Scratchings-and-Sniffings

Miles is a Mouthy Little Guy Posted: 19 May 2009 01:38 PM PDT Paid a visit to the grand puppy last weekend on the way up to Santa Fe for the Santa Fe Century Bike Ride. Miles must be twice as big as the last time I saw him about a month ago. He's a ball of energy and he has a great personality, like most Labs. He is a little mouthy, though. By that I don't mean he talks back, of course. By mouthy, I mean he likes to play-bite a little too much during interaction with human types. For Labs and other retrievers this is fairly common. They have been bred to explore and work with their mouths. But still, those little needle teeth can inflict some damage. I noticed some pretty good scratches on my daughter Claire's hands and she mentioned that it was a problem.   It's important to define the terms mouthing, play biting and aggressive play before we discuss how to deal with them appropriately.    Mouthing is normal behavior for most puppies...   and involves using the mouth as a sensory device to explore the world around them. That includes their master's hands, toys, and just about everything else. Play biting is using the mouth in interactions with people and other dogs, with inhibited bites. Puppies learn bite inhibition from their mothers and siblings during puppyhood and adolescence. Most dogs learn to inhibit their jaw pressure by the time they reach 18 weeks. Miles is not quite there yet.   For instance, when I reach down to pet Miles or rub his ears the first thing he does is open his mouth and play bite or mouth my hand. He's not trying to inflict any pain. He's returning my gesture of friendship in his puppy way. You can tell by his posture and his general demeanor that he is playing and interacting in a friendly manner. This is very important because aggressive posturing is a more serious issue. If the puppy or dog stiffens, bares the teeth in a snarl, growls or bites, that's a whole different ball game and is not normal behavior.   Interestingly enough, the typical reaction to play biting can often reward and reinforce the behavior and may even elicit more undesirable actions. I'll admit that one time he caught me just right with his sharp little canine tooth and my immediate reaction was a gentle whack on the snout with my finger. Not the best idea.   In fact, punishment actions like holding the muzzle shut, grabbing the dog by the scruff of the neck, yelling or hitting may serve to reinforce the behavior and even escalate things to the point of aggression. More often than not the dog learns to avoid the punisher and may develop an aversion to someone reaching down to pet him around the face or head.   So, what is the appropriate reaction? The best thing to do is to immediately terminate any interaction at all. It's very similar to reacting to jumping up by a dog or puppy. The old knee in the chest routine is seen as a reward by the dog or an escalation in play.   When you think about it this is really how they learn from litter mates. When a puppy bites a litter mate too hard the victim's reaction is to yelp and terminate the play session. The litter mate is taking something desired - the play session - away, in response to the poorly inhibited bite. Humans should do the same thing.   When the puppy bites too hard, all interaction should stop. The owner should withdraw the body part and turn away until the puppy is exhibiting normal or desired behavior. You may even consider leaving the area. After waiting several seconds until everything has calmed down give the puppy a command like "sit" prior to resuming interaction. This serves to redirect the behavior to something positive. A reward like a treat or giving the puppy his favorite toy when he sits will help train them to behave in a desirable fashion.    I had Claire cracking up when I demonstrated my ignoring posture. I'd withdraw and turn away. Miles did not like that one little bit. He'd bark, and you could tell he was thinking something like, "Hey how come you won't play anymore, did I do something wrong"? Well yes, you did Miles, you snagged me with one of your sharp baby teeth. Now that I have your attention why don't we play a game of fetch with your favorite ball?   You get the picture. If you do this consistently you'll get the desired behavior. And that's an important consideration. Everyone that interacts with the dog has to approach the play biting in the same way. If someone over reacts or escalates the rough play the puppy or dog will end up confused by the intermittent reinforcement. If you really want to change the behavior it's worth letting visitors and other family members know what you are trying to accomplish before they send the wrong signals.   Now, if I had only known about these techniques when Claire was a teenager.

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