# My puppy won't stop biting me...especially my face :(



## Tanya848

Hi everyone,

I am the proud owner of a 10 week old golden retriever. He is adorable, and can at times be very sweet. But I'm getting to the point where I am absolutely stressed out because I'm not sure what to do with him. 

Anytime I try to play with him, cuddle with him, etc. he bites my arms and will lunge at my hair and my face - it HURTS. When I pull him away from me he'll immediately attack my feet or pants. 
There is never a moment where he doesn't seem to be biting me. 

I've tried everything - from "whimpering", to tapping him on the nose and yelling no, to holding his mouth together and saying no firmly. I have also tried to give him his toys when it happens, but that doesn't work either. I've also tried ignoring him and all of them seem just to warrant more and more "attacks" which include him growling at me. He is also trying to hump me already and I don't let him get away with that either. 

I have had puppies in the past before (all goldens and labs) but none of them have ever reacted to me in this way. 

I've had him for 2 weeks now, and his behavior only seems to be worsening and obviously, his bites are becoming much harder. I don't know what to do. I find now I'm losing my patience with him, and I'm spending a lot of time watching him from the couch which is extremely frustrating to me because all I want to do is play with him and form some type of bond with him. I'm at my wits end...I spend everyday with him (I'm a grad student so I'm always home studying). I want this to be a great experience for both of us...but I just don't know what to do, and I don't know if he's going to grow out of this. 

I know that puppies bite, but the amount of biting seems to be excessive.

Thank you - any help or suggestions would be appreciated.


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## Bender

He may not be a good candidate for 'roughousing' type play - so avoid that. The next time he's acting like that you can try putting him in a 'time out' in the bathroom, in his crate or an xpen or something - so the game is over instantly. It does sound like he's a bit of a handful so it might be worthwhile to get a private lesson with a trainer in the house asap to get some hands on help with how to deal with these 'attacks'. It could also be he's tired and needs more downtime and when he's acting that way it's because he's overtired - puppies need a lot of rest. Or it could be he's not burning off enough energy and needs more play.

If he's ignoring your yelps, taps on the nose and saying 'no' then chances are he's assuming that's all part of the game.


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## FlyingQuizini

Get a 12" bully stick and work on him chewing that when he's near you and ideally, you want some down-time. Most all dogs are willing to hunker down and chew a bully stick. Sometimes you have to work it a little bit... he comes off the bone and tries to chew your hands... a quiet "eh eh" and you redirect him to the stick. Lots of slow, quiet, calm praise when he's chewing. If you've really tried to get him on the stick and he's rejected it there times in favor of chewing you, then a simple time out is fine. 

When you crate for the time out, understand that he's not in trouble, so just matter of factly put him in the crate. You're giving him a physiological cooling off period.


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## bioteach

Nugget is just 17 weeks now; and when he was 10 weeks he was like that too. We were also at wit's end (my hands and arms are just about healed now) and we just firmly said "NO" and turned our backs on him and gave him the silent treatment. It took a while; but he eventually began to realize that biting us was not the way to play. 

Patience! A month later and Nugget is sweet and loving. Chewies help too.


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## Alfie's Girl

Ahh I remember those days!  Boy did I have a rough time with the biting too! Good news though - they do grow out of it!

Giving your pup a time out is a good way to go for you both - you'll be doing it for months, but don't worry it's totally normal. Over time you'll see an improvement - just be as consistent as you can in whatever method you use. You obviously want him to know that biting is bad and when he bites he doesn't get to be with you, but it's also a matter or time and your boy maturing. It'll happen slowly but you'll start to notice that gradually you can spend more time with him where he's not trying to eat you up! Although don't be alarmed if it gets worse before it gets better -the biting and the naughty behavior! 

You'll see - this time next year this'll be a fleeting memory!


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## RedDogs

Get in a good puppy class AND a good basic training class ASAP.

Do not put your face near your puppy. Do not pull away when he bites... (Yes, it does hurt!). Pulling away can: 1) make him want to chase/play/tug/have fun 2) It can cause more damage to you. You will want to remove your hand as quickly and calmly as you can.

A training class will show you how to do appropriate games and interactions. The bully stick idea above is fabulous too!


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## Davika

I have found a website that gives great advice for new puppies and behavior issues. In fact, the trainers we are using suggest this site. It might work for you. It's Dog Star Daily. I do agree with puppy classes and training. We put Boomer into classes right away after getting his shots and health certificate from the vet, who agreed it was a good idea to do so. Best of luck to you!


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## Debles

I agree that as soon as he has all his vacs, get into a puppy class.
Put him on a leash so you have more control and use the crate for time outs. Does he have bones and antlers? Antlers saved my life during this phase. Our pup is now almost 6 months but is still wanting to teeth on me. We use a firm"NO BITE" but my arm was black and blue for awhile . (He'd always get me when I was on the phone!)
Do you Bitter Apple? If not spray your arms and hands when you are around him (don't get it in your eyes!)
Good Luck.. keep telling your self he will outgrow this.. it's temporary!!


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## GoldenOlive

Olive sounds just like this puppy, she's the same age and also is more interested in biting me than anything else. I want to try using her pen as a time-out but I'm wondering if I should not have toys in with her and also how long do I keep her in time-out?


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## diane0905

Luke nipped me enough I thought I was going to cry at times. He didn't nip my face, but he loved my pajama pants -- back of my calves, etc.

He stopped. He's just a sweet puppy. Luke is 7.5 months now (about) -- maybe closer to 8 -- can't remember. I also don't remember the last time he nipped me, but it was probably around six months or so. At his highest teething moment, I looked in his mouth once and felt like I was in the middle of a horror movie. Lots of blood. 

Your puppy nips because he loves you and may be teething. He's just playing or trying to soothe his gums. He will grow out of it. Luke Loved chewing on a sock I wet, knotted and froze in the freezer. I think it made his gums feel much better.

When he teethes on your face, redirect him. Give him something he loves to chew.

Bitter apple worked great for me for things I did not want him to chew.


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## llshrigley

"Shugie" is 14 weeks old. She is a really sweet puppy. From day 1 we put stuffed animals and bully stix in her mouth to show her what she could bite. We yelp like her sibblings-really loud when she nips us and she is getting it. We tell her to get a luvy and she does. I think they just don't know how to play with us. We even play tug to help wear her out. If she nips us we stop right then and walk away. Play time is over for a few minutes. We praise her a lot for being gentle with us. We have been working on fetching the ball. It's a great game-they just want to please us, and it helps to tire them. My old dog of 15 years was a frizbee dog. I am hoping this little one will be too. Don't give up, it will get better. Be consistant with your correction. Hang in there!


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## boomers_dawn

I feel your pain, I went through "puppy hell" last year.

The best advice I got was put the puppy on a schedule - one hour in the crate, one hour out of the crate.
This is good for the puppy and good for YOU and your sanity.
Puppies are like babies. They need to be put on a schedule, they can't be out and overstimulated all the time. They need their rest and will behave better. 

I also agree with the redirection - if the puppy bites you, say no or "eh eh" then pop something "allowable" to chew - bully stick, chewie, teething bone, etc ... in their mouth and say "good" when they take it - repeat about a million times for what feels like eternity but will really only be a few weeks or months.

Good luck, let us know what you try and how it goes.


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