What to do with a dog that bites? Of course, no one would like to have a furry dog who, not knowing how to relate to other dogs and / or people, decides to bite them, since doing so can cause a lot of damage to them ... and also emotionally to us who are his family.
But precisely because of this, there are those who will say that in order for them to stop behaving in this way, we must show them who is in charge, that is, who is the leader, something that can serve us once, but no more. The dog has to learn not to bite, and for this there are other methods - much more respectful, by the way - that we can use.
Why does the dog bite?
First of all, we must know why our dog bites, for a reason that is really very simple: the dog is an animal that by nature is peaceful. It may be more or less territorial, but it will always try to avoid conflict. Knowing this, the causes for which it can bite are:
- Fear: for example, when you feel cornered or placed in front of another dog (or person) with an intimidating attitude.
- Habit: if we let it bite as a puppy we can be sure that when it grows up it will continue to do so.
- Lack of socialization: the dog during the two to three months of age goes through a period during which it must interact with other dogs, cats and with all kinds of people so that tomorrow it knows how to behave; otherwise, it could bite.
- Game: He does it especially if he is a puppy. They are not very strong bites that it gives to another of its species or to a toy. But, I insist, we must not let it bite our hands or feet because our body is not a toy.
What to do if it bites?
First I'll tell you what NOT to do: get angry, hit him, and reluctantly pull on the leash. This won't do any good, just to make the animal scare us. It's bitten, okay. Let's get him out of that situation and go to a place where we can think about what action to take from now on.
The first step will be to find out why you have done it.. Was it out of fear? A scared dog will show its ears back and its tail between its legs, but it may also have bristly hair and / or growl. If this has happened, we will have to prevent it from happening again, for example, by educating the other dog or person so that they learn to respect our dog.
If you have done it out of habit, then it will be easier to make him change his attitude, but it will take time. For this, what you have to do is redirect it every time you intend to bite, either with a stuffed animal or a candy. This method will also help us if what has happened is that you do not know how to relate to others.
If he has done it because he is a puppy, we do not have to do anything, unless it has bitten us, in which case we would have to take it and leave it on the ground or a little away from our body for about 2-3 seconds, during which it must behave well. After that time, we will give you a treat only if you have had the behavior we expected.
Even so, we must be very clear that we cannot expect it to change in two days. Only with work and patience can we achieve the results we hope to have. In the event that we need help, I recommend consulting with a canine trainer who works positively, who will give us the guidelines that we must follow to make our dog a sociable animal or, at least, less reactive. By the way, if you want to know what a reactive dog is, I advise you to read the book »Fearful dog» that you can buy here.
Have these tips been useful to you? I hope you now know what to do with a dog that bites.