Biting and Growling, does this pup need a muzzle!!??!!??

[Ollie's Mom]

Ollie is 13 weeks old and have been biting and growling at us since we got him at 8 week!  He will sit and go "down" (for a treat) but 15 seconds later he is back to jumping up, growling, biting. It hurts! I want us all to bond and enjoy him but he's making it very difficult. My kids are 8 and 10 and, put it this way, my son took Ollie out in the backyard to play with him yesterday and all Ollie did was bite his legs so my son put him in the garage "time out" crate. Ollie just barks his head off when you put him in there. We've tried ignoring him (stand still and look away) BUT he just keeps biting. We've tried the time out crate and the barking just grates on your nerves, it sort of works to distract him w/ a toy or treat and making him sit but he's usually back at it withing 30 seconds.  He growls if we try to pick him up and snuggle.  Even when he naps he's away from everyone and it just makes me sad. I wanted a nice doodle to play with, pet, brush (he also hates being brushed, acts like I'm stabbing him).  We start training at a pet store this Friday but right now I am just frustrated and my husband is BEYOND frustrated (is talking about trading him in!). Which I don't want to do but I don't want him adding stress to the family either!

[Minga & Malu & Costa]

Also have to remember you need to teach a puppy "HOW" to bite, not "NOT" to bite. Biting is natural for them at this age with teething - as others mentioned.

[Laura and Angus]

So true! You need loads of teething toys with different textures...we're constantly saying "no bite" and then popping a toy in our puppie

[Laura and Angus]

oops! The end of my comment was: " ... in our puppy's mouth."

Don't know why that cut off there...

[Kaitee and Orwell]

I am relatively new to this forum as well and have posted on the general forum. We had a good lengthy discussion. You can reference it here: http://www.doodlekisses.com/forum/topics/excessive-biting-behavior-... 

Just keep with it, it will get better. Try giving him a toy and then ignoring him. That is what works best for me right now even though I'm still going through this problem (he's 16 weeks now). Also, for time outs, work on "QUIET" with him. When you have him in an enclosed space and he's barking, you can say "QUIET." If he keeps barking, grab him by the collar and give him a squirt of lime juice in the mouth. Soon he'll get the idea. 

Try to be calm and get through it. Your stress will reflect in your dog. Soon it will be worth it. 

[launa m]

Ours was the same, I felt like taking him back to the breeder!  Biting, growling, acting crazy.  I was worrried about him hurting my kids or someone elses.  I did find that redirecting him helped, as well as telling him "ouch" loudly, and walking away.  He is one now and we love him very much, can't believe I thought about giving him back.  He is still very busy, lots of energy, but he doesn't bite us, no more holes in our clothes and he is great with the kids.   I believe they go through a bad puppy stage and it passes. ( I also had the kids feed him his food and treats, he had to sit for them).   I think that helped him learn to respect the kids.  Good Luck!