Why do Labradors bite so much?
Question
I have a little 7 week old lab, and he seems to always want to bite (especially when he is very happy).
He has also picked up the habit of barking and growling when he see’s you making his food.
He is very stubborn and does not like to be screamed at.
He chooses when to come to my call and when not too.
Is this behaviour normal for a lab?
Answer
I think this is quite normal behaviour in a puppy, he is testing his boundaries and attempting to establish himself as the dominant one.
This is where training is urgently needed, so that he is made aware of what is and what is NOT acceptable. You need to let him know you are in charge.
Whenever your pup bites pull away, say a firm NO, and then ignore him until he starts playing nice again. Do this every time he bites and he will hopefully get the message soon enough. It is important not to punish, hit or scream, just the firm NO and ignore him. However, when he is behaving and playing nice, it is equally important to give him lots of praise and possibly a treat.
This should work a treat as he will realise what is the desired behaviour.
If this does not work, get a spray bottle and fill it with water. Everytime he bites, say a firm NO and spray a bit of water in his face, this should shock him into stopping the bad behaviour.
Labrador retrievers are dogs with very high energy levels and when they have excess they can cause havoc and start biting and chewing everything. You do say that he is especially bad when he is happy. Possibly start taking him on even longer walks or add another walk per day to tire the pup out a little.
With regards to your lab growling and barking when he sees you making his food, turn to him, say a firm NO, and turn away. As soon as he stops growling and barking lots of praise and possibly a treat. Do not give him his food until he stops growling.
I hope this helps! If anyone else has any other tips please share them with us.
lab pup biting
by rishi
(mumbai,maharashtra,india)
Question
Hi I have a 5 month old male lab, Oscar… he is a very fun loving dog.. the problem is that he bites a lot.. he bites every one in the house… we give him lots of chew toys..
I know it’s his teething period but just wanted to assure that after this period gets over, will he stop biting?
He is still not toilet trained.. I got him when he was a month old… I take him down but he doesn’t pee or poo down.. he does it at home only.. I walk him for around 30-45 mins twice a day..
plz solve both my problems….
Answer
With regards to the puppy biting there are many things you could try. I’ll list some things and then you can use trial and error to see what works with your lab pup 🙂
You should always use a sharp command when he does bite so that he knows that it is wrong. A firm and loud NO or EY works well and should shock them enough to stop. As soon as they stop and calm down give your pup lots of positive ‘good boys’ and possibly a treat.
When the sharp command doesn’t work try using a spray bottle filled with water. Everytime your lab bites spray him with water whilst you say NO. Once you do this just turn away from him until he calms down. When he does again use ‘good boy’ and a treat.
Other people also say that when their pups start biting they hold their jaw closed whilst saying a firm NO. I’ve never had to try this as our Tasha responded very well to just the firm command and we’d normally just turn away without giving her attention for a while, which she didn’t like. As soon as she calmed down we’d start giving her attention again and telling her she was a good girl and she quickly learned that biting was not accepted.
With regards to training labrador puppies to go toilet outside being by reading our housebreaking lab puppies to get the basics of it.
It is obvious that Oscar still hasn’t grasped the idea of going to toilet outdoors. Never shout at your lab pup when he messes indoors as this will result in him doing it when you are not looking.
I would advise taking your pup out more frequently and staying out until he goes. Puppy toilet training takes a lot of patience and perseverance. When he does finally go say something like ‘toilet Oscar’ and then praise him lots and possibly give him a treat. After some work on both sides he will learn to go on command ‘toilet Oscar’ and he will associate toilet with outdoors.
The best thing to do is not give him an opportunity to go indoors. Keep an eye on Oscar and any sign that he needs toilet take him out.
I hope this helps. If anyone else has any other tips regarding these issues please feel free to share them 🙂
Comments for lab pup bitingAverage Rating |
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From two to three days, my lab puppy(5 months old) not behaving well. when I see him closely, I notice that one of his teeth became loose. he is not eating food, for that reason when we go near to him,he is barking us. When I sat beside him and try to soothe him with whistle suddenly he bite on my hand. Im not understanding suddenly what happend to my lovely dog. plz Answer me!!!
do labradors bite seriously
by soma
(delhi india)
Question
My black labrador who is one and a half years old is fantastic plays around but is obsessed with balls.
He goes crazy when he sees balls. At first we used to think that he loves balls but later on his trainer told us that he is obsessed with balls and balls should be removed.
The worst thing that he bites very frequently and we all in the family had to be injected many a times.
Tell me what I should with my dog. I love him a lot and want to keep him.
Answer
Labrador retrievers are very mouthy dogs and if your lab wasn’t trained as a pup that biting is not accepted it does become a problem when they get to adult size.
Even though labradors are great dogs with fantastic temperaments, if they are not aware that biting is not acceptable they will be a problem and in some cases even a danger.
That being said, the good thing is that labradors are also very intelligent dogs and can learn very quickly.
The first thing I would suggest is to read through our labrador training pages.
However, if you feel your labradors behaviour is out of control I would think about taking him to a dog obedience school.
At a dog obedience school they will quickly and effectively get your labs biting under control.
Has anyone else had any serious problems with labrador biting? What did you do to get it under control? Please share your advice with us …
Comments for do labradors bite seriouslyAverage Rating |
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Labrador are good family dogs. They are very easy to train, but you must train them as puppies because it gets harder to train when they become adults.
You can take your labrador to a trainer because it will cause a problem if it bites other guests in your house.Although labrador`s are intelligent dogs.We must love it and we must control it on biting on puppies.
| May 23, 2012 Rating  |
Take Action To Stop Biting Now! by: Anonymous |
Labradors really can bit hard! When this type of behavior starts, you need to very quickly take actions or you may get seriously hurt. Thankfully, it is pretty easy to fix. Your Labrador will response when you tell them “No” after a bit. Make sure that you remain consistent!
Miss
by Chantal
(Mphumalanga)
Question
I have a 7month old black labrador. She started jumping up on me and then she bites me. I have tried holding her legs up when she jumps but then she bites me harder.
I have tried putting up my knee but that doesn’t work. If I turn my back on her she jumps up and bites me on the back. How do I get her to not do this?
Answer
Maybe someone else can provide a better solution, as I never experienced this with Tasha, but this shows signs of a lack of respect between the dog and you.
I don’t recommend harsh reprimands, but the lab needs to know who is boss. Generally this can be achieved by a firm tone of voice.
Try it out and see how she responds to it. If a dog learns at a young age that she can walk over you, it could just get worse as time goes on.
