Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
Animal Health – General (Expert Forum)
Muzzle on Puppy
Answered by
Aleda M Cheng, D.V.M., C.V.A - Small Animals, dogs, cats, C.V.A, Western Herbal Medicine, Traditional Chinese Herbalist, Acupuncture
American Animal Hospital
Randolph - NJ
This forum is for general pet health questions, such as questions about medications, parasites, vaccines, infectious diseases, breed specific and genetic problems.
Muzzle on Puppy
by DinaGrimes, May 30, 2007 12:00AM
I have a 4 month old puppy Goldendoodle who is very bitty right now (we are working on this). I have a 10 year old daughter who does not handle the biting well and starts screaming and running from him. The puppy, of course, thinks this is just great and bites even worse. When my daughter has her friends over it gets really bad (they act the same way). He has already ripped some of the friends clothes (and mine also) and I'm afraid he will break skin. I'm thinking about purchasing a muzzle to put on him when the kids are over but I'm concerned that this might be too cruel to the puppy. What are your thoughts? Will it cause other issues?
Thank you!
Thank you!
Doctor's Answer
by Aleda M Cheng, D.V.M., C.V.A, May 30, 2007 12:00AM
, May 30, 2007 12:00AM
I think that things have gone too far when clothes have already been bitten and torn.
Your daughter needs training too, or you should find another home for the dog. Your daughter’s behavior has caused your puppy to believe he is in an alpha, and she is beneath him as an omega, in your family pack. This can become an even greater problem once he reaches his full size, and is able to cause even more harm.
My recommendations to you:
1. Discuss this situation with your veterinarian. If your veterinarian wants you to consult a veterinary behaviorist: Do it!
2. Get professional training for your dog by a trainer recommended by your veterinarian.
3. You must force your daughter to go to the training sessions and be an important part of the training. If she is a normal 10 year old she is old enough to understand, listen and learn. (I have children of my own.)
4. Be prepared to continue training your dog 24/7. The trick to any training is consistency.
Muzzling is a tool of last resort. I believe behavior modification is much more important.
I had a similar question the other day I will copy my reply below. The answer begins below the italics. The question was how to get their puppy to stop biting.
The first thing you must do is to teach your dog that he is hurting you when he is biting.
He may not know that he is hurting you. It is important to get him to understand that. Puppies learn not to bite each other when they are siblings. If one bites the other too hard the recipient will squeal and walk or run away, depriving the biter of a play companion. You will have to find something that gets his attention when he bites such as your making a loud squeal (it doesn't have to be a word, try to imitate a puppy), or, shaking a can of pennies, or squirting him with a squirt bottle. If these don't work put hot pepper sauce on your fingers or in the areas he bites most. Once you get his attention with one of these devices, squeals, squirts, etc., than walk away. Go into another room for several minutes. You must also reward his good times. If he goes 10 minutes with out biting give him a favorite treat. Extend the time to 15 minutes after 2 days.
This behavioral change will take some time and lots of persistence and consistency on your part. Don't let your guard slip even once until the bad behavior is a thing of the past.
Good Luck!
Dr. Cheng
Your daughter needs training too, or you should find another home for the dog. Your daughter’s behavior has caused your puppy to believe he is in an alpha, and she is beneath him as an omega, in your family pack. This can become an even greater problem once he reaches his full size, and is able to cause even more harm.
My recommendations to you:
1. Discuss this situation with your veterinarian. If your veterinarian wants you to consult a veterinary behaviorist: Do it!
2. Get professional training for your dog by a trainer recommended by your veterinarian.
3. You must force your daughter to go to the training sessions and be an important part of the training. If she is a normal 10 year old she is old enough to understand, listen and learn. (I have children of my own.)
4. Be prepared to continue training your dog 24/7. The trick to any training is consistency.
Muzzling is a tool of last resort. I believe behavior modification is much more important.
I had a similar question the other day I will copy my reply below. The answer begins below the italics. The question was how to get their puppy to stop biting.
The first thing you must do is to teach your dog that he is hurting you when he is biting.
He may not know that he is hurting you. It is important to get him to understand that. Puppies learn not to bite each other when they are siblings. If one bites the other too hard the recipient will squeal and walk or run away, depriving the biter of a play companion. You will have to find something that gets his attention when he bites such as your making a loud squeal (it doesn't have to be a word, try to imitate a puppy), or, shaking a can of pennies, or squirting him with a squirt bottle. If these don't work put hot pepper sauce on your fingers or in the areas he bites most. Once you get his attention with one of these devices, squeals, squirts, etc., than walk away. Go into another room for several minutes. You must also reward his good times. If he goes 10 minutes with out biting give him a favorite treat. Extend the time to 15 minutes after 2 days.
This behavioral change will take some time and lots of persistence and consistency on your part. Don't let your guard slip even once until the bad behavior is a thing of the past.
Good Luck!
Dr. Cheng
