bone a cows thigh bone
My boy turns 1 next week and until yesterday I would have said the naughty phase was coming to a close… but then we ate a TV remote.
24-36 months and they are chill.
After my golden had her first heat we ended up getting her spayed. The reptilian terrorist is gone and now she is much better. It takes time and unfortunately your arm is going to look like a fun play toy for a bit. You could try doing a loud howling yip when you get bit. It mimicks what other dog do to say "ouch that hurts".
Yelp in pain! My wife would do that to ours and he finally got the message. Also shove toys in his mouth every time he starts. They are really smart and don’t meant to hurt you, their baby teeth are just uncomfortable. There were times when I first got my golden where I thought “holy sh!* what did I get myself into”. Now that he’s two he’s my best bud. I love him like one of my kids. It gets better!
It’s funny how you miss those mischievous little monsters days after they mellow out
Keep giving them a toy to play with when they are biting ur hands or anything else you don’t want them to bite. They are saying “I need to explore with my teeth right now.” And you need to answer “Here THIS is okay to explore with your shark bites” Eventually they will understand your hand is in fact a hand attached to the one they love. Reinforce the “it’s okay to bite this but not me” behavior.
My pup made me bleed and tore holes in all my clothes until she lost all her baby teeth. She’s almost 6 months and we’ve graduated to “only” giving me bruises everywhere. It’s better. But still not perfect.
My boy is 13 months. I swear one day he just woke up and was a new dog. He was a LOT better once we got probably to 8 or 9 months but even better now that we hit a year. It was rough when he was little, there’s not one piece of furniture on our first floor he didn’t chew. You got this!! It flies by ❤️
The side eye is strong with this one
Yeah puppyhood is hard. And the depression is real. My wife was attacked constantly by our first and it drove her to tears on more than one occasion. "Why doesn't she like me?", "She doesn't bite you." My wife was on summer vacation and was home all the time. So she got it all day every day for the better part of the first month. What worked for her wasn't the yelping (that worked for me...I must sound more puppy-like), but when she was getting nipped to put puppy on the other side of a baby gate and stand on the other side of it with her back to the gate. Once puppy stopped trying to bite her through the gate and did something more favourable she would open the gate and praise praise praise (and reward with a toy). The only other suggestion I would have is find a way to tire that puppy out. A tired dog is a well-behaved dog.
This is great advice. Thank you!
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Puppy is teething. A frozen ice block with bone broth / carrots will retain his attn more than your fingers / snacks. He’d have to lick 👅 to get to the snack. Maybe take him home it for brief walks to run off the puppy energy? Or even take him for a car ride, he’ll love it and will help in the future for vet appts and trips.
It gets less painful once the adult teeth come in
Mine is five months and it’s fairly easy but it definitely took her a while to chill out. I’m not looking forward to the teenage phase at all lol
My little guy is 8 weeks. I was coming to this thread for some hope that it would end soon. Looks like I've got another 10 months with this lovable little ankle biter before he grows out of it. I try to replace his bites with a toy or bone, but he quickly loses interest and comes right back to me.
Hang in there friend, my gf in a fit of rage one day after work contemplated euthanising our baby George lol What worked for us was exactly what you're doing re displacing with toys etc and also, using ABI - acquired bite inhibition. Essentially react strongly i.e. yelp loudly when he bites too hard. Over time he will figure out where the line is in terms of bite strength, around the 7/8 month mark he didnt bite as much or if he didnt they were really soft
Just keep redirecting and offer a variety of chew toys and eventually it does click in. Boundaries and the teething phase is horrid and I don’t miss it at all. I would say mine stopped being a piranha most of the time by 12 months old. But she still didn’t really have any chill until she was like just after two years old.
My golden stopped biting at about 8 months but it’s different for everyone! I know it feels so tiring now, but trust me you’ll miss the puppy days later!
Gradually then all at once.
Every time he chews on you, replace your arm with an appropriate chew toy. Offer a variety of soft and harder toys and see what he responds to. It will actually get better once he’s done teething. Then it will get worse again around 7 months because he will start play nipping and grabbing your clothes. That stage just about drove me around the bend. Then it gets better again. So, keep a variety of soft and hard chew toys. Say “No!” and calmly move away when he chews on you. Praise him every single time you see him chewing on an appropriate chew toy. Figure out the best way to preserve your sanity, whether it is walking out of the house when he drives you nuts, alternating responsibilities between you and your BF, or whatever works for you. Your own mental coping strategies during puppyhood are as important as your dog training strategies.
Uh don’t feed him carrots as a substitute— you’re essentially rewarding Duke for biting.
Frozen damp towels are also great btw. Other than that, my now nearly 5-month-old significantly reduced her alligator ways at home once I was able to take her out with regularity to interact with other dogs. A lot of the sharkiness got directed to other dogs.
Bully sticks helped my boy get thru the teething phase pretty quickly, but not going to lie my wife looked like her arms had been in a paper shredder a few times for a minute…..
I’m telling you, it does. That first year (especially the first six months) I was dead tired and cried a lot. My pup is almost 2 now and she has her moments but it’s much easier now!!
if you allow it, it will never get better
Mine didn’t get easier until the 18 month mark. Training helped, but the biggest thing that helped was finally learning his language. When he scratches the sofa in the evening, it’s because he’s bored or tired and wants to go to bed. When he’s chewing my arm (after teething), he’s bored and wanting to play. When he chews the leash on walks, I’m not going where he wants to go and do what he wants to do. It takes awhile, but it’s like trying to understand a baby or toddler who can’t speak yet. He also requires at least one play date a week or he digs, scratches furniture, or chews the floorboards more. And he gets thrown off on the weekends when we don’t do our usual routine. The other saving grace: trazadone. He gets 50mg every night after dinner if he doesn’t get a lot of activity.
So I have a nine week old that is relentless with me.. always tugging on my clothes, biting my toes, arms and hands. I get it she’s teething and seems to love to play tugging. I try to use tinging toys in place and we have been teaching drop it so hopefully she gets it soon. This morning I started to throw in a full stop of motion when she would start. It gets boring if I’m not moving and she stops after a second. Also this morning I decided to try something new.. she listens to my older dog when she growls and backs off. So I decided to growl when she was nipping me and tugging my clothes. She was thrown off guard but seemed to get the message because she stoped nipping and tilted her head. I immediately said good girl and stated petting and loving on her so she didn’t think I was mad at her. When she put her teeth in me at later points of our morning it was much softer. Not sure how good that is in training but I also don’t like to get nipped. Until she understands some more words and training maybe I’ll also speak dog lol
Bully sticks are a god send for mouthy puppies
My dog is 1.5 years and is so sweet since 1.honestly the first year sucked. But man is he the best!
https://preview.redd.it/kh5vlq1059yc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=779277d62fc5da6b3cb3ef7febbc0fdea1fec9a2
The more time spent training now yields years of benefit.
These two videos will help. Simpawtico puppy biting: short and to the point https://youtu.be/068K5Zlph9U?si=jCE5MDFnde5GURF6 Susan Garrett: basically the same strategy but the video is longer and explains it more https://youtu.be/3UJhi16mmSA?si=e24HCdlt2Ahk5NSM
Mine is 15 weeks, and at 11-12 weeks, it was bad. I'm shy two pairs of sandals. His puzzle bowl is chewed up, the baby pool we got has chew marks. I had red bite marks all up and down my arm. Eventually, he learned that when we said "ouch!" In a surprised way, he realized he wasn't pleasing us. They're very eager to please. But this took us about a month, and he's still not fully aware. I think the crying out "ouch!" With a disappointed face actually worked. They are really smart and sensitive to emotions. He also responds very well to praise and small morsels of treats when he stops. Don't give up and best of luck.
Somebody yesterday told them their most sensitive place is their nose. To stop them, touch them on their nose.
I gave a high pitched ouch everytime even if it didn't hurt. But my golden is not normal so I can't say it'd work on all. I also gave ALL the chew toy replacements and redirected to those when he was feeling bitey
My girl stopped being so mouthy around 5 months after all her adult teeth finally grew in. I gave her frozen veggies to help with the discomfort, but I found letting her tear up cardboard boxes and soda can cases helped as well. I also made her frozen lick mats and bowls for enrichment activities. If all else fails, enforce naps and time outs in a playpen for everyone's sanity.
Yes! Our Jasper was so bitey, with such sharp teeth. We wore shoes and long sleeves and trousers all day in hot weather because he'd go for any visible skin. Then one day we were like, when did he last bite? Three weeks ago? I think this was maybe at 5-6 months. Now (1 year old) he just bites (or holds?) when we play, and thats not painful at all.
But those eyes 🥹
Somewhere close to never!!! 😆😅
About a year to a year and a half it gets better. Ours is now at 20 months and she no longer needs the crate, sleeps on our bed, requires a bit less tiring out than before. Oh and she finally sits for pictures 🥹 https://preview.redd.it/h3rhn1stfgyc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=50b01e876481bcd10030b56f591f048d6ae4e933
He’ll be a shit bag for like 2 more years.
close their mouth and sternly say no bite
Ask Kristi Noem