Hi I’m Bonnie

[Lisa dunne]

Hi i’m Bonnie and I’ve been with my new family for a week now. I’m settling in really well and generally a very good girl but hey i’m a baby and i’m exploring and learning. My mum is a Yorkshire terrier and dad a shitzu so i’m a shorkie, although my new Mum likes to call me a shitty as I poop a lot . If anyone can offer my mum and New family any puppy tips especially helping me to stop biting their feet (they are soooo tasty especially my new best friend who’s 10) they would be so grateful. Lovely to meet you all.

 

[Violet Turner]

Well first things first let me tell you its normal behaviour, but you really do want her to stop as when she gets older then she wont bite. Bite inhibition is the ability to control the force of her mouthing. A dog who hasn’t learned bite inhibition with people doesn’t recognize the sensitivity of human skin and so she bites too hard, even in play. Some behaviourists believe that a dog who has learned to use his mouth gently when interacting with people will be less likely to bite hard and break skin. Puppies usually learn bite inhibition during play with other puppies. If you watch puppies playing, you’ll see a lot of chasing, pouncing and wrestling. Puppies bite each other all over. Every now and then, a puppy will bite his playmate too hard. The victim of the painful bite yelps and usually stops playing. The offender is often taken aback by the yelp and also stops playing for a moment. However, pretty soon, both playmates are back in the game. If puppies can learn how to be gentle from each other, they can also learn the same lesson from people. A few quick tips:
1.)Substitute a toy when your puppy tries to gnaw on fingers or toes. this will redirect her behaviour to the toy.
2.)Encourage non-contact play such as fetch, tug-of-war
3.)If your puppy bites at your feet, carry her favourite tug toy in your pocket. Whenever she ambushes you, instantly stop moving your feet. Take out the tug toy and wave it enticingly. When your puppy grabs the toy, start moving again.
4.)Provide plenty of interesting and new toys, so you could buy a bone from pets at home and let her gnaw on that or Kong's are also a good toy for puppies.
5.) Provide plenty of opportunities for your puppy to play with other puppies and with friendly, vaccinated adult dogs, this is part of socialisation and is vital for a puppy.
Hope this helps- just ask if you need any more information Your puppy is really cute the markings are adorable

 

[arealhuman]

Welcome to the forum What a playful, fluffy little bundle you have there! I'm sure the experts on here will be able to help you out.

 

[JudyN]

Oh gosh, she is adorable!

In addition to what Violet has suggested, try to stick the toy in her mouth before she goes for your feet. And when she does bit, use a 'timeout' - don't say anything, just either remove her from the room (ideally behind a stairgate) or remove yourself - whichever is easiest and calmest. You only need to separate her for 5-10 seconds, but do it consistently, even of you do nothing else for half an hour or more. She'll realise sooner or later that teeth on feet mean the fun stops.

She's just a baby, so this will take a while, and just when you think you've cracked it she'll get that bit older and want to try new games and might start again (teething is likely to cause an increase), but just calmly go back to the brief timeouts and she'll get there in the end.

 

[Josie]

welcome @Lisa dunne and Bonnie

My boys 10 so I've been out of the puppy game for a long time! but always happy to see lots of pictures

 

[thedogsbeforetime]

Welcome to the forum! Bonnie is very cute, and seems you've got a good start on advice.

 

[Lisa dunne]

Thank you all for the welcomes and the tips. I have initiated many of these and use the time out...a lot ha ha. Just need to get hubby and son on board as we need continuity. My sisters 3 yr old beagle came by today and they had lots of fun together. Scooby is such a gentle soul but he lost patient with her and gave her a few nudges and nips which was good.