14 week old puppy troubles...

Elifaelyn · #1 14th April 2012, 01:59 AM

Okay, so normally my Boxer, Beau is a wonderful dog. He sleeps all night, walks decently enough on the leash... (yes he still reacts to strangers, either pulling back or trying to pull towards them, but he's normally controllable when that happens and has been getting better.) He's no longer has accidents in the house (though he's still learning how to tell me when he needs to go.) he is crate trained, if I want him in it I just tell him to go in and he goes in, sometimes he goes in on his own with out my asking. When he wants to be he is really good at listening... For example, he can be eating a meal and if I tell him to stop, he stops until I give him permission to continue about 90% of the time.

However, I am at a loss as to what to do in two areas.

1. He likes to bite...

I've tried saying ouch, or making other sounds, I avoid looking at him and stop touching him... and it has little to no effect on him... The sounds most of the time seem to make him more excited and he just goes about his business if I ignore him, as if he doesn't even care. He is even worse with my 11 yr old daughter... She can't even be in the same space with out him trying to jump on her and bite at her. Now it's obvious to me he's not trying to be aggressive, he just seems overly excited, and with her, she over reacts to the situation... Which causes him to feed off of that high energy and he gets worse. But lately he's even started to try and snap at me or just chew on me when I grab his collar to put his leash on or his coat.

Any advice is good advice please?!

2nd Issue.

Beau every now and then gets really riled up and wants to play, usually it's when he's been playing with his toys by himself for a bit. I'll be sitting watching the tv when he starts to bite on me, I know he's doing it to try and get me to play, but I can't always play when he wants to play so I tell him no and if he's jumped on me which he likes to do, I push him off and go back to doing what I was doing... Lately, and I mean in the last month or so.. he's started to bark back at me when I tell him no, he'll lower down growl, whine and a whole more, all because I tell him no... During the day I can usually just ignore it.. but now he's started to do it during the late evenings when my kid is asleep.. waking her up .... I'm not too sure if this is normal boxer behavior, and if it is, if anyone has any ideas of how I can make this better I would greatly appreciate it.

On a side note, I do play with my dog about 1 hour a day, and he actually does go on walks with me since we live so close to the park.. I can't run for physical reasons.. so we tend to walk about 60 mins if not more a day, so I know he's getting some of the energy out.. and when we have our walks he's always better, but only if they are long walks... because of where I live he can't be off his leash outside, so unfortunately he doesn't get freedom outside of my apartment, which is what makes me so glad to live so close to a park with a trail in it.

Anyways, not sure if that information helps.. but any information and advice anyone can give me is appreciated.

CoraBoxer · #2 14th April 2012, 07:10 AM

Completely normal. A puppy wants to play. A puppy wants to bite and a puppy will have accidents in the house almost for certain (even if they aren't a regular occurrence), he'll pull on leash, pick what he wants to listen to etc. Everything you listed. He will need to learn (from you), and will settle (2-3+ years).

Snapping at you when you're putting leash on... I suggest you work on making it a pleasant experience for him. If he learns that putting it on is a fight/struggle it will be because thats what happens every time. Having a routine imo is key.

I don't think he's overly excited. I think he's excited like a healthy puppy sometimes is. That said you don't want him jumping, biting etc now because he'll learn its ok. Of course within limit, don't be a fun kill. Help to avoid rough play that isn't acceptable or thats what he'll learn. Also high pitched excited greetings, talk etc. You're going to have to stay consistent for a long time. Sounds like you know which behaviours you don't want and you're doing something about that. Redirect, encourage the ones you do want. After he's a puppy you'll get the teenage years where he'll likely forget everything you thought he already knew. You daughter will have to be confident, calm, assertive with you.

Unless its a typo, 14 weeks is really super young. You pretty much have to expect the behaviours you're talking about. Like you said though he's not a bad dog. He's not doing these things because he wants to ruin your life or drive you crazy. He's doing it because he doesn't know any better and that will take time. He'll be doing it to establish your relationships; he will test you.

CoraBoxer · #3 14th April 2012, 07:18 AM

Oh and you may need to figure something out for him to be able to run free a bit. From experience it may be hard for you to keep up with him. I mean drain him on a walk alone. And a tired dog will give you a break at home, inside. I know my Cora will go for hours chasing a ball, playing with her friends etc. Walks are still great but might not be enough for the bursts they get maybe not at 14 weeks but later on. Don't go too crazy on walks early on... bones/joints still forming (forced walk). If he was able to play and run free a bit he'd stop when he was tired. What do you have in mind for socialising him? Taking any classes in the future?

**Jan** · #4 14th April 2012, 07:25 AM

Sounds like a normal boxer puppy. It is very important that your puppy learns bite inhibition. Here are a couple of articles to help you out.

Puppy Biting | Dog Star Daily
Teaching Bite Inhibition | Dog Star Daily

Good luck!

brodieboxer · #5 14th April 2012, 08:05 AM

Totally normal, if not maddening puppy behavior. I just adopted Dempsey (9 3/4 mo.) last Saturday from a lady who discovered to her dismay, how much interaction and training a boxer takes. I walk Dempsey about 8/10 mile before work and about 2.5 miles after dinner. Change directions a lot while walking and make him sit every so often to break up the forward motion, which usually increases the pulling if you continue to go in the same direction. Have enticing treats with you to help encourage the good behavior. Dempsey's fond of tiny bits of hotdog (you don't need big pieces to make it attractive). He also loves to play fetch with his squeaky ball when I get home from work. He never (or rarely) runs out of energy. Forget long, uninterrupted sessions on your computer right now. Such is the nature of the beast at this age.

I understand not being able to run. I can't either, due to arthritis in my big toe joint; hence the walking. Luckily, I have a fenced in yard for Dempsey to run around in. Since you don't, try buying a 15 foot lead (can be found at Tractor Supply, Petsmart, Petco) and let your dog run around in a large area while on that (maybe a school yard or church yard after hours). When I first got Dempsey, I did this in my back yard b/c his recall is ZERO. You can play fetch while on the lead, too. You just have to be careful how far you throw the ball/toy, or you'll get your arm yanked out - lol! It's great for teaching recall too, since you can reel the dog in when they ignore your command to come.

Make your dog sit and wait before getting a treat, before feeding, before going outside, etc. This approach is part of NILF (Nothing in Life is Free), which I FIRMLY believe in, especially with a boxer. Otherwise, you'll end up with an unruly bully - they're so smart, they figure out very quickly what they can get away with and from who!

Dempsey was AWFUL when we got him, jumping and nipping/mouthing. Whenever he does this, I turn completely away from him with my hands folded over my chest (no fingers dangling down for him to mouth). He hates that and will try and run around to my front side. I keep turning away from him until he settles down. At first, this took several minutes, but he's already MUCH better! Consistency is the key. You also have to "train" family members to do the same. My husband thought it was stupid until he tried it; now he's a believer.

I'm also working on Dempsey's reactiveness to other dogs passing by while on a walk. He was so unsocialized, this will be the hardest thing to teach him, so it'll take awhile. Again, hotdog pieces are my best friend right now. I make him sit and look at me before the other dog even gets close by putting the piece of hotdog right in front of my eyes, saying look at me repeatedly (hard to do when he wants to lunge at the other dog down the street, but keep at it). I've even physically turned his face towards me while I do this. Be patient (easier said than done).

Well, gotta go - Dempsey's into the mulch in the flower beds - sigh...

Elifaelyn · #6 14th April 2012, 09:39 AM

Oh I know 14 weeks is young. While he's not my first dog ever, he is my first boxer, as well as the first puppy I've ever had at this young so I'm still figuring things out as I go. But I've continuously doing my research and I'm big on routines which helps a lot.

As for the walking on the leash, he's great at it, in fact if I Stop walking he starts to whine at me because he likes to keep going. I never force him to walk and he doesn't pull forward or backwards unless we come across a dog or a stranger. He just wants to play with the other dogs he sees but gets scared and reactive when the other dog barks. I plan on taking him to the local pet smart classes in about a month so that he can be better socialized with dogs. With people he's generally pretty good. I keep a pocket full of snacks on me when we take our walks and when a stranger passes that seems to bug him I talk him through it, tell him it's alright, and when he does good I give him a treat... When someone wants to pet him I make him sit and hand that person a treat to give him.. It seems to be working for the most part. But over all the only problem I have with his walks is when we go to put the leash on... Ianything near his neck and he likes to bite at it, or chew on it, which can be really painful with his sharp little teeth.

As for the jumping and biting, he only jumps when excited.. but the bites he keeps using to try and tell us when he wants to play... He likes to play fetch and tug of war... And over all tends to be okay when told to stop and drop and item.. though he's still getting the hang of it, at times he just doesn't want to drop something...

but when he really starts to get assertive is when he tries to hump. If we don't let him (Which we never do) he starts to bite at our feet or hands, when we move them away, he follows them. But sometimes he jumps on us and that's when we end up having to push him down and say no and that's when he starts to growl and bark at us. He isn't Neutered yet, but will be next month... I know that'll help with some of it, but I also know that even a Neutered dog will try and hump... I just don't know what else to do when he does this to us? What's worse is that the biting behavior is almost the same as when he wants to play, he's tried doing it to my friends that come by too... Most are understanding but others aren't...

Anyone have any ideas about what to do then?

TwoDogs · #7 14th April 2012, 10:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elifaelyn

He just wants to play with the other dogs he sees but gets scared and reactive when the other dog barks. I plan on taking him to the local pet smart classes in about a month so that he can be better socialized with dogs.

Take him now. The window of opportunity is closing. A dog's socialization period is from 8 weeks to about 16 weeks. If he hasn't been properly socialized to people, dogs, things in his environment (cars, strollers, hats, canes, etc) then anything you do after 16 weeks is going to be playing catch up and you might never get him where he could have been if you started when you should have.

I had a 5.5 month old pup come to my puppy play and she was so scared of the other pups I told her owner that for her own pup's well-being I couldn't allow the pup in. I let her pup watch the other pups play and she got to interact through the barrier with one or two well-mannered pups. At 5.5 months old, this was that pup's first real chance to interact freely with a small group of pup's her own age since the owner got her at 8 weeks old. The owner casually said "She doesn't get out much, I work alot." I felt so bad for the pup because the owner didn't even know the damage she was doing by not socializing her pup with other dogs.

TwoDogs · #8 14th April 2012, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elifaelyn

but when he really starts to get assertive is when he tries to hump. If we don't let him (Which we never do) he starts to bite at our feet or hands, when we move them away, he follows them. But sometimes he jumps on us and that's when we end up having to push him down and say no and that's when he starts to growl and bark at us.

At 14 weeks old, humping isn't about being assertive, it is much more likely about him being excited and frustrated. Humping is a fixed action pattern that can be automatically triggered by stress or general arousal.

Work on teaching him impulse control with obedience games like Drop it/Take it, Leave it, Sit to ask for things. Then make sure you aren't revving him up too much when you play. Play a little bit, then ask for calm behavior or switch to a calm activity so he has a chance to regulate his arousal level a bit. Then resume play for a bit, and repeat.

Puppies should not engage in long periods (and that might mean even just a couple of minutes for some pups) of high arousal play. They lack the impulse control to make good choices (by human standards) when they are excited and only end up practicing behaviors that will get them in trouble in human society.

If he doesn't want to drop the fetch or tug item, then just walk away. Realize that you've played with him too long and he's gotten too excited that time. End the game and he will learn that his jumping and biting made the fun stop and made you walk away. Next time remember not to rev him up so much. Play a bit, relax a bit, play a bit, relax a bit, then stop and do something else. He will learn that play goes on if he relaxes a bit and doesn't get too rough. But it is up to you to give him the opportunity to learn by keeping play low key enough so he doesn't lose all control of himself.

Elifaelyn · #9 14th April 2012, 07:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoDogs

Take him now. The window of opportunity is closing. A dog's socialization period is from 8 weeks to about 16 weeks. If he hasn't been properly socialized to people, dogs, things in his environment (cars, strollers, hats, canes, etc) then anything you do after 16 weeks is going to be playing catch up and you might never get him where he could have been if you started when you should have.

Unfortunately the training classes around here cost over 100 dollars which is more than my budget allows since I'm gonna be spending the money I am to get him his rabies shot, neutered, and chipped all at once. So I have to save up in order to take him, otherwise I would be taking him right now... I do try to socialize him as much as I can.. most of my neighbors have dogs and he is learning how to be around them with out freaking out, it's just taking time. He's getting better at not launching forward when another dog barks at him... it's a work in progress needless to say... When dealing with humans I make him sit before anyone can pet or touch him and I give people snacks to give him so that he starts to see meeting new people as a good thing.

Quote:

But it is up to you to give him the opportunity to learn by keeping play low key enough so he doesn't lose all control of himself.

I hate to sound like an idiot, but I don't know many games dogs play other than tug of war and fetch... also I do tell him to drop it when we play, any time he starts to try and take things from my hands during play I make him sit and fetch, but first I make him drop what ever it is he's holding... he doesn't usually listen unless I repeat it a few times but he does listen.

What kind of Calm activities can you suggest trying?

also his arousal tends to be from either being hyped up, or just random... I don't think he's stressed out, I don't see any signs of it.

brodieboxer · #10 14th April 2012, 08:25 PM

To get your pup to release the toy, try offering him a very high value treat in exchange, like a tiny piece of hotdog or boiled/baked chicken. Praise lavishly and treat when he lets go of the toy when asked.

If you're getting your pup used to being around your neighbor's dogs, I think you're doing a good job for now. It's better than nothing! Try exposing your pup to as many neighborhood dogs as possible.

TwoDogs · #11 15th April 2012, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elifaelyn

So I have to save up in order to take him, otherwise I would be taking him right now... I do try to socialize him as much as I can.

See if the Petsmart offers a free puppy play seminar--or any free seminars for that matter. Most Petco's around me offer a free puppy play session as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elifaelyn

I do try to socialize him as much as I can.. most of my neighbors have dogs and he is learning how to be around them with out freaking out, it's just taking time. He's getting better at not launching forward when another dog barks at him.

Oh good. Group walks with neighborhood dogs and play sessions with appropriately behaved, even-tempered friends' dogs are great ways to socialize your pup to other dogs.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elifaelyn

with humans I make him sit before anyone can pet or touch him and I give people snacks to give him so that he starts to see meeting new people as a good thing.

That is great, if he truely wants to greet the people. But if he is at all nervous around the people, making him sit might be causing him stress, increasing the fear, and making the experience unpleasant in his eyes. Watch his reaction and don't make him greet anyone he doesn't want to. Instead, give food just for him looking at that person or sniffing in the direction of that person.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elifaelyn

I hate to sound like an idiot, but I don't know many games dogs play other than tug of war and fetch... also I do tell him to drop it when we play, any time he starts to try and take things from my hands during play I make him sit and fetch, but first I make him drop what ever it is he's holding... he doesn't usually listen unless I repeat it a few times but he does listen.

What kind of Calm activities can you suggest trying?

You can play tug of war and/or fetch, just play them with some rules and play them really low key. It sounds like you have some good rules in place--he has to sit before you throw the ball, etc. Just keep things calm--a few tugs on the toy and then ask for the "drop it" rather than tugging until he is a growly little devil on the end of the toy and then expecting him to be able to control his mouth or have impulse control. Keep the tug sessions short because it will get harder for him to maintain impulse control if the game goes on too long.

You can teach a nose target to your hand. This can be a fun game to play and is a great way to teach pups how to interact with an outstretched hand and can help with greeting people appropriately as well. Just hold out your hand and when your pup touches his nose to it to investigate, tell him "yes" and reward from the other hand.

You can teach him to "find it" by showing him a toy or food then hiding it behind the couch and telling him to "find it". Once he's done that a couple of times, you can show him the toy and run in the other room to hide it on him. You can play the same game outside and he can find objects or find people.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elifaelyn

his arousal tends to be from either being hyped up, or just random... I don't think he's stressed out, I don't see any signs of it.

Stress doesn't always mean "stressed out" in the way we humans tend to think of it. Stress can come from frustration, confusion, social conflict, etc and range from mild to severe. Every dog exhibits stress a little differently, but there are some pretty common behavioral signals that dogs exhibit when stressed. It sounds like the humping your pup does is more from general arousal which is really common. I just didn't want to describe humping as a fixed action pattern without including that FAP's can be triggered by stress as well as arousal.

TwoDogs · #12 15th April 2012, 08:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoDogs

I had a 5.5 month old pup come to my puppy play and she was so scared of the other pups I told her owner that for her own pup's well-being I couldn't allow the pup in. I let her pup watch the other pups play and she got to interact through the barrier with one or two well-mannered pups.

Oh, and just in case anyone was wondering, I didn't just leave this owner and her pup withjout a plan of action. I did encourage (actually pretty much insisted) that she bring her pup back to playtime. She will continue to socialize through the barrier and if there are pups that match her play style and are capable of being respectful of her social-space bubble then I will match her with them for some one-on-one interactions each week until she is confident enough to play with the group (usually about 4-5 pups total).