I'm having some issues with my puppy Nala biting me. I know she's at that age where she NEEDS to chew (14 weeks) so we have plenty of choices for her. Rawhide (99% digestible), Antler tooth, Chew toys ranging from hard to soft, tug toys, round toys, and etc. But she just can't seem to get enough of chewing on human skin. I've done just about every technique and beyond with her. Ranging from:
- Holding her muzzle shut and looking at her eye to eye saying No.
- Taking my attention away
- Replacing my hand with a toy/chew thing
- Leaving the room
- Her leaving the room
- Crate timeout (but in a positive manner)
I've also done combinations and she still doesn't understand. She has bite inhibition from her earlier trainings but her teeth are getting replaced by the adult teeth soon and it's still a little painful. Any advice from you fellow husky owners? I've been pretty patient and I love her to death I just don't want her biting someone else and causing something that could potentially take her away from me time is not an issue & neither is patience I just want her to not hurt anyone else.

My Bartok is about 19 weeks or so and the teething is still an issue, as is his mouthiness, but I have found teaching him the Gentle command is working wonders.

You take a treat and put it in your hand, now this might get a bit uncomfortable/painful at this point so gird your loins. Close your hand around it until they can only just get at it, reward ONLY when she is being gentle with you. Such as licking your hand or very very gentle nibble to try and pull the treat out. Repeat. Do this without the command at first and when she she is finally getting the hang of it pair the command with the Gentle word.

Now she might still nibble when over excited, she is still young and learning, but this might help, it has helped me.

Just stay with it.  Keep doing the technique that works the best and do it over and over again.  

Keys for puppies: short term memory and short term goals, as in goals for the day. If "solving mouthing" is your goal you are destined to constant disappointment and frustration.  

NOTHING happens quickly.  There is no fix for anything because there is nothing broken. Things with puppies will ebb and flow for the first 2 years of their life.  Once one problem goes away, another will arise, and on and on and on.  

You might have to him away from other people for a while at times when he can not control himself and greet people properly.  Whether it's mouthing or jumping or barking or peeing on them....whatever it might be....it is okay to cut him off from other people at times until he learns to properly behave himself in an acceptable manner.  We, and many others on here, had to do this when our dogs were young puppies.  

Also, do not EVER allow other people to say "oh, it's okay", because it isn't, ever.  They are seduced by the cuteness of your puppy in the moment and then 2 minutes later you are stuck with the monster who just learned that it is rewarding and okay to mouth on other people upon greeting them.  You, and the puppy, can benefit a lot by being a bit cold and drawing lines in the sand sometimes by controlling his interactions and limiting his problem behaviors as much as you can.  

I know what it is like to want a quick fix but that does not exist.  

Patience patience patience.  And when you feel frustrated and overwhelmed, take a break.  Go away and be alone without him.  You'll come back refreshed and re-energized.

Also, I strongly recommend that you refrain from using the word "biting." This has a very negative meaning attached to it, it creates the wrong impression of your puppy, creates fear and insecurity around your puppy, and mentally can be very taxing on you as his primary trainer/caregiver.

Set yourself up for success and meeting short term goals. Positively frame this in your mind as "mouthing." Think of it as a necessary and normal phase of puppyhood and something that you and your puppy need to learn how to channel and utilize, not fix

I know it might sound silly but staying in the right frame of mind and keeping things mentally contextualized in positive ways can make a HUGE difference on your discipline and your patience with your puppy as he grows and changes.

TwistedTale wrote:

My Bartok is about 19 weeks or so and the teething is still an issue, as is his mouthiness, but I have found teaching him the Gentle command  is working wonders.

You take a treat and put it in your hand, now this might get a bit uncomfortable/painful at this point so gird your loins. Close your hand around it until they can only just get at it, reward ONLY when she is being gentle with you. Such as licking your hand or very very gentle nibble to try and pull the treat out. Repeat. Do this without the command at first and when she she is finally getting the hang of it pair the command with the Gentle word.

Now she might still nibble when over excited, she is still young and learning, but this might help, it has helped me.

This has worked for us as well. She can still get overly excited and nip hard enough to cause some pain/discomfort, but it's rare, and she's really good about pulling back a bit or just licking instead when we tell her "gentle".

jaewonlol wrote:

I'm having some issues with my puppy Nala biting me. I know she's at that age where she NEEDS to chew (14 weeks) so we have plenty of choices for her. Rawhide (99% digestible), Antler tooth, Chew toys ranging from hard to soft, tug toys, round toys, and etc. But she just can't seem to get enough of chewing on human skin. I've done just about every technique and beyond with her. Ranging from:
- Holding her muzzle shut and looking at her eye to eye saying No.
- Taking my attention away
- Replacing my hand with a toy/chew thing
- Leaving the room
- Her leaving the roomdmit
I've also done combinations and she still doesn't understand. She has bite inhibition from her earlier trainings but her teeth are getting replaced by the adult teeth soon and it's still a little painful. Any advice from you fellow husky owners? I've been pretty patient and I love her to death I just don't want her biting someone else and causing something that could potentially take her away from me  time is not an issue & neither is patience I just want her to not hurt anyone else.

I really liked the "yelp" method. Where when they chew on you and it hurts you yelp like a dog or puppy and then stop playing and kind of act like you are unhappy no eye contact and maybe leave the room. We actually tackled the chewing on people and the taking food nicely as two different things. I will admit it took a little to work but now I have a year old who knows he can mouth but he has to do it softly.

Playing with the Big Dogs wrote:

jaewonlol wrote:

I'm having some issues with my puppy Nala biting me. I know she's at that age where she NEEDS to chew (14 weeks) so we have plenty of choices for her. Rawhide (99% digestible), Antler tooth, Chew toys ranging from hard to soft, tug toys, round toys, and etc. But she just can't seem to get enough of chewing on human skin. I've done just about every technique and beyond with her. Ranging from:
- Holding her muzzle shut and looking at her eye to eye saying No.
- Taking my attention away
- Replacing my hand with a toy/chew thing
- Leaving the room
- Her leaving the roomdmit
I've also done combinations and she still doesn't understand. She has bite inhibition from her earlier trainings but her teeth are getting replaced by the adult teeth soon and it's still a little painful. Any advice from you fellow husky owners? I've been pretty patient and I love her to death I just don't want her biting someone else and causing something that could potentially take her away from me  time is not an issue & neither is patience I just want her to not hurt anyone else.

I really liked the "yelp" method.

That is my favorite method as well.

lillith87 wrote:

Playing with the Big Dogs wrote:

jaewonlol wrote:

I'm having some issues with my puppy Nala biting me. I know she's at that age where she NEEDS to chew (14 weeks) so we have plenty of choices for her. Rawhide (99% digestible), Antler tooth, Chew toys ranging from hard to soft, tug toys, round toys, and etc. But she just can't seem to get enough of chewing on human skin. I've done just about every technique and beyond with her. Ranging from:
- Holding her muzzle shut and looking at her eye to eye saying No.
- Taking my attention away
- Replacing my hand with a toy/chew thing
- Leaving the room
- Her leaving the roomdmit
I've also done combinations and she still doesn't understand. She has bite inhibition from her earlier trainings but her teeth are getting replaced by the adult teeth soon and it's still a little painful. Any advice from you fellow husky owners? I've been pretty patient and I love her to death I just don't want her biting someone else and causing something that could potentially take her away from me  time is not an issue & neither is patience I just want her to not hurt anyone else.

I really liked the "yelp" method.

That is my favorite method as well.

Yelp method didn't work at all for us, which was disappointing since so many had shared their success with that method. It just seemed to make her more excited and she would chew harder Obviously every dog is different though, so OP should definitely give it a try!

Karu4Link wrote:

Yelp method didn't work at all for us, which was disappointing since so many had shared their success with that method. It just seemed to make her more excited and she would chew harder Obviously every dog is different though, so OP should definitely give it a try!

Yelp didn't work here, either. Same thing - seemed to make him more riled up. What did help (now this was with a dog 12-18 mos...I finally figured this out this summer, when he was about 18 mos old.). Most of the mouthing behavior was in hard, running play, ie. he thought I was another husky and would come running, leap at me and grab a mouthful of me...whether it was skin or shirt or jacket, didn't matter, it was "you're another husky and this is how I play with another husky"

So, I started this routine: I see him running at me, I turn sideways, crossing my wrists over my chest, arms close to body, head down with no eye contact. If he runs by me without grabbing me, he got a treat and more play. If he tried to grab me, I turned my back. Believe it or not, ONE afternoon was all it took...as well as having a husky playmate a few times a week so his need for rough play is satisfied. Occasionally, Mr. Dog needs refresher training but all it takes is one or two "cross my wrists and sideways" to get peoply appropriate behavior again.

amymeme wrote:

crossing my wrists over my chest, arms close to body, head down with no eye contact.  

I agree with this also 100%

When Okami was still in her mouthy stage, I would also hide my hands, arms, and give her no eye contact or not even glance at her... basically ignore her. Even though she "tried" to get my attention, she would give up, then either lay down or pout somewhere because she realized I wasn't playing anymore.