To Muzzle or not
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To Muzzle or not
Some one suggest I get a muzzle to train my rottie not to bite (She uses her mouth a lot to play, and for some reason does not seem to grasp the idea when she gets too rough). I am totally NOT comfortable with the idea of using a muzzle. I would like to hear from others who have used them AND from those who are against using them... I would appreciate feedback, pls dont try to 'attack' the other party replying.
Re: To Muzzle or not
Hi,
I have a dog who is always muzzled on walks, so I'm not against muzzles in general. But I definitely wouldn't suggest using one to train a dog not to bite, because she won't learn anything from it. She needs to learn an element of self-control, and the muzzle won't do that. And she may well need to chew something, but just need to learn what is appropriate to chew - again, the muzzle won't help this.
Could you give us some more information, please? How old is she, how long have you had her for, and what have you done so far to try to stop the biting? Do you allow her to mouthe in play until it gets too rough? (With some dogs it's better to teach them that teeth never touch flesh.) Also, could you give us a run-down of her daily routine, please - walks, training, play, how long left on her own, and so on.
I have a dog who is always muzzled on walks, so I'm not against muzzles in general. But I definitely wouldn't suggest using one to train a dog not to bite, because she won't learn anything from it. She needs to learn an element of self-control, and the muzzle won't do that. And she may well need to chew something, but just need to learn what is appropriate to chew - again, the muzzle won't help this.
Could you give us some more information, please? How old is she, how long have you had her for, and what have you done so far to try to stop the biting? Do you allow her to mouthe in play until it gets too rough? (With some dogs it's better to teach them that teeth never touch flesh.) Also, could you give us a run-down of her daily routine, please - walks, training, play, how long left on her own, and so on.
Jasper, lurcher, born December 2009
Re: To Muzzle or not
Thank you, that helps me look at it a different way. My rottie is 3 months old. She has tons of toys and I do not work so I am always around with her. I had her when she was 8 weeks old. We have 3 cats, as of now one cat is accepting her. The other 2 need more time. I do not hide them from Cookie (her name) I let them know she lives here and to get used to it. 
... She is a wonderful puppy, I do love her truly. I just dont know if Im doing something wrong with teaching her not to use her teeth... its not like she 'bites', its more like she uses her mouth to 'hold' your hand, but then decides to roll around or twist while your hand is still in her mouth, thats what hurts and if I say 'OW!' or 'No' ... it makes her more determined to grab or go after your hand. I tried having her chew toys around so when she needs to put something in her mouth I give her the chew toy, but it seems she doesnt want it, she wants my hand. I tried rubbing my hands with vinegar, it worked only for a short while. I tried putting her down when she gets too rough (not playing with her) doesnt seem to be effective. Im thinking maybe she just doesnt understand yet. Is she still too young? I dont know how to make her listen. I say NO, stop, down, she just gets more active and determined. I thought maybe she was hungry so I increased her food, no difference. Cookie seems to love to play, and loves to grab things with her mouth.
... She is a wonderful puppy, I do love her truly. I just dont know if Im doing something wrong with teaching her not to use her teeth... its not like she 'bites', its more like she uses her mouth to 'hold' your hand, but then decides to roll around or twist while your hand is still in her mouth, thats what hurts and if I say 'OW!' or 'No' ... it makes her more determined to grab or go after your hand. I tried having her chew toys around so when she needs to put something in her mouth I give her the chew toy, but it seems she doesnt want it, she wants my hand. I tried rubbing my hands with vinegar, it worked only for a short while. I tried putting her down when she gets too rough (not playing with her) doesnt seem to be effective. Im thinking maybe she just doesnt understand yet. Is she still too young? I dont know how to make her listen. I say NO, stop, down, she just gets more active and determined. I thought maybe she was hungry so I increased her food, no difference. Cookie seems to love to play, and loves to grab things with her mouth.Re: To Muzzle or not
She's still very young, then, so this is absolutely normal 
Saying 'NO!' or yelping works with some dogs, but as you've found, with some it makes matters worse, not better. Keep trying to distract her with chew toys. Try different-textured toys - my dog isn't interested in hard rubber/plastic toys but likes soft/fleecy toys. But if that's not working, then every time she grabs you, turn and leave the room. Come back after a matter of seconds, but when the teeth come out again, do the same. You could be in and out of the room 20 times in a few minutes, but eventually she will cotton on that the moment she bites, the fun stops. An alternative is for you to remove her from the room, but it can be harder to do this without a lot of interaction that she might regard as part of the game. You could, however, try putting a house line on her (lightweight lead with no loop) and leading her out of the room when she bites. It might even work if you stand still as a statue and ignore her when she bites, with arms folded and hands out of reach, so you become really boring to her. Not so good if she just starts on your ankles instead, though
Make sure she gets lots of physical/mental activity that doesn't involve biting. A game like tug can be good as it's exciting for the dog but keeps her teeth away from your hands, but you need to try to stop her getting too ramped up. Think also of games like hide and seek, clicker training, and general training.
Some dogs are very mouthy and this will be a 'work in progress' for a long time to come - my dog is nearly four and will still grab my arm if he gets overexcited, but it's brief and has no pressure, so i can just regard it as an indication that I've let him get too worked up and need to get him to calm down. At three months, though, your dog won't be able to calm down
Have a look at this Useful Links post: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=11503 There's threads on 'aggression' and puppy biting, timeouts, clicker training, and ways to exercise your dog's mind which should be useful.
Saying 'NO!' or yelping works with some dogs, but as you've found, with some it makes matters worse, not better. Keep trying to distract her with chew toys. Try different-textured toys - my dog isn't interested in hard rubber/plastic toys but likes soft/fleecy toys. But if that's not working, then every time she grabs you, turn and leave the room. Come back after a matter of seconds, but when the teeth come out again, do the same. You could be in and out of the room 20 times in a few minutes, but eventually she will cotton on that the moment she bites, the fun stops. An alternative is for you to remove her from the room, but it can be harder to do this without a lot of interaction that she might regard as part of the game. You could, however, try putting a house line on her (lightweight lead with no loop) and leading her out of the room when she bites. It might even work if you stand still as a statue and ignore her when she bites, with arms folded and hands out of reach, so you become really boring to her. Not so good if she just starts on your ankles instead, though
Make sure she gets lots of physical/mental activity that doesn't involve biting. A game like tug can be good as it's exciting for the dog but keeps her teeth away from your hands, but you need to try to stop her getting too ramped up. Think also of games like hide and seek, clicker training, and general training.
Some dogs are very mouthy and this will be a 'work in progress' for a long time to come - my dog is nearly four and will still grab my arm if he gets overexcited, but it's brief and has no pressure, so i can just regard it as an indication that I've let him get too worked up and need to get him to calm down. At three months, though, your dog won't be able to calm down
Have a look at this Useful Links post: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=11503 There's threads on 'aggression' and puppy biting, timeouts, clicker training, and ways to exercise your dog's mind which should be useful.
Jasper, lurcher, born December 2009
Re: To Muzzle or not
Thank you so much! For all your suggest, and the link. I never thought of removing myself from the room, Im sure that method is best for Cookie! I feel a lot better after reading your posts. Again, thank you!
Re: To Muzzle or not
I normally look to YouTube for help with these sort of things
http://youtu.be/c77--cCHPyU
This woman is all about positive reinforcement and her techniques are very easy to follow, so this video might help you!
http://youtu.be/c77--cCHPyU
This woman is all about positive reinforcement and her techniques are very easy to follow, so this video might help you!
Re: To Muzzle or not
Muzzles are not training tools so I would not use them in this instance. Muzzles do have their uses though for the protection of say your vet and staff etc...
The mouthiness is from being a young puppy/teething. Keep redirecting to appropriate items to chew and grab. Timeouts for grabbing you and not letting go (short timeouts). Most important is to look for ways to reinforce the behavior you want (chewing and tugging on toys) and not giving Cookie the opportunity to chew on you.
The mouthiness is from being a young puppy/teething. Keep redirecting to appropriate items to chew and grab. Timeouts for grabbing you and not letting go (short timeouts). Most important is to look for ways to reinforce the behavior you want (chewing and tugging on toys) and not giving Cookie the opportunity to chew on you.