SHITZU PUPPY BITING

Question
SHITZU PUPPY IS BITING AND I HAVE TRIED THE CAN WITH COINS AND A NEWSPAPER BUT HE JUST BARKS AT ME AND CONTINUES TO BITE. HE KEEPS THINKING THAT ITS A GAME. PLEASE HELP

Answer
Carlos, how old is he, how long have you had him, and has he had any obedience training yet? Biting and nipping is a normal puppy behavior, but that doesn't mean it's appropriate. Squirting them in the face/mouth with a spray bottle set to 'stream' often works, but not always. One method that I've found works 99% of the time is to use your index and middle fingers to tap her under the chin when she chomps on you. Hold the two fingers straight out, together, as if they were taped around the end. When your puppy bites you, say 'No bite,' and, beginning at level 1, on a scale of 1-10, tap her underneath the chin. Then immediately offer her that body part to bite again, saying things like, "Do you want it? Wanna bite? Go on! Get it!" etc. She will likely chomp down on it as soon as you offer it to her. At that point, repeat the 'No bite' command, and tap her under the chin again, this time at level 2. Repeat until she no longer has the desire to bite you when you offer your hand/foot/arm/whatever to her. Then praise her and give her a treat or toss her toy for her or something. When she bites you again, later, begin at whatever level you left off at; do not start again at level 1. Biting you should become increasingly more uncomfortable every time she does it.

Another thing you can do is to simply try and redirect her biting from you to a toy. For this, though, it means you have to always have a toy handy to shove in her mouth when she starts going after you. You should always praise her for playing with her toys.

I've found that the chin tapping method seems to work with all puppies, and you don't have to worry about having a toy or squirt bottle handy, because your fingers are always handy! ;^)  This method is also not harsh, and it allows the puppy to teach itself through trial and error. I've used it on dogs as small as chihuahuas and as large as German shepherds.