5.5 Month Old Lab Nipping/biting

[Staff'n'Toller]

If you want to PM me the name I can cross reference with a few Lab breeders I know of....if they are a registered breeder we should be able to get to the bottom of it.

Conversely you should be able to ring the Vet on the Vaccination card and explain that you have adopted this pup and you're trying to locate the breeder.

Mel.

[LoremIpsum]

I have a five month old Lab and she's delightful, but madcap. We started bite inhibition from day one and for months I thought it would never work. Then, suddenly, it clicked.

It's going to be a bit harder starting later, but you can still train her. The key is consistency. If you're going to yelp, yelp every time. We've been less consistent with jumping up (my bad) and whaddaya know? She's a terrible jumper-upper. Training is an ongoing process but labs generally enjoy it.

Your dog will want to please you — it's just a matter of letting her know what you want and teaching her how to do it. It takes a lot of work, but if your prepared to put that work in you'll have a great dog.

I had no idea what a big job puppy training would be. But the pay-off is a gorgeous, happy, fun-loving, water-obsessed, food-obsessed, cuddly, loving friend who I couldn't adore more.

[persephone]

The key is consistency. If you're going to yelp, yelp every time.

which is really tricky when there are young kids The adults may well be doing all the right things at the most appropriate times- but little kids cannot get the timing right, OR understand the reasoning behind it

[Clyde]

That's so true Persephone. I've got a 5 month old Stafford and a 3 yr old child and it's been a rough ride. Thankfully the pup is super smart even though the poor thing has been receiving mixed signals. I cant even do training with my 3yo at home as she then goes to try to copy me and the pup just gets confused.

In a perfect world there's consistency between owners, kids and dogs but here sometimes it's bedlam. I've put a lot of work in to the pup though and that is paying off, at last.

I think the key Samador is to not ever compare. It sounds as though you were very lucky with JP as a pup as most pups are hard work. I wouldn't go near a Lab pup with a ten foot pole, so don't ask me why I got a Stafford

[Kavik]

You also tend to forget how much work puppies are. My parents like to say how lovely and well behaved my previous dog Belle was, forgetting that she was a terror as a pup and even as an adult would raid the bin and was a shameless food thief.

[The Spotted Devil]

The key is consistency. If you're going to yelp, yelp every time.

which is really tricky when there are young kids The adults may well be doing all the right things at the most appropriate times- but little kids cannot get the timing right, OR understand the reasoning behind it

Oddly enough I've had that very same struggle with my OH, bless him

Edited October 27, 2008 by The Spotted Devil

[Monah]

Good post Huski.

I can only give an opinion on what I've read, so excuse me if I'm way off. I've had several gun dogs and presently have 2. Yes, the majority of them are very full on, mouthy pups. Usually, with consitancyor training every single time the dog mouths, this can be stopped within a week or so. i still have a very excitable dog who will mouth gently but we shove a toy in her mouth or growl. I really can't imagine just what you expected with a 5 month old lab. some are very good, but this is because of the hours and hours of training spent on them. On one hand you mention doing a lot of research, then that you did not realise how different gun dogs are to spitz breeds, or even that labs are gun dogs :D They almost couldn't be more different. It's also a little bit niave to think another samoyed will automatically be like the one you have now.

It would be very difficult for any pup to contain it's excitement with 2 toddlers running around noisily and having fun. maybe it is just too early for another dog in the house. You already have the perfect dog and 5 cats. My dogs actually love the company of our 4 cats, sleep and eat with them and even bring them toys. Maybe your dog is quite happy having the cats, 2 children and 2 adults as company. Not every dog needs or wants another dog around. I've never got a pet for another pet

We had very large dogs when my kids were toddlers who were also pups at the time, so I do understand, it really does take effort to train the KIDS and the dogs and it's bloody hard and tiring, but if you are up to it, very worth it Please don't ever leave a dog alone with toddlers or expect a young child to have any control over a dog, this is completely up to the adults. It greatly helps though if the kids can understand not to be overexcited or silly around the dog.

[Winterpaws]

I wont be getting another one right now anyway IF we do find her a home. IF we did, it would be a samoyed as i know the breed.

But thankyou... i am considering everything i really am.

And it won't be through me I can guarantee you that!

You give up on dogs too quickly and have rose coloured glasses when it comes to ownership. There is no way I would rehome to someone who rehomes dogs within 2 weeks at the first sign of an issue.

Congrats on finding a perfect puppy - let's hope your Sammy never develops any issues or we know what the outcome will be

Edited October 27, 2008 by Winterpaws

[Danois]

Christ - I have had my 13 week old puppy for 2 weeks now and I am still working on the bite inhibition but it is improving. Yeah I get frustrated as less than 18 months ago I trained Angs not to bite in a couple of days.

However there is no way in hell I would give Baloo up because of the fact he is still mouthing me.

I actually recognise that ME, MYSELF and I are solely responsible for this - I have not been as consistent with it as I should have been which means I have given confusing signals.

However I think the difference in my case is that I can recognise that the responsibility lies with me. I know there is no point in comparing him to Angs even though they are the same breed they have their own personalities.

I am loathe to say this as I think that you need to learn to take responsibility for your actions and not simply give up because you perceive it is too hard but perhaps in fairness to the puppy it is best you rehome it now. Poor thing already has had 3 homes in 5 months and deserves to be with a family who wants it. Unfortunately I can see this puppy being confined to the backyard to live out a bored lonely existence (and no doubt you would post about a lab with barks and digs) if you don't.

[Dame Aussie]

Our puppy was absolutely HECTIC with mouthing/biting.

A lot of the ideas such as yelping did not work with her, they would just excite her more but we kept trying....

She got a lot better but then started teething so went downhill again, She's 5 months now and we're still trying our best to be consistent and she IS improving. She will still mouth every now and then but not bite down hard and each day she gets a little better. We're almost at the point where she has stopped now and it has taken longer than I would have wanted but that was our fault not hers, we weren't consistent enough when we first got her.

I really think you are giving up too easily here, all puppies mouth and will continue to do so unless they are trained not too.

It could take you a month or even two but thats the whole point, you are responsible for training this puppy.

Don't expect it to be perfect....if you really don't think you can do this then i agree that you should probably re home it now while its still young enough to go to a family that can train it properly.

Good luck with whatever you decide

[crazy_puppy]

Samodor, hows the lil pup doing? any improvement? I wouldn't consider re-homing so soon, mouthing is very normal puppy behaviour but needs to be corrected straight away. Try one session with a private trainer, see how you go and then decide. My pup was mouthing excessively but thanks to a good trianer, he rarely does it any more, if you want her details let me know

[Samodor]

EVERYONE

Right, number one... when i first posted i made a brief mention that she may be better suited to a different family BECAUSE i am learning, IF YOU READ MY POST I ALSO ASK FOR HELP??? ADVICE?? KNOWLEDGE?? but the ones of you who have chosen to sit high up on your perfect soap box's have been so rude and quite frankly down right dis-respectful!!!! You have NO, and i repeat NO reason to treat me in this manner WHAT SO EVER... IF i had been here for ages and shown a habbit of homing a dog to only on-home it then fair enough but i have not and never would.

For the LAST TIME - Rusky, who i still adore and love was attacking our dog... whether us or our kids were around. I had NO WAY of keeping them seperate on a permanent basis. I resourced MANY opinion's from different perspective's and in the end we decided we didnt have the facilities to try and work it out with him.... IF our kids were not here, i would not have made that decision, i would of pursued and HOPED to high heaven he would eventually accept our dog. But facts are WE HAVE 2 KIDS UNDER 4!!! I stand by my decision, and i do not feel bad.... he is still in my family, he is happier than a pig in shit.... i saw him today and he couldnt have gotten to me quiker if he tried, and i had the biggest loves with him. I believe that EVERYTHING happens for a reason, i ALWAYS rescue animals, always hve always will... be it strays i find close to roads, or just needing a guide home. I cant cound how many night's i have spent door knocking trying to find the home's of various different dogs, or let them stay with me until we found thier owner's...... this goes for all animals too.. its just who i am. So i do not feel what happened with rusky was anything more than UNFORTUNATE but WAS WHAT NEEDED TO HAPPEN....

Then yes, i made a rash decision as i fell in love, i did what i thought was enough research but as i have said obviously not enough and now looking back yes, my decision was based more on my heart than head... but ofcourse you in particular winterpaws HAVE NEVER DONE THAT HAVE YOU????? ..... it was based on the fact Miss Daisey is just such a beautiful girl.....

You know what is p@ssing me off here and about the replies in this thread is, most of you (all those who were decent enough to see my post for what it was you are exempt of course), none of you have read my post properly, you have read and taken from it what you wanted. I wasnt thinking of taking her back, or re-homing her JUST becasue of that. I would never do that. NEVER!!!!! It was a case of, it was a concern, i quickly came to ask for advice, on the spot advice as to how to positivly deter her from doing it...... i made a brief mention and it was so bloody brief because i didnt even remember typing it and before i started here tonight i went to re-read. I would not of re-homed her for that...... not at all..... none of you actually bothered to find that out!

My J.P isnt perfect, he is digging, he is chewing all his toys and the kids one for that matter, but we dont care.... we love him for who he is and we areabout to book a trainer to come and do some in home session's with us.

So i wouldnt of done that..... not at all. My post at the start of this thread was because i needed to know how to deal with the behaviour she was displaying.... simple.... and i did not deserve what some of you have done and said.

Over the past week, i have been doing (YES WHAT I SHOULD OF DONE) alot of research... ALOT.. of the reading i wish'd i had done.. AND YES, I STUFFED UP... man who would of guessed i am human!!! But fact is, i can accept this, and i and my husband decided miss daisey's is better with another family, PURELY because we are samoyed people. NOT because of what she did, not at all..... i actually put in place some of the fantastic suggestion';s and she responded great, i actually got a good head way with her on sitting as well..especially at dinner time.. BUT fact is, i loved her and wanted her to be with a family who has had lab's and wanted a lab..... and i found the PERFECT ONE....

Yes, as a few of you said, i needed a wake up call, and your right.. i did.. and i have gotten it, recieved it and taken MANY notes!! This is a lesson learnt, and a lesson learnt well.... trust me. BUT tell me, how many of you can say you have neever made a mistake or done something without thinking it through 100%??? or being your on this forum youd be like me and be an animal person, never made a decison based on your heart and not your head?????? HONESTLY??

If ANY OF YOU, reply with you never have then i know 1. your lying or 2. you are just in denial and really not worth my reply.

I respect you are all animal lover's, as am i, .... i am just a animal lover who didnt think so clearly, and made a decision based on my heart, NOT my head......

We will be getting a samoyed puppy.... as i do know the breed and we adore our j.p.

Oh, for those who have said i am nieve for thinking all will be as easy as our J.P...... i never said he is easy.. AND, i have to disagree.... we spent alot, and i mean ALOT of time with other smaoyed's and thier owner's, from all over vic before we decided to get J.P! We researched so many different breed's but in the end decided on samoyed's and then we found our J.P, who yes was a bit older than a puppy, he was 6 months BUT.... he still came with bad habbits, such as digging and chewing on things as he was home alone all day in his previous home and recieved little training.... but, all the samoyed we spent time with had generally the same attitude to life, and although yes i realise we will have all the normal baby things to deal with when we get a samoyed pup, i am confident i do know what i am getting in the dog as a breed.... so, im sorry i do disagree.

The response's that have come to me here are dissapointing, and a few night's ago i decided i wouldnt have a thing to do with this forum again... but you know what, for the handful of you who i quite frankly will be more than happy to not have anything to do with again as i wouldnt waste my time... there has been more of you that have been supportive and offered FANTASTIC advice... and for all the people who have PM'd me and emailed me thier support against the on-slaught i copped in here, THANK YOU... i do and did appreciate your word's of support and advice VERY MUCH!

So, its on that note, i wont be ending my contribution.....

As for an update on the pup-

It is with my pleasure i can announce we found her a home that is PERFECT for her.... this family has been looking for a female lab around 6 months for awhile now and the right one just hadnt come along.... then they through a friend of our's found us and.... 'miss daisey' as we had called her .... They have had lab's and have trained them before so can start with her's straight away. I could go on forever how perfect she is for them and them for her... but i wont... it isnt important right now.

FACT IS- Rusky and Miss daisey are two TOTALLY DIFFERENT situation's, BY FAR! and have worked out how they are meant too..... as everything in life does... work out how it is meant too!!!!!

As for this thread, i am OVER AND OUT -

A HUGE THANK YOU TO EVERYONE, WHO AS I SAID HAS BEEN SUPPORTIVE OR OFFERED FANTASTIC ADVICE!

[stormie]

Samador, I just have a genuine honest question for you.

What happens if your next samoyed pup does the same thing that Miss Daisy did? Or it doesn't mesh with J.P?

I'm not at all trying to have a go at you. I'm glad your previous dogs have found great homes. But you have rehomed two dogs now; one for behavioural issues with your other dog, and the other for behavioural issues with people, because these were too much for your family to deal with. It's quite possible your next pup will mouth, or that it may not grow up being best friends with your current dog...

Maybe just as a suggestion, you could look at working out ways you could deal with and solve these issues before you bring your new pup home...

[Miss B]

Look, I hate to say this, but I think you have given up on Miss Daisy far too quickly.

I wasnt thinking of taking her back, or re-homing her JUST becasue of that. I would never do that. NEVER!!!!!

So why exactly did you rehome her?

You say that you've decided to rehome her because she's a Lab, and you are Samoyed people?

Honestly that doesn't make much sense to me, especially given that you were so desperate to own a Lab. What if Miss Daisy was the most beautiful well behaved little darling of a Lab puppy? Would you still have rehomed her, simply because you are not a 'Lab person' (a conclusion you have come to rather swiftly).

The fact of the matter is, all puppies are hard work. They need training, they need socialisation, they need to know who's boss, they need to be taught bite inhibition. They are just babies and they need to learn. I understand that you have young children and they are your main priority - perhaps you should hold off on the Sammie puppy for a while, maybe until your kids are a little older? Otherwise you risk bringing another puppy into your home who may not turn out to be 'right' for your family either.

[Sam&Saki]

Samodor, I think there's some thing where you can report your own post and have it removed, if you want to get rid of this.

There are plenty of people on DOL who admit they've done the wrong thing in the past - whether having bought a pup from a pet shop or a breed they didn't research properly or whatever. & they've stayed on DOL and learnt a lot.

The key is to admit you've not been perfect in your past actions, accept that others will point that out to you at times, react to this calmly not defensively, and move on. You made a poor choice. You're human and we do that sometimes. However if you realise it was a poor choice, no need to write lengthy rants defending your actions. Just leave it as you made a poor choice, rehomed the pup and try to learn from it.

I am glad you found good homes for both recent dogs but if you continue to feel you can't deal with extra difficulties in dogs because of your two children (or all your other defenses you raised) then perhaps consider not getting another pup until your children are older or you're in a less emotional state.

I think perhaps ending this thread is a good idea. I understand you've been offended but others will be offended by what you've said, and if the pup is gone now, no need to keep arguing in circles.

[huski]

I agree with Stormie and Miss B. You've gone through - however you like to put it - two dogs in two weeks. The last thing you should be considering now is taking in a third. You said yourself that you aren't getting a puppy for you, but for JP. Do you even want another dog?

As Miss B said, you have decided you aren't "lab" people. The only problem you have raised with your pup is that it nipped your kids, which is a common puppy trait in all breeds! And if it wasn't the nipping - what was it? What if you had a perfectly behaved little angel of a lab puppy, would you still not be a "lab" person? How will you be prepared if your new samoyed pup has the exact same behaviour?

My advice is to hold off another pup for a while - six months or however long it takes for you to be sure that you are prepared for another dog.

Edited October 30, 2008 by huski

[Bjelkier]

Please don't get so defensive and don't leave, there is no reason for that. Just because you made a mistake dosn't mean we will chase you out of town, we are all human and do make mistakes. No one has been that nasty to you, trust me it could have been 100 times worse.

I think you need to calm down and look at it from the perspective of the people on here. We are not going to sugar coat everything for you, if someone disagrees with what you say then they are entitled to their opinion, its a free forum and this is a subject that people get sore about, thats simply the way it is. I think many people where simply upset, just like you.

Yeah we all make mistakes, I for one an so far from perfect I forgot what it even looked like.

Please don't leave DOL. This is a wonderful place where people can really get some great information and help when they need it. Not to mention being able to meet some truely wonderful, lovely people. But remember that we wont always agree with everything you say, yes arguments happen all the time and thats simply the way it is, just like the rest of life. Try to look past your rocky start and hopefully you will come to enjoy yourself here.

Delete this thread and try again. You will always be welcome in the Spitz thread unless JP isn't actually a Spitz and you have made one very convincing costume for him Even so we would still want you.

I hope you are able to put this behind you.

WS.

[Sam&Saki]

Well said Wolfsong