biting problems

Question
I have two, blood related, pom Pekingese mix puppies. who are 6 months old. they bite anything and anyone they can, including each other. I got them from their owner when they were 6 weeks old. I have tried, chew toys, dry food, puppy treats, scolding and timeout to get them to stop. but nothing seems to work. A little about their parents... their mom was the pom, she had a good personality and attitude. Their dad,the Pekingese, was the total opposite and also had a biting problem. Any advice on how to stop this behavior while they are young?

Answer
Hi, Rebecca,

Thanks for the question.

Your dogs were taken from their mother too soon; that's why they haven't learned proper bite inhibition.

Do they ever get a chance to play with older dogs? Is there a dog run or dog park near you where they could meet and play with adult dogs? Because a well-balanced older dog would not put up with this kind of nipping and would know exactly how to get that message across without really hurting the puppies.

Another option would be to spray Bitter Apple on anything and anyone the puppies like to use their teeth on.

Playing tug-of-war, outdoors, with each dog individually, where you always let the dog win and praise her for winning, would also help. Tug is a great outlet for a dog's oral needs. And now that they've got all their adult teeth (I'm assuming that they do), they can bite the tug rag really, really hard. The harder they bite the toy the less they'll need to bite each other or anyone else. BUT YOU HAVE TO PLAY OUTDOORS. The "den" is for sleeping and relaxing, not for play time.

And don't scold or punish them; it'll only make matters worse.

Let me know if you need an further info or clarification.

LCK