Mouthy Pit Bull

There are many puppies who go through the mouthing stage, where they want to nip at everything, whether it's your hands, toes, or clothes. Sometimes, they can grow out of it, but sometimes the mouthy puppy will grow into a mouthy dog.

More often than not, it's been noticed that if you punish the dog for being mouthy, it will grow up with a biting problem. Whether you choose to yell, hit, or hold the dog's mouth, when it becomes mouthy with you, that's considered forms of punishment. If you just ignore the dog, it will eventually grow out of the stage and be a non-biting adult.

That said, it's important to realize that a puppy actually needs to bite and nip in order to learn to inhibit the bite. When play biting with littermates, the puppies give feedback to the other puppies as to what is acceptable and what is too much. A puppy who bites hard will find out that the other pups won't play with him anymore, which is where the "ignore method" comes into play, as your best strategy when dealing with a mouthy puppy is to be as passive as you can be and to ignore the nips.

Some trainers and behaviorist will suggest a high-pitched "Ouch" right before the dog's teeth connect. If you can't get the timing properly, redirect the dog's attention with a toy instead of the 'Ouch.'

Another thing to consider is getting up and leaving the puppy in the room by himself for quiet time. Go back to the room, ignore the puppy for a few seconds even after he approaches you. Then try to engage in light play.

You'll want to consider what causes the mouthiness:

• Were you overstimilating the dog, and he didn't know to stop?
• Were there too many people in the house?
• Were you too rough with him?
• Were there a lot of people running around, causing overstimulation and over-excitement?
• Was the dog tired?
• Is the dog getting enough mental and physical stimulation throughout the day?

By finding some sort of similarity with each time your puppy tries to get too nippy and mouthy with you, you will be able to figure out how to avoid those situations or to correct what is happening. By changing your behavior, you'll find that your dog will easily change his.

You may find that your dog is more prone to nipping and being mouthy when people bend over to pet him, people are too forceful upon greeting, or when the dog is snuck up on.

It is very important to figure out when your dog is the most mouthy, so that you can figure out a solution.

Just keep in mind that ignoring the pup when he becomes too mouthy, can alter the behaviors.

If your dog is a little mouthy in play, you will want to immediately stop playing fetch, tug, etc. when you feel teeth on skin. As soon as you feel teeth on skin, take hte toy away, and walk away. The dog got over excited and did not think about controlling himself. It is very important that all dogs learn how to control their behaviors no matter what the situation is.