A Golden Retriever puppy is an excellent addition to any family looking for a new dog. But much like other puppies, a Golden Retriever puppy has a tendency to chew and bite. It’s important to train your new little guy or gal not to do this early on so it doesn’t become an ongoing problem. So, how can you train your Golden Retriever puppy not to bite?
You can train your Golden Retriever puppy not to bite by telling them no in a firm tone, providing them with proper chew toys, and giving or withholding your attention based on the puppy’s behavior. Consistency is the key to teaching your Golden Retriever puppy not to bite.
If you’ve just gotten a Golden Retriever puppy, you’re in for an exciting time! However, you have to train your dog to behave, and that includes keeping them from biting. I’ve listed a few ways to train your dog not to bite. Read on and you’ll be successfully teaching your new dog not to nip in no time!
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Ignore Your Puppy When They Start Nibbling at Your Hands
Whenever your puppy starts to bite, stop giving them attention. Get up and walk away from the dog. Leave the room if you can. At the very least, you should turn away from your Golden Retriever if you don’t want to leave them completely alone in the room.
Focus on something else for a bit. You don’t have to ignore your Golden Retriever for a long time, but ignore them until they calm down. As your dog starts to notice that you’re ignoring them because they bit you, they’ll learn they shouldn’t do that if they want attention. And believe me, a Golden Retriever (puppy or not) always wants your attention!
At first, your pup may start to bark or whine for your attention, but don’t give in. Stand your ground until your dog doesn’t want to bite. Now, you may not see immediate results with this method, but it will work over time if you remain consistent.
If you allow your puppy to bite at your hands every once in a while because it’s cute, this method will take a very long time to work. Sending your new puppy mixed signals will only confuse him or her.
Give Your Golden Retriever Puppy Attention When They Behave
If you want to focus on reward-based training, you should give your Golden Retriever attention when they don’t bite you. You can pet your dog to reward them for not getting mouthy with your hand or fingers while playing. It can take a while to get to this stage, so be patient.
When, your dog gets through an entire play session without biting, that deserves some extra love. Now, you have to be careful not to give too much attention when your dog does bite.
If your Golden Retriever reverts to biting out of excitement or nervousness, immediately stop giving them attention. Turn away and ignore your dog like what you did before. Hopefully, they will get the message more quickly, so you can go back to playing without them biting.
Firmly Say “No”
If you don’t want to ignore your Golden Retriever, you can tell your dog “no” when they bite. Use a firm tone rather than a cute tone you might use when praising your dog. The different tone is important to convey your message since your dog can’t understand the words you use.
When you say no, use physical signals to get your Golden Retriever to stop. Take your hand out of their mouth and move it out of reach. Grab your dog’s mouth and close it, but do so carefully so that you don’t hurt your puppy.
Don’t show any signs of pleasure or fun. Even if a bite doesn’t hurt, it’s still important to tell your dog not to do that. Make sure anyone who trains the dog uses the same firm tone.
Watch for Patterns
Another way you can train your Golden Retriever puppy to stop biting is to watch for patterns. See if your dog tends to bite more at certain times of day, in the same room, or while playing with a particular toy.
When your dog does bite, you can use other methods to get them to stop immediately. But after the fact, write down the date, time, and situation. If multiple people are training your dog, you should also log who your dog tends to bite.
That way, you can see if there are patterns. Perhaps your dog tends to bite the most right before dinner, so maybe they’re more hungry and ready to eat.
Use Bitter Spray
When you start training your Golden Retriever puppy, you may want to try using a bitter spray on your hands. You shouldn’t feel any weird effects from the spray, but your dog won’t like how it tastes.
Try this bitter spray (Amazon), it works on your hands to stop chewing and biting and it also works on other things around the house that a new puppy might want to chew on like houseplants, furniture, etc.
This can be an easy way to get your dog not to bite you. If you always have the spray on your hands when playing with your dog, they learn pretty quickly that they don’t like how your hands taste.
Now, this can be difficult if your dog bites other areas of your body, but it can help. You might get quicker results than if you only stuck to ignoring your dog.
Have Lots of Toys
Another excellent way to train your Golden Retriever to stop biting you is to use toys. You should be careful and use toys when your dog exhibits good behavior. But you can give your dog chew toys so that they have something they can bite.
As your puppy grows up, they’ll be teething, so they will need something to ease the pain. Make sure you have toys in your dog’s kennel and around the house for easy access. There is even a teething ring for dogs (Amazon) that you keep in the freezer and it provides something cool to chew on to help ease the pain during this period of your puppies life.
If you play with your Golden Retriever, and they don’t bite, you can reward them with a special toy that you keep out of reach. Then, your dog will want to behave well when they play with you.
Discover how to train your Golden Retriever by playing games: 21 games to play with your Golden that will make them smarter and better behaved!
Give Your Dog Treats
Along with toys, treats can be a great tool for training your Golden Retriever puppy. You can have a bag of small treats in your pocket that you use when playing with your dog. Whenever they go a long time without biting, you can give them a treat.
You can also use the treats to distract your dog. If you know their patterns and when they usually bite, you can preempt that with a treat. Then, your dog can chew on the food rather than your hand.
There are tons of treats out there, so go with something small. Try to avoid using treats as a bribe, and focus on making them a reward. That way, your dog can look forward to a treat for their good habits.
Start As Soon as Possible
Training your Golden Retriever puppy not to bite should start as soon as you bring your puppy home. It’s just as important as house training and crate training. If you wait until your dog gets into the habit of biting, it will be hard to break.
But if you start when your dog hasn’t gotten used to biting you, it won’t take as much work. You may still need to use various ways to train your dog, but it should be easier.
Starting when your puppy is super young can also help them with other areas of their life. If you can train them not to bite, you will know how they learn best, which will help you train them for other things.
Be Consistent (The Golden Rule)
No matter what training methods you use, you need to be consistent. Your dog won’t learn if you tell them not to bite one day but then don’t train them for another week. It will also be harder if you use one method while your spouse uses another method.
Everyone in your household should decide on how and when to train your Golden Retriever puppy. Use the same toys or treats, train your dog simultaneously, or use the same speaking tone.
That way, your dog can learn from everyone rather than a single trainer. Then, you all can enjoy your Golden Retriever, and they can develop good habits.
Final Thoughts
Training a Golden Retriever to stop biting can take some time. You have to figure out when your dog bites and what triggers the biting. Then, you have to determine how your dog learns best and use that method to train your puppy. But once you find the perfect tool, your dog will learn to stop biting.
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