Playing with your dog is one of the most relaxing activities for a pet parent, but it would be better if they stopped biting or chewing your limbs. Getting play-bitten by an adult dog can be more painful than by a puppy, and their jaws can cause injury. Getting your dogs to stop biting is more difficult in adult dogs because they are more difficult to control and aren’t as sensitive to human reactions.
How can you minimize your dog’s nipping?
Dogs love spending their time chewing, playing, and investigating new objects and territory. Puppies generally nip at our fingers, trying to learn our human bodies better with their teeth. While this behavior is cute for a puppy, it can be excruciating when your dog has grown up.
There are several methods that you can opt for to counteract this behavior. However, it requires patience and assertiveness from your side to get your dog to stop biting your skin. The best way to learn how to train your dog can be to enroll in an online dog training course that will teach you how to listen to your dog’s cues and behaviors and train him in a fun, playful manner.
Teach your dog to be gentle:
As your dog’s master, your first goal is to make him understand that you have sensitive skin and that your dog can hurt you when play-biting. Whenever your dog bites on your skin, make a big yelping sound to let him know that he hurt you. When your dog stops biting or licking you, immediately praise him.
Distract him:
Another great idea to get your dog to stop biting is by substituting your hand for a chew bone or a toy that your dog can bite on instead. Immediately withdraw your fingers and point him to the substitute, letting him know that while it’s okay to chew on them, it’s not okay to chew on your hand.
If your dog has a habit of nipping your hands when you pet him or scratch him, you can choose to distract the behavior by giving him treats with the other hand. This can get your dog used to being scratched without biting you.
Teach impulse control:
To master the art of training your dog to stop biting you, you have to teach him to follow simple commands such as sit, stay, and leave it. Training your dog to obey you without fail can be challenging, so you can seek out online dog training courses to help you train your canine better.
Give your dog a time-out:
Every time your dog bites you too hard, yelp, and then ignore him for a minute or two. If your dog follows you, leave the room. When the short time-out period is over, calmly start playing with your dog again.
Getting play-bitten by an adult dog can be painful, but by training him to play better with you, you can build a stronger bond with you, and both of you can enjoy the play-time. Such training is beneficial to your pooch’s mind and helps you become a better friend to your dog.
A professional writer with over a decade of incessant writing skills. Her topics of interest and expertise range from health, nutrition and psychology.
