# 5 month old biter and more



## FinnTastic (Apr 20, 2009)

Thank you in advance to responding to this thread. We have a five month old golden and have had him since January. My husband and I have both had dogs while growing up but this is our first golden. We are having a real issue with biting, lunging, growling, and snarling on a daily basis. I think most of it is directed towards me. We have tried the following methods with no luck: ignoring, yelping, saying ouch, turning around, holding his tongue, using spray, and shaking a loud object. Nothing seems to work and I'm getting really frustrated and upset. He is an avid humper too. He was fixed in February but stills humps me and my coat, that is hanging on the chair, many times a day. We just graduated puppy class and are planning on taking intermediate class in May at the next available session. He does OK with commands but not when he is being aggressive. I was taking him for a daily walk but he has recently started taking the leash pulling and growling with it. The trainer said to step on the leash and tell him leave it. He does do this but will grab it again as soon as we start walking. He will even bite and lunge at me after one of these incidents. We also have a dog area where I try to take him a couple of times a day if I can. He only sniffs around in there. He doesn't want to play fetch or run around. He does like to find sticks and try to eat them. I'm not sure what to do next. We really need some advice on this issue. Thanks


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## Oaklys Dad (Dec 28, 2005)

Welcome to the forum. It sounds like you have a very normal golden puppy there. About the only thing I didn't notice you had tried for biting was substituting an appropriate toy for your hand. It does take time and everyone in your family has to be consistent with the method. Another thing you can try is to sit on the floor and hand feed him his meals. This will help establish you as the leader. Good luck to you.


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## FinnTastic (Apr 20, 2009)

Thanks for the reply. I did do the substituting a toy and are in the process of hand feeding b/c we had one incident with food aggression.


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

You might want to try NILF , Nothing in Life is free. He has to work for everything he gets so he understands you are the boss. There is a website.. many here have used it.

It's hard to tell from posts whether it is normal puppy behavior or if he is being aggressive toward you. ask your trainer about seeing a behaviorist. she would be the best one to know since she has witnessed him showing the behavior toward you right?


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## pburchins (Mar 11, 2009)

Finntastic,

I can read your frustration. We have a 3 month old and we are going through similar things. We are taking some advice from Cesar Milan and his statement about exercise, discipline and affection. This is starting to work well for us and we are noticing a change for the positive. Exercising the puppy twice a day for 30 minutes has caused a huge change. One it is making him follow us. We never allow him to be in the lead position. We walk fast and keep the hand that is hold leash behind the hip to keep him in a following position. 

After the exercise, we work on the commands. Sit, lie down, give paw, roll over and belly rub. We are going to start stay this week. The Belly Rub one sounds silly but it puts him in a submissive position along with the give paw one.

Training while drained certainly has an impact. It takes away "fang" (our pet name for our puppy while in psycho mode) while training. I know you are having problems with the walk. Perhaps, shortening up the leash so there is no slack to bite or if you have a retractable leash let him walk behind you while loose on the leash. Treats or kibble to get him to follow. High praise-good boy. Whatever it takes to motivates him to follow. 

Also, take away any tug or pull type toys for awhile. This promotes aggressive dominant type attitude towards you. Also, if he disrespects you then you are the one who will have to solve this and put the extra attention towards him. We lost our 13 year old Golden in February and he was an absolute great dog, however, he was a pain in the first year. He did not respect our 6 year old son and he knocked him down and barked and such. We had been through the puppy class and the training class. The trainer had a lifetime training warranty with the dog and we called her. We put our 6 year old in the group classes with the pup and he became a better dog for it. Riker followed every order of our youngest for the rest of his life. In fact, he listened better to him than me sometimes. LOL

We keep stating "a tired puppy is a tame puppy" It is a good motto to live by especially now!

Best of Luck !


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## FinnTastic (Apr 20, 2009)

Thanks for the advice. I never thought of working on commands after walking him. I think I will try that. I also think walking at a brisker pace may help us. I'm leisuerly walker .....not on purpose. It just happens sometimes.
I have been doing the "puppy push-ups" with him when I feed him. It really makes him work for those morsels that he craves so much. Do you think that is a good idea? 
Now, we're starting to make him sit or go to a down position in order for us to pet him. We were already doing sit stay for food, doors, and crate. 
Finn (that's his name) is starting to chew the handles of my purse? Do you think this is a teething issue or something more? He likes to chew his leash too, but that has been going on for awhile.


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## Doodle (Apr 6, 2009)

At 5 months, definately teething going on and he will look to chew anything and everything. Redirecting him to appropriate toys is especially important now. To help sooth his discomfort, you can buy him a teething toy that you freeze, or just tie a facecloth in a knot, wet it and put it in the freezer. I like the puppy push-ups...used that a lot with Brady when he was a young pup.


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## Doodle (Apr 6, 2009)

BTW, the humping may be him trying to establish dominance over you. I would talk to your trainer about the best way to address that.


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## pburchins (Mar 11, 2009)

FinnTastic said:


> Thanks for the advice. I never thought of working on commands after walking him. I think I will try that. I also think walking at a brisker pace may help us. I'm leisuerly walker .....not on purpose. It just happens sometimes.
> I have been doing the "puppy push-ups" with him when I feed him. It really makes him work for those morsels that he craves so much. Do you think that is a good idea?
> Now, we're starting to make him sit or go to a down position in order for us to pet him. We were already doing sit stay for food, doors, and crate.
> Finn (that's his name) is starting to chew the handles of my purse? Do you think this is a teething issue or something more? He likes to chew his leash too, but that has been going on for awhile.


Puppy push ups are great. We did them early on and it makes them work for it and it is fun watching them do it. A brisker pace is a good idea. The walk is about them and not you. They need to the brisk for both physical and mental health. 

Regarding the chewing..... Have you gotten Finn a Kong ? If not, you need to get one at a pet store or online. It will save you many purse handles and shoes. You put treats inside this cylindrical shaped rub cone. They will chew and chew and chew trying to get the treat out. Our first golden would chew for an hour on one. It will be the best $ 15 you could spend. Peanut butter and bread works well inside them.

Good Luck and let us know how things are progressing !


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## zippybossrock (Jan 12, 2008)

Excuse my ignorance.....but, what are puppy push ups?


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## pburchins (Mar 11, 2009)

zippybossrock said:


> Excuse my ignorance.....but, what are puppy push ups?



Here is a link of Riley doing his puppy push up at 8 weeks old. 

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...authkey=Gv1sRgCOiQlrb55ZammgE&feat=directlink


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## FinnTastic (Apr 20, 2009)

Thanks everyone. We do have a kong that I use daily. I freeze treats in water and stick those in the Kong for him. I also have frozen rope and washcloths. He isn't a big fan of that. We are contemplating putting him into doggy day care twice a week. What does everyone think about that. 
We have actually finished training class and the other one does not start for another couple of weeks, so I can't talk to them about the humping issue. I have been moving him off of me and leaving me hands on his front shoulder blades until I feel that he is calm. Then, if I have them on hand, I will give him a treat. It doesn't always work but it is something. He is still biting and I have some nice bruises on my arms from him. I started actually leaving the house when he does that. I tried leaving the room, but he wasn't that bothered about that. I think actually going out the front door is a little more effective for him. I'm not sure how much it is helping though.


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