Mouthing Hands !!HELP!!

[SSG Knopp]

My wife and I have a wonderful 8 month old Dobie "Leissl". Definitely still in puppy mode, but we are training in basic obedience and it is going well. There is one little nuance that we can not seem to find a solution, though. When anyone goes to pet her, I believe she thinks you are playing with her and will put her mouth around your hand, not biting it, but just a soft mouth. We have tried and tried the "pull hand away and sqeal/say ouch", but after three months, not a shred of change, and we are strong advocates of positive reinforcement only. I know this behavior could potentially scare kids and even some adults. Any guidance anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated!

[Kimbertalkls]

First of all, never yell when this is happening. Loud, exciting tones to a dog mean happy. The dog gets more excited if you get loud...jumps more, mouths more, more excited. Always give a verbal correction in a low growl tone."nnoooo" and no name. The name should be for movement and rewards. There are three methods to stop this.
1. When the dog puts it's mouth on your hand you do the low growl and slip your hand down the throat gagging the dog It is a sensation that few dogs like and if you do it everytime they learn to not trigger the response.
2. If the dog or puppy is grabbing your pant leg, arm, etc. grab him over the muzzle or under the jaw and roll a lip as you do so the dog can not bite down unless through himself. Squeeze so there is pressure(not injury), look right at the dog and growl the nnnoooo. When the dog is trying to get away and is no longer looking so sure of themselves release and then walk away. Always walk away when you have won. Never sympathize and pet the dog. He does not get rewarded for having to be corrected.
3. This is called Inhibited Biting from the canine behaviorist Michael Artim. I took my shepherd to him after one of his talks at an Obedience club. My shepherd would nibble you out of excitement and had to learn control. The first two did not work with her... She would grab your hand on the way back from her on both methods.
Delay dog's dinner a while and then go out and with food on the counter tell the dog nice and give it a handful or a squished meatball of food. If the dog touches your hand or grabs the food you say "Ouch"and walk away for ten minutes. On the third or fourth try dinner is thrown away and you start at the next meal. Dog is fed meal little by little. It took a week for my shepherd to finish her whole meal for the first time. If you are in the kitchen and the dog mouths you say ouch and walk out. If you want are watching tv and the dog grabs your hand you say ouch and get up and walk a way. You must leave the room and turn your back on the dog. The dog does not want to to leave him, he wants attention and interaction. You must be consistent for 30 days and it does work. My shepherd pinched my hubby's butt once or twice in the yard when we were playing but learned to control all mouthing. None of these methods are once and done so stick with it but do it now before adulthood. Good luck. Check in in thirty days. Anne

[SSG Knopp]

Thanks for the advice, I will definitely try these apporaches.

[awesome dobermans]

that information is excellent Anne thanks for your post. that really shows that you are definitely educated in correcting this and other behaviors, i will try it on one of mine who is a really mouthy dobi.
One question when dobi pups are young isn't natural for a young puppy to mouth or bite on it's mother? doesn't this provide certain bonds for the puppy to it's mother. if so what kind of bonds do you feel it impacts on the puppy in it's emotional development or any kind of development with it's mother or outside world. thanks for your info it's good to have a really knowledgeable person on this doberman website.

[Kimbertalkls]

On younger pups with the sharp teeth, I usually do number 2, put the hand over the muzzle and apply pressure. This is what mommy does with her mouth although on occasion it is over the whole head. A puppy is also going to be trying for a few months to establish where it is in the pack so it is not a once and done thing. It is normal behavior and part of it exploring their world. I am always amazed when people call me the next day and said I did it and the pup is still mouthing.... How many times did you tell your two year old child something before they ceased trying? People think Lassie really did come out of the woods fully trained and able to answer the phone, walk Timmy to school and put out fires.
Also if mouthing is a problem, I suggest that unless the dog will have SchH or protection training later stop all wrestling and tug of war games. Anything that is giving the dog the idea it is okay to challenge people will increase the mouthing urge. Anne

[magtie]

some great advice :)

[jelly8bean]

Another way to deal with this is to substitute a toy or other item that it is ok to mouth on. When she goes for your hand, say no, or another "not right" response and offer the sub. Make sure you have plenty of these chewy toys around. I do not typically like to train with adversives and would not go for growling which could be interpreted as escalating the play. If you are in an obediance class you could also see what your trainer would recommend.

Just to add, with puppies mouthing is the normal way to explore the world and this is typically where they learn to have a "soft" mouth from the responses and interactions with their littermates and mother. If they get hard everyone stops playing with them.

[Rommels_Mom]

We used the hand over mouth approach as well and it worked out wonderfully, Rommel wont even play bite at all, he'll bite at the air 4inches away from your hand(it's hard to describe), but we've also used the ow thing on him when he starts to play way to ruff, and he'll immediately drop to the floor and lay his head on his feet, and if you tell him say sorry he'll lick your face. Just keep up your training repetition is the way to go :)