While most puppy owners want to enjoy quality time with their pet, not all of them are keen to provide proper guidance and leadership that their young pet needs.
There will come a time when the young pup starts to develop habits that are unacceptable.
The most distressing of the puppy behavior problems is that of puppy biting.
A puppy starts teething between 3 to 6 months old.
At this time, they may become more playful.
To soothe their aching gums, biting and chewing gets more common.
Instead of letting the puppy chew your fingers or other body parts, give it something cold, like a chew toy that's been left in the fridge overnight.
It will not only help stop the puppy from nipping your fingers, it will also help soothe their aching gums.
While it is okay to permit the young pup to mouth or nip fingers during play, it is best to teach it to inhibit biting at an early age.
Needless to say, when they grow sharp, needle-like teeth, the consequences would regrettably be much greater.
The moment the puppy's teeth start to cause pain, yell "Ouch!" and gently withdraw your hand.
Then stop the game completely and walk away.
A common mistake owners make is to scream and flail when their puppy bites too hard.
This only makes the puppy amused and will repeat it just for the pleasure of seeing the owner's response.
Other owners respond to this through punishment, which is a very big mistake.
This will only ruin the owner's relationship with the puppy and cause trauma to the pet.
To stop puppy biting, the owner must realize that rewarding the puppy for good behavior by giving it treats or simply giving appreciation is the best way to teach it to continue the behavior.
Just as bad behavior is inhibited when it is merely ignored.
Punishment is never the answer.
It just teaches the dog to fear you or be aggressive against you.
We don't want that, do we?