And today we're going to discuss the dangers of

allowing puppy biting, the importance of playing

correctly, and how to stop the unwanted biting behavior.

It's normal and even cute when your puppy nibbles and lunges

at your hands.

Since your puppy has been exposed only other puppies in

the litter who naturally play with biting and mouthing, it

would make perfect sense why he would assume that playing

with you wouldn't be different.

But as puppies' teeth grow and their bodies become stronger,

what was once cute nibbling eventually turns into

uncomfortable or even dangerous

rough play and bites.

Since biting is an unacceptable type of play,

it's important to teach your pup how to enjoy playing games

with toys instead of your hand.

Playing is a healthy, natural activity that helps build the

bond between you and your puppy.

This also affects your puppy's trainability--

sitting, waiting, learning tricks, not pulling on the

leash, even to stop biting.

Before teaching your puppy not to bite, it's important to

train your puppy to decrease bite pressure.

Allow your puppy to begin mouthing and

nibbling at your hand.

When he bites down hard yell "Ouch!" so he's startled and

stops for a second.

Continue allowing him to mouth your hand, making sure to

speak up every time he bites too hard, so your puppy can

learn your threshold for what is acceptable and what isn't.

Once your puppy understand your feedback about the

strength of his bite, you can begin to reduce biting.

The best way to teach your puppy not to bite is to

redirect him to a toy or a chew bone.

Simply give your dog a firm no and replace whatever he was

biting with something he is allowed to chew.

If your puppy is three to six months old, there's a good

chance he may be teething.

So he might be trying to reduce discomfort by chewing.

Try giving him an ice cube to chew on.

It'll numb his gums and help alleviate the pain.

My favorite trick is to get puppies to stop biting is to

exaggerate and pretend they've injured me, their friend.

By pretending their nip actually hurt you by putting

your hand away, yelling ouch, and stop playing, you're

replicating what other litter mates would do if another

puppy were to cause them pain.

Managing and controlling puppy biting problems can be a major

challenge for dog lovers.

Puppy biting or nipping starts out as a bit of fun but needs

to be controlled quickly to avoid ongoing problems.

Training your dog depends on a good relationship built on

love and trust. It takes time to build a working

partnership.

And the more time and patience you have with your puppy from

day one, the more obedient he'll be.

Dogs want to please.

I'm Kathy Santo for Iams with Howdini, and I hope that you

found this helpful as you welcome your new addition to

your family.

For more information about puppy training, visit

iams.com/puppy.