So I tried reading a few of the topics on aggression and nothing that I came across (I may have missed something) fit what I have experienced.

Mishka is pretty good with kids. He doesn't have the best manners about jumping up on them and knocking them over (which I'm working on) and he loves people. He loves getting pet and loved on by pretty much anyone.

I took him to a fundraiser yesterday in the park and he did really well with everyone, kids included, except these two young boys. They may have been under 3-4 years old, but he snapped at them and that is just completely unacceptable behavior. Now I'm not 100% sure if the first little boy did something to him, maybe Mishka was overwhelmed, had enough, etc. My fiance said the little boy stuck his finger in Mishka's ear and that's why he snapped at him. The second time the dad was petting Mishka and while I'm telling him not to let his son pet him because he was too young he goes to and Mishka snaps again. Thankfully he never actually made contact with this kid because that's him being euthanized no questions asked.

This is a serious issue. I want to take him places and be okay with kids. I could sit there and tell them all not to pet him but that only works with those people that actually ASK to pet your dog.

I just don't really understand why a 3.5 month old pup is basically being snappy towards the younger ones who are still being gentle, etc. with him and being okay with the ones that are older. I have a 1 year old nephew and the absolute last thing I want is for him to get bitten.



Another thing I want to touch on is biting / being seriously mouthy. He's pretty much only like this with me.






It's worse in the morning when I first let him out. I don't make a big fuss about him at all. The second he comes out his crate he's biting my feet. When I walk him outside he'll bite and grab my pants legs, my arm, he'll jump up and nip my stomach, etc. I have resorted to wearing a jacket and I'm not sure if that made it worse because he just ripped the arm up. It's like everything is a game. I have brought treats out with me to make him sit when he starts acting up but the second I move again he's "attacking" me.

I'm really frustrated with this. I have literally just stood still and let him go at it and he doesn't stop. This is outside during potty time because we don't have a fenced yard. He gets to go outside and play, he runs around the house, I started walking him around the block a few times in the evenings to get some of his energy out.

I am hoping that things will be better when we move out of my parents house and into our own. He'll have a fenced yard to run around in and all.

I just don't know what else to do at this point. Puppy class starts May 11, so I'm hoping some of that will resolve some of his behavioral issues.

Thanks in advance.

No advice?

Anyone?


Bueller?

bump, also have this problem

Sometimes, members on here incorrectly label the behavior their dog is exhibiting as "aggression".

To better understand exactly what is happening, it is pretty important to note the behavior/body language of your pup leading up to he snapping (i.e. cowaring away, hiding behind you, or between your legs, hackles up, showing teeth, tail between the legs) <--all signs of a scared dog. Proper body language would be ears erects, or back slightly, hackles down, and tail wagging. It isn't unheard of, but at 3.5 months old, it is pretty unlikely that your dog is being truly aggressive with those kids, especially considering the other things you mentioned about him being mouthy with you. It is more likely he was a bit overstimulated in the situation, overtired, or underexercised.

How long have you had your pup? How old was he when you took him from the breeder?

Without answers to those questions, I can't really help on the park scenario, so I will tackle the nipping, or try.

With your dog's history of biting and nipping, and the extent that you let it happen (tearing up your coat), it sounds like he needs to learn bite inhibition, and how. There are a large variety of tactics, and some will suggest others are better, worse, etc. Avoid aversive methods (fancy word for hitting). A lot of people are a fan of the yelp and ignore method, as I will call it. As soon as any nipping happens, whether it be skin or a coat, or a pant leg, yelp like a scared, hurt dog, and immediately ignore him completely, no eye contacts, no talking to him. This method would work better inside, as it will be easier to separate yourself from him (i.e. put him in time out in the bathroom, kitchen, anywhere he is annexed). Do NOT put him in the crate as punishment, as this is his safe haven, and if he associates the crate with discipline it can set back crate training. Since your pup loves the attention so much, if he realizes he is isolated when he bites, it will probably curb the behavior fairly quickly.

I personally prefer the "hey, i'm the boss, you better stop that" strategy, but some may deem it a little too stern. However, it worked for me and my girl, and she is still the sweetest thing ever, and is not scared of me at all. when she would nip, i would get 2 fingers and a thumb around her muzzle (DO NOT squeeze and make them yelp!), look her dead in the eyes, and bark "watch your mouth!". She quit nipping quick. It isn't painful to her, just uncomfortable. Some dogs need that stern reminder, some don't. Whatever method you decide to use, be consistent, and be quick. Don't let a little nipping happen first, it needs to be swift, as soon as the unwanted behavior occurs.

As with all dogs, every one on here who knows what they are talking about will advise you to incorporate Nothing in Life is Free training (NILIF). This is making the dog work for anything and everything. Treats, playtime, affection, breakfast, lunch, dinner. I incorporporate this by, making Keeonah sit and wait for all meals, and she cannot go to her food until I give her release command. Same with going through doors to the outside world, sitting and calmly waiting while I get her collar and leash on, making her do a trick or command before treats or toy throwing. The idea is to help him understand that you are the be all and end all for anything that your pup desires, and he must adhere to your structured way of life to get what he wants. Using this method of obedience training will help your dog be more well-rounded in all aspects of his life, because he will start looking to you to take the lead. This will be very important as he he gets older and even more strong willed in his teenage stage. I am no good at linking thinga on here but a quick search for NILIF should yield plenty of results.


I am going to take a stab here and suggets that the problem that arose at the park was a combination of overstimulation, and fear based behavior. I will assume that you had him on a leash, and I will assume that the little boys approached him, probably quickly, probably loudly. Because your pup is confined to the space allowed on the leash, and these strange little boys (closer to his size than adults), were invading his space, he did what is only natural for an animal. He couldnt flight, so he had to fight. He doesnt understand much at 3.5 months old. He doesn't think the same way humans do, he reacts out of instinct.

Socializing is very important, and assuming your pup was/is all the way up to date on shots, it's a good thing to take him to events like that. However, in those situations, it is important to set your pup up for success.

When I was socializing Keeonah, we would go to the park (literally 10 feet from my front door.) I put her on a tie out hooked to a tree. The kids absolutely adore her, because she is a SNOW DOG WEEHEEEE! Anyways, they all wanted to say hi, but instead of letting them mob her, and overwhelm her, they each had to go one at the time. Calmly, quietly, I let them get into her radius of travel, and then stop. It was important that she approach them. I always let them have a treat, or a couple pieces of kibble, and they would calmly offer it as a peace offering to her (THIS is where a soft mouth is very important! Dogs can be trained to take treats softly from the hand). She would approach them, take the treat and instantly have a new best friend. If she got a little over-anxious, I would ask the kids to back up a ways, and I would go calm her down and get her to sit before letting them go again. It slowly desensitized her to children, and she loves them all now, and is actually quite gentle with them.

Sorry for a long winded posts, just trying to tackle all of your questions. And please, take everything I said at face value and with a grain of salt. I don't know you, and have never met your pup, so I am only going by what I can deduct from your post.

I have had Mishka since he was 8.5 weeks old. I'm assuming he did not get enough socialization from his breeder nor learn bite inhibition enough from his littermates and mom. That is something I was not happy to find out after I had already brought him home.

I do use NILIF training. I make him sit and wait at meal times, for treats, etc. I think I need to bump up the training when it comes to toys and going outside. Though I do make him sit before taking him outside, I need to take it beyond just those scenarios.

I've tried the yelping and ignoring, holding his muzzle, etc. None of it seems to work but I'm thinking it's really just me not doing something right or just letting my frustration get the better of me. I haven't had a puppy in so long and dealing with his biting/mouthiness during a time where I am just incredibly stressed out with other personal things going on.

I'm hoping that formal classes/training can help ME with how to handle his training and teach me not to get frustrated, etc. when things aren't going the way I would like them to. I need more training than he does I'm sure.


The park thing is a bit iffy. I should have policed the kids more. I understand my mistake with that. What I am not understanding is him being okay with kids 1-3 but snapping at kid 4 & 5. You know? Next time I just need to pay more attention to his body language. He was laying on the ground, the kids were very gentle with him. Though the first boy he snapped at may have startled him (sticking finger/hand in his ear). The second I'm not sure what happened since it happened so quickly. It definitely is something that we need to work on.

I definitely do appreciate your input!

I wouldn't call it aggression either. It is more likely defensive behavior and comes down to him being young and not understanding appropriate responses. Just like little kids, some learn quicker than other to share their toys, other kids the same age may decide if you take their toy that is grounds for them to attack....

In public places, until your boy learns his manners, keep him muzzled. Then there is no danger of an accidental nip turning into an argument for euthanization. Huskies are mouthy breeds, period. Having regular puppy play dates (preferably with other huskies who play the same way, will help.) Vixen used us as human chew toys until we brought Zelda home. Now they take turns dragging eachother around the kitchen by their ears anc legs and our arms and legs are left alone. To them, it is play, and the fact that you do not have a protective fur layer is ireelevant to them.

The mouthiness does start to lesson around 4-5 months tho, so just hang in there. You don't have a vicious dog on your hands, you just have a typical husky pup. It will be just fine.

simplify wrote:

The park thing is a bit iffy. I should have policed the kids more. I understand my mistake with that. What I am not understanding is him being okay with kids 1-3 but snapping at kid 4 & 5. You know? Next time I just need to pay more attention to his body language. He was laying on the ground, the kids were very gentle with him. Though the first boy he snapped at may have startled him (sticking finger/hand in his ear). The second I'm not sure what happened since it happened so quickly. It definitely is something that we need to work on.

I definitely do appreciate your input!

Just one thought here, but 4&5 year old kids are a lot different then 1-3 year olds. They move faster, are bigger, more coordinated, but also more spastic. Sometimes even louder. And less in control/restricted by parents. A mom of a 2 year old will be paying closer attention and stop the kid from yelling 'doggy' and running up to your pup. Also dogs just don't generalize well, just like the first time my cats saw me wear glasses instead of contacts... they were freaked out for a few days until they realized that yes, i AM actually the same person...

We had problems with mouthiness when Kairi was a puppy as well. She was an attacker of feet, shoes, and pant legs, especially when we would first get home from work. We found that she only really did this for attention and it was never enough to break the skin or leave any marks but those puppy teeth are sharp! We use the NLIF for Kairi but for the mouthy issue we would ignore her completely. If she got mouthy we would say no loudly and give her a chance to correct herself. If it continued we would physically separate ourselves from her by going in a different room and closing the door or putting her in a different room and closing the door. Being the red headed diva that she is she would of course throw a crying husky fit, but once she calmed down we would come back out and try again. When she would approach us without the foot attack and sit then we would give her attention, or affection or whatever she was after. It took some time and persistence but she rarely does it at all now and she is a year and three months or so now. I will also say that when we got our second husky, Kaya, who is possibly a year older than Kairi (no one is really sure she is a rescue) all of that pretty much stopped completely. Any time Kairi even comes near our feet to lick or do anything mischievous Kaya corrects her and they get most of their playing energy out on each other.

Don't give up and stick with it...things will get better!

Mschwax wrote:

I wouldn't call it aggression either. It is more likely defensive behavior and comes down to him being young and not understanding appropriate responses. Just like little kids, some learn quicker than other to share their toys, other kids the same age may decide if you take their toy that is grounds for them to attack....

In public places, until your boy learns his manners, keep him muzzled. Then there is no danger of an accidental nip turning into an argument for euthanization. Huskies are mouthy breeds, period. Having regular puppy play dates (preferably with other huskies who play the same way, will help.) Vixen used us as human chew toys until we brought Zelda home. Now they take turns dragging eachother around the kitchen by their ears anc legs and our arms and legs are left alone. To them, it is play, and the fact that you do not have a protective fur layer is ireelevant to them.

The mouthiness does start to lesson around 4-5 months tho, so just hang in there. You don't have a vicious dog on your hands, you just have a typical husky pup. It will be just fine.

I never once thought he was vicious, nor have I ever really thought he was aggressive in an overall manner. I think it truly is a misunderstanding and misuse of the word aggressive in this case and more of a defensive issue. I've never been around huskies before so I know their "normal" behavior is particularly different from other dogs, but I don't know exactly what is to be expected.

As soon as he's completely done with shots I'll try to take him to more places to socialize with other dogs. That's just not something that's doable right now. I'm not afraid to take him out to parks and stuff, but I won't frequent a dog park or anything like that. I don't live in an area where there is such a thing. The nearest ones are over an hour away and the good ones have fees and quite a few rules to abide by that I won't be able to comply until he's closer to the 6-8 month age.

wpskier222 wrote:

Just one thought here, but 4&5 year old kids are a lot different then 1-3 year olds. They move faster, are bigger, more coordinated, but also more spastic. Sometimes even louder. And less in control/restricted by parents. A mom of a 2 year old will be paying closer attention and stop the kid from yelling 'doggy' and running up to your pup. Also dogs just don't generalize well, just like the first time my cats saw me wear glasses instead of contacts... they were freaked out for a few days until they realized that yes, i AM actually the same person...

Lol. That's funny about the glasses. Any time we bring something new into the house our cat acts like that too. It's pretty funny.

Yeah I'm not really around kids so I don't really see how they act / interact with dogs / see how they move, etc. I definitely get that though and it makes a lot of sense.

KairiLA wrote:

We had problems with mouthiness when Kairi was a puppy as well. She was an attacker of feet, shoes, and pant legs, especially when we would first get home from work. We found that she only really did this for attention and it was never enough to break the skin or leave any marks but those puppy teeth are sharp! We use the NLIF for Kairi but for the mouthy issue we would ignore her completely. If she got mouthy we would say no loudly and give her a chance to correct herself. If it continued we would physically separate ourselves from her by going in a different room and closing the door or putting her in a different room and closing the door. Being the red headed diva that she is she would of course throw a crying husky fit, but once she calmed down we would come back out and try again. When she would approach us without the foot attack and sit then we would give her attention, or affection or whatever she was after. It took some time and persistence but she rarely does it at all now and she is a year and three months or so now. I will also say that when we got our second husky, Kaya, who is possibly a year older than Kairi (no one is really sure she is a rescue) all of that pretty much stopped completely. Any time Kairi even comes near our feet to lick or do anything mischievous Kaya corrects her and they get most of their playing energy out on each other.

Don't give up and stick with it...things will get better!

I'm definitely not giving up, which is why I'm posting here! Lol. It truly is very frustrating to deal with and I think *I* just need to try harder. It does just feel that nothing is working and I know it's going to take time. I'm really hoping to get some guidance for myself as to where to take this behavior into the right direction.

I wish I had a playmate for him but as of right now there is no way I'm getting another dog (let alone puppy) anytime soon! Haha.

Thank you!

If he's really going at you like that he needs to be put back in the kennel. It will only take a few times for him to realize how much that sucks.

My own Mishka used to be very mouthy when I first got her. I have pictures of the first day meeting her and my arms were raw and red from her mouthing me. She was 5 months old at the time. When it came time to come out of her crate I had her sit and stay seated until I realsed her from the crate. Having a good wait and release is really beneficial (such as car doors or front doors.) If she came flying out and started to go for my pants or my legs I would say "oh no" and put her back in the crate and walk out. Removing yourself from the situation is the biggest most important part of breaking this mouthy crap. Block view of yourself by means of a door or in the other room. You just have to be consistent and show him that biting you gives him no benefit and he gets left alone.

With the kids... I can see how you want him to be OK with children but you have to respect that he is a young puppy with no real manners and he was being pushed pretty far. To him- snapping is an appropriate response as that's what he would do if it was another puppy or dog poking him in the ears or biting him. To us- it's obviously not appropriate. And we need to be there and step in before such an event could happen. Dogs are animals. I love my dogs to death and trust them with my own life. I get on the floor with them, bite their ears, growl at them, stick my fingers in their mouth.. whatever! And they love it. Because it's a game we play and they TRUST me. But if we were out in public and some small child came up and started to poke at my dogs you better believe I would be right over there, picking up my dog and walking off with them storming over to their inconsiderate parent. You have to be your dogs protector. Getting them used to weird things like handling their feet, sticking your fingers in their mouth is great- but they're still animals and as such they're still unpredictable. We just have to constantly be on guard and read their body signals for when they've had enough or are getting frustrated. It's just part of being a dog owner.




ETA: If it helps, when I take Ewe out in public specifically to work with him I have a smock type of thing he wears which is bright yellow. On it is printed "IN TRAINING- ASK TO PET." Usually even little kids understand that he's wearing something serious- not a shirt.

My only real suggestion is to find what motivates him. It's how we trained Tika to heel, with kibble. If he is focused on watching you with food, then you can work on the commands. So for example if he is food motivated at all, once you take him outside make him sit right away, when he does, reward, then walk a few steps, praise and reward if he follows your lead without biting or freaking out.
If he does start to nip, dont let him just jump up and grab your pants etc. You have to interrupt the behaviour sharply and firmly. We would use a solid poke and get say NO. Start again when he's calm. We had a walk around the block last for a looong time when she was misbehaving. Plan your walk accordingly.
For the crating, we would make Tika sit calmy in the crate, and open the door, she wasn't allowed to come out until we felt she was calm, if this means putting him in and waiting it out its what you have to do. I understand this is frustrating, and it will definitly take a lot of work, but you have to get this habit broken now.
As far as kids go, I would introduce to calm children, and ask them to ignore him until he calms down. Once he does, they can pet him, if they pet him while he's in an excited state it will lead to more nipping and snapping. Also when a child approadhes, don't be afraid to ask them to not pet him. Really in my opinion all kids should be taught never to approach a dog without asking. You can explain that you are training him and would prefer they keep away and only look because he has to learn to stay calm, this has worked with us a few times.

Don't know if any of this will apply but it was a few things that helped us.
Good luck
Kelly

Thank you guys for all the great advice!!

I think I was definitely pushing him too hard when I took him out Sunday and next time I'll definitely police it better when it comes to kids (and adults) coming up to him and petting him.

I'm also going to be more consistent with him biting by locking myself away in another room. It just is hard because most of the time he starts this outside and nothing I do will get him to calm down. I have literally grabbed him up and brought him inside to lock him behind a baby gate. I just hope this starts to get him to understand sooner because I won't be able to pick him up much longer. Lol.

mine has a lot of these issues nipping and shows signs of aggression/ defensive, and wonder what ended up working for every one, if we do the yelp and ignore she (my rikku) is too quick to not care .. she has an a.d.d mind haha, a lot of it is trying to train bite inhabition and we have tried time out but i feel like her time out isnt doing anything and i know shes very young (8 weeks) but i also fear that time out may make her just hate me. and i have been doing the NILIF training with her

The time out will not make her hate you, I promise.

When Mishka bites me, I walk away from him. If he continues to try to nip / bite while following me, I will turn my back to him and stop. He gets no attention from me. It takes about 2 seconds for him to get bored and walk away. If he's really being a shit about it, I will put him in time out in the kitchen behind a baby gate. He is getting tons better, but it is a slow process. I wasn't able to really give him time outs for a while until I moved out of my parents house, but you just have to be consistent with them. They are smart and will learn, it just takes time and patience.

Good luck!

yea she has shown (very) little progress over the past week with time outs, i just dont like putting her in time out for her just nipping and trying to play but when i yelp it means to her " man makes sound, i must attack more) lol... if i stand up ignore and turn then her mind goes " bite him, bite him, oh he stood up....fuzz in carpet, attack, oh ball attack, oh idk what it is but attack " literally each object she sees gets her attention for 5 seconds then its on to the next lol... so ignoring her is almost worthless lol...

With age Mishka got better, when he was smaller most everything was worthless. Time outs were the only thing that helped, but like I said you just have to be consistent with it. It's really a PITA, but it's honestly the only thing that helped him get to the point he his now where he's not constantly biting me at every point in the day.

haha i will hold strong then, thanks for the hope for the future lol

I think that's pretty much how all husky puppies are. Mine was, he was like a wild animal when I brought him home. He's a lot better now, and mostly just bites as a greeting when I come home from work or in the morning. I think with him its an excitement thing. He gets over a certain threshold of excitement and just can't help but bite, and its a lot more gentle then it used to be and a quick no will make him stop, he's like 'oh yeah. oops'. Now I would call it a love bite. Before, I looked like I owned a psycho cat, which I do, but it wasn't his fault this time. Time out helped him a lot, I understand you feel like its not making a difference, but it will eventually, and yes they want to do something new every 3 seconds, they are babies. For Dizzy, it helped because it would calm him back down below the crazy threshold, sometimes, he would literally be out of his crate for two minutes, bite me and have to go back in for 5 min. It was constant, but he's much better now, its still a work in progress, I'd like to stop the greeting bite, but I am happy with how much better he's getting.

it very well could be just how puppies are, its been so long since ive had a puppy i dont recall my last puppy being this mouthy. for the most part she is only really mouthy with me, shes a more gentle with the gf, and she is completely gentle (so far) with strangers... so maybe she just sees me and thinks its play time! lol

Yep. Same with Dizzy when I first brought him home. I was complaining to my hubby about it one day and he succinctly said, "Yeah, but they're all potential suckers." True enough lol.

that is true, rikku is a big ol sweatheart (or little 10pounds lol) when she wants to be but usually she is a feisty one who thinks life is her chew toy...lol...