My Shih Tzu puppy bites & cries when alone. How do I calm her?

The crying and whining is normal for her age. She has to learn that no one can be with her all the time and that someone will come back. Make sure she has toys and a comfort bed or blanket to help As far as biting, she is young enough to teach what behavior is good. Whenever she bites stop playing her and tell her no. Ignore her until she settles down and try agin. If she continues then keep stopping until she makes the association. Make sure she has toys that are safe to chew on and bite. When she does wrong give something that is appropriate so she learns. Make sure you reward good behavior with treats and praise socit helps her understand

Poor Diesel! This sounds like fairly severe separation anxiety, especially if he's too distressed to eat food or treats while you're gone. I would strongly recommend talking with your veterinarian about the problem, as most dogs with this degree of anxiety will need prescription medication (at least for a while) in order to make any headway. If your veterinarian isn't comfortable dealing with behavior cases, you can ask for referral to a veterinary behaviorist who can discuss a training plan to work on this issue as well as medication options to help your puppy. In the meantime, you can try a DAP pheromone diffuser as well as a natural calming supplement like Zylkene or Composure to help a bit with his anxiety. It's not likely that these measures will be enough to resolve the problem on their own, but they may help to make him a little more comfortable until you are able to see your vet for a more comprehensive plan.

It's likely that Darby is frustrated about not being able to get somewhere that she wants to go - you can help this problem by calling her name and encouraging her to go in a different direction, and rewarding with a treat when she follows you. Biting and mouthing is very normal behavior for a puppy this age - this is how puppies explore the world, and how they instinctively want to play. Make sure that she 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 things to lay and chew on, such as bully sticks, rawhide chews, cow or pig ears, and puzzle toys such as a Kong stuffed with peanut butter. She will grow out of this behavior on her own as she gets older, but in the meantime, just redirect her to one of her own toys and use that to play with her instead. If she continues to get overly excited and try to bite, give her something to chew on (such as one of the options I mentioned above) to encourage her to settle down and relax for a while.

I am so sorry that you are experiencing these problems with biting with Darby. I am sure it is very upsetting for you. First of all rest assured that this is a very normal puppy behaviour. Puppies learn through play biting and it is part of our role as pet parents to help them learn limits. The biting behaviour will diminish with age. I would not attempt negative reinforcement such as striking Darby or speaking harshly as this will potentially create more serious behaviour issues such as anxiety and fear-aggression. Try some calm corrections and positive reinforcement. If Darby bites you, simply say in a calm voice "no" and stop interacting with her for a few moments. This over time will teach her that biting is not a desired form of play. Also try reinforcing her as she starts to play in a good way by not biting, and give her a small training treat. If Darby does manage to bite hard enough to break the skin be careful of a possible infection. Monitor your wound for heat. Swelling, or discharge. Make an appointment with your doctor if this occurs. If you are struggling with the biting after a couple of weeks of the above suggested training methods, consider puppy socialisation classes or potentially a few sessions with a behaviourist. Distraction, increased exercise, and redirection will also help. Other games which may be fun with Darby are hide and go seek either with you and another person, or you hide her toys and she has to find them. Or classic fetch. This resource should help! https://www.petcoach.co/article/10-ways-to-stimulate-your-dog-s-brain/ I hope this was helpful!

Begin with crating her for very short periods of time. Gradually increase that time as she acclimates. This will take time and requires patience and consistency. Offer a special toy or treat as a distraction. Praise and reward her as she acclimates. A pheromone product, such as the Adaptil collar or DAP plug in diffuser, may help to decrease anxiety. This same method can be used to acclimate her to your absence. Additionally, you can prepare to leave several times daily then put everything away and stay or actually leave. Upon your return, ignore Lily Belle for 15 minutes or until she is calm. Do not make a big deal about coming or going. Consider a pet day care program or having a dog walker visit during the day. At her age, she should not be crated for more than 5 hours before being let out to relieve herself. This time can increase as she matures. The general rule is 1 hour of crate time per month of age plus an additional hour.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. It sounds like Stormy is dealing with separation anxiety. I would recommend feeding her dinner in her crate and making this a place where she wants to go and is comfortable for her. I would make sure she has plenty of room to move around in as well. You can try using the Adaptil products to see if this calms her down and relaxes her. It can take some time for a dog to become crate trained but the key is to make it an enjoyable place that she wants to be in. If she associates the crate with food and a place where she sleeps, she will hopefully find the crate less stressful. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please remember to rate this answer as helpful or not. Thank you!

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.