Why is my 7-week-old chihuahua puppy biting and destroying things?

Tzipora is sure a cutie! What the behaviorist recommend is withdrawing attention from her when she is biting. Yelp very loud and completely remove yourself from her- even if you have to close a door. We need to get her to know that biting on toys is ok and biting you is not. Try to use toys that you can put peanut butter in that will distract her. I would HIGHLY recommend finding a good trainer in your area. There are lots of trainers, but call your veterinarian to find a good one. A good trainer will help you figure out what is causing the biting and a plan to stop it. The good thing is that you are seeking help early. I know that the puppy stage can be frustrating, but with a good trainer- it will be ok. Once she is learning commands- such as sit. You can distract the biting by making her sit and rewarding the sit with a treat. Thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Chewing on lots of things, including human hands and clothing, is completely normal behavior for a puppy this age - this is how puppies explore the world, and how they instinctively want to play. She will grow out of this behavior as she gets older, but there are some things you can do in the meantime that will help. Make sure that your pup has a variety of different toys to provide an appropriate outlet for this behavior - long floppy rope or fleece toys for tugging, plush toys for biting and carrying, and smaller toys or balls for chasing and fetching. She should also have lots of different chews and long-lasting treats to chew on such as bully sticks, large rawhide chews, cow or pig ears, and puzzle toys like a Kong stuffed with peanut butter. You will need to keep your belongings put away out of her reach for now, just like you would with a toddler or small child. For furniture or other items that can't be put away, you can use Bitter Apple spray to make them taste bad, which should help to discourage her from chewing on them. If you are playing with her and she bites you, just redirect her to one of her toys and use that to play with her instead. If she bites your hands when you pet her, calmly stop petting and wait for her to settle down. I would not recommend restraining her against her will, or pinching her ear to punish her for this behavior - these techniques often make things worse by causing frustration, and do not help her to understand what you want. In addition, doing things like this may cause her to be afraid of being picked up or handled, since she associates pain and discomfort with these things. Just be patient and calm, and redirect her to appropriate things to chew as needed - this behavior will go away on its own with age :)

Mouthing behavior is very normal in 8 week old puppies - just like babies they learn and explore with their mouths. Mouthing is different from biting in intent. If she's generally chewing on your hands and happy, that's mouthing. If she's frightened, lunges and bites, and then retreats and hides or bites and leaves punctures, that is very abnormal for such a young puppy and Angel would need to see a veterinarian behaviorist (not a trainer) right away to work on strategies to keep her mentally healthy. I'm going to assume that she's mouthing. The best thing you can do is not reward her mouthing. Any time she puts her mouth on you, disengage from play, petting, or talking to her. Think of it like a light switch - if she mouths, you just turn off and become super boring. Don't punish or try to scare her, she's being a normal puppy and needs to learn how to interact socially. Also, look for a puppy class to enroll her in. Having other puppies to learn and play with is helpful because they learn that biting can hurt. Finally, check out this free ebook from Dr. Ian Dunbar about early puppy training. It's a gem. https://www.dogstardaily.com/files/downloads/AFTER_You_Get_Your_Puppy.pdf Good luck to you and Angel! Let me know if this information was helpful and post another question or set up a consult if you'd like more advice.

This is very common for this age since they are starting to lose their baby teeth and get their adult teeth at this time. Make sure he has plenty of chew toys and bones to play with. I like plain flat raw hides. They can have one a day. If there is something particular he is chewing on, you can put a dab of Tabasco or bitter apple spray to prevent the chewing. This will sometimes helps. When you aren't able to monitor him I would put him in a crate so he doesn't chew something that might harm him. Give him some time as he won't feel the need to do this forever. I hope this helps!

First, I would make sure that Chip is eating a puppy formulated food. Puppies require higher amounts of protein, calcium, and calories than adult dogs to support their growth, and a puppy formulated food would give him that. I would feed him a high quality puppy formulated food, such as Royal Canin or Hills Science diet, and I would feed according to the instructions on the package. As for biting, it is important to stop him from biting and learn that is not appropriate to bite you. When he bites you, do tell him no, but then distract him with a chew toy. Praise him when he starts chewing on that instead, and he will learn that the toy is ok to chew on and not you. You can also try yelping loudly as if you are hurt when he bites you, and that should startle him into stopping. Once he stops, praise him and give him a treat. You can also try time outs. When Chip bites you, yelp loudly, and then remove your hand. Ignore him for 10-20 seconds, and once that time passes, start playing with him again. If he tries to bite you again during the 10-20 seconds, move away, and continue to ignore him. Once the time is over, then you can play with him again. This will teach him that when he plays gently, play continues, and once he bites, play stops.

Keep in mind that it is perfectly appropriate for a 9 week old puppy to be exploring his world by chewing everything in sight, and for most dogs it is a phase that will resolve as long as you don't unintentionally encourage the behavior. You should have plenty of appropriate chew toys (rawhides are okay as long as he isn't biting off large pieces) to give him whenever he is chewing on you or something he shouldn't. If he nips you, make a loud high pitched noise, give him an appropriate chew and remove your attention. If he keeps trying to bite at you he may need to go somewhere quiet. It will seem like you're not making any progress for awhile but eventually he'll catch on.

!Oh what a sweet face! I'm sorry you are having some troubles with MiMi. It does make things a little harder on puppies when they are separated from mom at less than 6 to 8 weeks of age, both behaviorally as well as from a health perspective. (Maybe you have Mimi's momma dog... if so, let Mimi nurse if mom will tolerate it) Is she is vomiting and/or retching/coughing like she wants to vomit, she needs to be seen by a vet. Please take her in ASAP. It may be that her GI (gastro-intestinal) tract is still just really immature, and she needs some special diet or feeding technique, or it may be something more serious, such as an internal birth defect that is affecting her esophagus or stomach; or she may be developing aspiration pneumonia. Your vet may recommend taking a chest X-ray to evaluate for abnormalities. As for toys, you might try a soft rubbery type toy such as a puppy kong. The sensation can be soothing to their gums as they are trying to work on teeth coming in. https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/puppy-kong-dog-toys I hope that information helps you! Thank you for asking PetCoach!