My Dog Mouths Me When She’s Excited
Question:
My dog, a 1 year old Lab, mouths me when she’s excited and also people she meets on the street. How can I get her to stop?
Thanks,
Vicki C, Berkeley CA
ANSWER:
Great question! Let me ask one of my own. Does your dog know what ‘no’ means? This may seem like a silly question but I find that most dogs have no clue what this word means. (Keep in mind that I say ‘no’ and you might say ‘eh-eh’, ‘tsk’, etc. The word you use isn’t important, its all about what you do with that word.) The reason that most dogs don’t know what ‘no’ means is because they have heard the word too many times without having any meaning attached.
What does it take to attach meaning to the word ‘no’? Simple, you need to provide something that gives the word meaning. What could that be? It could be a squirt bottle, shake can, leash correction, or any other number of humane corrections that act as a simple deterrent so you can quickly encourage the proper behavior of not mouthing.
Teach your dog what ‘no’ means and use it when he starts using his mouth as a greeting tool. Good luck.
Ty Brown is an expert dog trainer, author, and speaker who specializes in obedience training, behavior modification, protection dog training, and narcotics dogs. To learn more about Ty and the dog training services he offers, visit www.dogbehavioronline.com
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It is also important to follow through each time you use. If your dog is smart they will challenge you when you say that word to see if you are bluffing. If you start to use you must continue to use it for the same purpose.