Skip to content

Nipping issue

Behavioral Issues
  • As far as I can tell there's nothing my brother does to provoke the dog - for the most part he was just moving from one spot to another, not teasing or anything. And yes I have witnessed it - in fact this morning when we came up from the basement I was watching EL D (I was first up the stairs) and he was just fine then all of a sudden as my brother hit the top step (doing nothing other than watching where he was stepping) EL D charged him.

  • Is it always related to changing rooms and crossing thresholds? If so, then you can start to train an incompatible behavior. For the guest bedroom, I would probably use a baby gate so he can't practice the behavior and your brother can enter and leave the room in peace. For other room changes, if El D is food motivated and has a good sit or down how about asking for a sit or down and then lots of treats while your brother is entering the room. Also having your brother give El D treats for things like sit, down, etc so he starts to see your brother as a good thing. If he is coming in the room he gets treats, if he is around he gets treats so that him being around is a signal that good things will happen.

  • And it sounds to me like for some reason maybe your brother is giving off some kinds of vibes that El D is picking up on…

  • An old school technique my grenpeppy taught me way back when is to wait for your dog to mouth your hand and then grab his lower jaw. If you use your thumb to apply a light pressure on his tounge he soon learns that biting people's hand is a very unpleasant thing. to speed it up try putting bitter apple spray on your hands

  • @Gooby:

    An old school technique my grenpeppy taught me way back when is to wait for your dog to mouth your hand and then grab his lower jaw. If you use your thumb to apply a light pressure on his tounge he soon learns that biting people's hand is a very unpleasant thing. to speed it up try putting bitter apple spray on your hands

    What does that has to with a dog nipping at her brother when he enters a room? Obviously something is setting this dog off, this is not just play biting….
    And this is a very old solution that many trainers now days would not use

  • @Gooby:

    An old school technique my grenpeppy taught me way back when is to wait for your dog to mouth your hand and then grab his lower jaw. If you use your thumb to apply a light pressure on his tounge he soon learns that biting people's hand is a very unpleasant thing. to speed it up try putting bitter apple spray on your hands

    Maybe for play biting (not a technique I use)…but not for aggression...unless you want to MAKE a seriously aggressive dog, and get bitten for real.

  • It sounds to me like ElD just doesn't like your brother. It happens. One of my dogs just doesn't like my Mom. Nothing she did, nothing in the dog's history. El D is trying to keep him from entering his space.

    So, the best thing to do would be change his association of dislike with your brother to like. And the best way to do that is for you to find some kind of food that the dog LOVES, and feed it to him open bar (continual) as soon as your brother makes an entrance. Have your brother quickly leave, and you 'close the bar'. Brother comes back in 'open bar.' You get the idea :) I wouldn't have your brother feed any treats yet. You can get into problems if the dog is conflicted by being drawn towards the object (by food) that they wish to increase the space between. Does that make sense? So you be the food giver. And it has to be something FABULOUS….liver, turkey, steak...something like that, so that El D starts to think 'I love it when that guy shows up, and I WANT him to show up so that I get the great food.

    During non training times, tell your brother to completely ignore El D. No trying to sweet talk him, no eye contact, don't sit near him, don't approach him, nothing. You may need to keep the dog on a light line/leash to keep him from getting bolder and actually deciding to bite.

    I hope some of this helps :)

  • Thanks Andrea, I'll keep these hints in mind. My brother left to head back to Chicago before the next snowstorm comes in so I can't implement them until the next time he comes to visit. I'm convinced it's just something about the one brother, EL D doesn't do this with my other relatives.

  • Wizard-I actually have the same issue with my dog C3PO. I haven't put my finger on it yet but it seems that when ANYBODY enters our living room or leaves our living room it sets him off….like where are you going??!!!

    He always goes for the person's knee & he doesn't nip hard so I know he's using some kind of bite inhibition to send a message to the person.

    Yet when the person is sitting/standing in one place he's fine & LOVES for the person to pet & play :confused:

  • Yes that is similar. When EL D nipped my brother it was never really hard (okay so he'll have a bruise) and he backed off pretty quick once he let my brother have it. But it is unnerving because it is unpredictable.

Suggested Topics

  • Puppy issues

    Behavioral Issues
    10
    0 Votes
    10 Posts
    4k Views
    A
    @nick4 I am in the "Basenji Zone" as well. I have done the putting her in the crate and then walking away while I talk to her and then letting her out and then back in again and I do the same thing where i will step out then come back in again. She does best when i leave her a good greenie for her teeth and I step out really quick she got used to it. Also I had the shower problem I even went as far as bringing her into the shower and to my surprise she did not care and i used it as a way to get her comfortable with the water....then i slowly gave her water from the shower talked to her while I was in there and peeked out the curtain every now and then and she got a lot calmer. I dont know if any this would help. Just wanted to share!
  • Aggressive issues

    Moved Behavioral Issues
    18
    1 Votes
    18 Posts
    10k Views
    BigVB
    I don't want to sound personnel but if you are in control why does he keep showing aggression to other intact dogs. By taking him away from the other dog is not teaching him not to be aggressive . He may see you as boss but he wants to be second in charge and see,s all other intact dogs as a threat to his position. Don't be to proud to use a muzzle , and as I said take out to mix with intact dogs . As he can't hurt them and will soon relize,s this you need to stand up and let him know your displeasure using voice and physical presence and a small water pistol as he will hate being squirted. You should find the water pistol works a treat. I would do this every few days until his stops the aggressive behaviour , then I would try without the muzzle but always keep the water pistol with you and let him see it as he will remember what happens when he acts up. This is a method I have used to help mates control their pig dogs . I am by far an expert and are always prepared to Liston to others thoughts as this is how I learn.
  • Sleeping Issues

    Behavioral Issues
    9
    0 Votes
    9 Posts
    3k Views
    krunzerK
    Yeah they do the whole 'omg my fur is all messed up' shake turn around 3 times then flop their furry butts down back in bed. I know about the super light sleeper thing. I too can wake up at the first sound of puking puppy and either throw a towel underneath them or try to get them to the bathroom in time so they can vomit in the sink. Once they get they get those ears going it's hard to stop!
  • Nipping

    Behavioral Issues
    3
    0 Votes
    3 Posts
    2k Views
    lvossL
    Since she is wandering off and not continuing to push for your attention it sounds like she is reading your turn away corrrectly. When you turn away from a dog it is a distance increasing signal. When you turn back and invite her back to you, what does she do? Remember she is still young and learning self-control. This sort of behavior is related to your other post about her having difficulty holding body position for extended periods of time. She is still learning self control. I like Levels because it breaks the training up into smaller parts, http://dragonflyllama.com/%20DOGS/Levels/ByLevel/1Level.html
  • Nipping while Playing??

    Behavioral Issues
    7
    0 Votes
    7 Posts
    3k Views
    jys1011J
    I've tried this a few times. I think he's getting it. Although my husband is having a tougher time with it. I'm not sure he's using the right body language. I immediately stop my attnetion. And when he starts to play nicer I give him my attention again. I think C3PO is too rough for everyone in the house. Even Topaz my female B sometimes walks away from him when he's too rowdy. The stranger thing is that SHE (2yrs) is actually younger than him (3yrs). She'll sometimes get upset & growl & nip at him.
  • Possesiveness issues

    Behavioral Issues
    3
    0 Votes
    3 Posts
    3k Views
    S
    My dear friend Jean Skaggs, who deals with this often says… When the dog is guarding you...get up and leave the area. Don't squirt the dog, don't say anything, get up and leave. Turn your back and ignore. These dogs do get it. You might makes many trips off the couch, when that is where you are... But they will get it. I would be happy to send you to her if you have more issues. But really, its just that simple...