Hello Jay, For the playing, pup is probably trying to play with you like she would with another puppy. When playing with another puppy, normally the other pup would yelp then stop playing if pup was too rough, having that happen often would teach your pup how to be more gentle so the play could continue. Check out the article linked below. Starting today, use the "Bite Inhibition" method, that method will mimic a puppy yelping and stopping the play. By the time pup's jaws develop at 5 months of age you want all biting to stop completely if it hasn't already, in addition to pup learning control of pressure right now, so begin teaching "Leave It" from the "Leave It" method right now too. Leave It will take some time to teach, so the Bite Inhibition method can be used until pup has gotten good at Leave It. As soon as pup is good as the Leave It game, start telling pup to "Leave It" when she attempts to bite or is tempted to bite. Reward pup if she makes a good choice. Playing games where pup keeps something in her mouth, or the biting is directed at an object like a toy to fetch, instead of something to tug, and using toys that are long enough you can hold one end while she holds the other end, can also help at this age. Once she knows Leave It, if she disobeys your leave it command, use the Out command from the second article linked below to make her leave the area as a consequence.The order or all of this is very important - the Bite Inhibition method can be used for the next couple of weeks while pup is learning leave it, but leave it will teach pup to stop the biting entirely. The Out method teaches pup that you mean what you say without being overly harsh - but because you have taught pup to leave it first, pup clearly understands that you are not just playing (which is what pup probably thinks most of the time right now), so it is more effective. https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-biteOut - which means leave the area. Check out the section on Using Out to Deal with Pushy Behavior for how to calmly enforce that command once it's taught.https://www.petful.com/behaviors/how-to-teach-a-dog-the-out-command/Another important part of this is puppy learning bite inhibition. Since this is best taught through playing with puppies, see if there is a puppy class in your area you can attend safely, that comes well recommended and has time for moderated off-leash puppy play. If you can't join a class, look for a free puppy play group, or recruit some friends with puppies to come over if you can and create your own group. You are looking for puppies under 6 months of age - since young puppies play differently than adult dogs. Right now, an outside class may be best in a fenced area, or letting friends' pups play in someone's fence outside.Moderate the puppies' play and whenever one pup seems overwhelmed or they are all getting too excited, interrupt their play, let everyone calm down, then let the most timid pup go first to see if they still want to play - if they do, then you can let the other puppies go too when they are waiting for permission.Finding a good puppy class - no class will be ideal but here's what to shoot for:https://www.petful.com/behaviors/puppy-classes-when-to-start/When pup gets especially wound up, she probably needs a nap too. At this age puppies will sometimes get really hyper when they are overtired or haven't had any mental stimulation through something like training. When you spot that and think pup could be tired, place pup in their crate or an exercise pen with a food stuffed Kong for a bit to help her calm down and rest. Practicing regular obedience commands or having pup earn what they get by performing commands like Sit and Down before feeding, petting, tossing a toy, opening the door for a walk, ect... can also help stimulate pup mentally to increase calmness and wear them out. Commands that practice focus, self-control, and learning something a bit new or harder than before can all tire out puppies.For the biting when you touch her, I would work on helping her associate your touch with good things to desensitize her to touch. You don't want that low tolerance to turn into an adult who bites when touched, but you also don't want to make it worse by touching her a lot when she wants to be left alone. What you do want to do is make touches fun for her so she learns to like them. Use puppy’s daily meal kibble to do this. Gently touch an area of puppy's body while feeding a piece of food. Touch an ear and give a treat. Touch a paw and give a treat. Hold his collar and give a treat. Touch his tail gently and give a treat. Touch his belly, his other paws, his chest, shoulder, muzzle and every other area very gently and give a treat each time. Keep these times calm and fun for pup.Best of luck training,Caitlin Crittenden
Sept. 20, 2021
