You love your dog. You do everything for him. You have an amazing relationship with him, and the dog understands you completely, except that he bites you and strangers; or at least tries to bite. What´s worse is that this is not a puppy who is doing the biting, but a full-sized, adult dog. What now?
- Your dog is trying to control you or the situation. Stangely enough, it may be the time for you to stop being so affectionate to your dog. Limit affection for the dog that you initiate it. Don´t allow your dog to nudge you with his nose to dictate when he gets that attention. Once the dog learns that your relationship with him is on your terms and not his, he will begin behaving. Biting becomes associated to the "stuff I don´t do if I ever want love" behavior.
- If you even think that your dog might bite someone at the door or when you´re out on a walk, don´t take the chance. At home, you should leash the dog when someone comes into your home. On walks, you need to change your dog´s collar to a harness, keep them on a leash, and use a muzzle. It is better to be safe than sorry, especially if sorry means your dog is condemned to euthanasia because you couldn´t be troubled to put a muzzle on him. In addition, harnesses are much healthier for the dog and prevent fewer neck injuries than using just the traditional collar hook on its leash.
- As always, a biting dog and his master will benefit from some work with a good trainer, or a canine behaviorist. These are not always the same person. Your vet can usually recommend a reliable practitioner.
- If you even think that your dog might bite someone at the door or when you´re out on a walk, don´t take the chance. At home, you should leash the dog when someone comes into your home. On walks, you need to change your dog´s collar to a harness, keep them on a leash, and use a muzzle. It is better to be safe than sorry, especially if sorry means your dog is condemned to euthanasia because you couldn´t be troubled to put a muzzle on him. In addition, harnesses are much healthier for the dog and prevent fewer neck injuries than using just the traditional collar hook on its leash.
Biting in an adult dog is a completely different situation than with a puppy. A biting puppy can be taught to moderate its bites and to engage in mouthiness, which is a puppy play mechanism that can start and stop on command. An adult dog may have never learned to control his bites and will literally not know his own strength. The behavior modification will have to be much more pronounced in an adult dog than that done with a young puppy.
