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My puppy keeps biting me! How do I stop his play biting and nipping?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Labrador Retriever | Male | unneutered | 3 months and 1 day old

I have an 11 week old Lab pup. What are some great/effective ways to get him to stop play biting/nibbling?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

Published on December 2nd, 2016

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. Boomer will grow out of this on his own as he gets older, but in the meantime, there are some things you can do to help. First, make sure that he has a variety of different toys to provide an appropriate outlet for this behavior - long floppy rope or fleece toys for tugging, plush squeaky toys for biting and carrying, and smaller toys or balls for chasing and fetching. He should also have a variety of different things to chew on, such as bully sticks, cow or pig ears, large rawhide chews, and puzzle toys like a Kong stuffed with peanut butter. If you are playing with him and he bites you, just redirect him to one of his toys and use that to play with him instead. If he bites your hands when you pet him, calmly stop petting and ignore him until he calms down. You may only be able to pet him right now when he is sleepy and calm - this is perfectly okay, he will get better at this with age.

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

    Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

    Published on July 24th, 2017

    Simba is a very cute puppy! :) Biting and mouthing is completely normal in a puppy this age - this is how puppies explore the world, and how they instinctively want to play. He will grow out of this behavior on his own as he gets older. You won't be able to stop it completely in the meantime, but there are some things you can to do help. Make sure that he 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. He should also have lots of different things to chew on, such as bully sticks, rawhide chews, cow or pig ears, and puzzle toys such as a Kong stuffed with peanut butter. If he bites your hands during play, just redirect him to one of his toys and use that to play with him instead. If you're petting him and he bites you, calmly stop petting and ignore him until he calms down. You may only be able to pet him when he is calm and sleepy right now, which is perfectly fine - this will improve as he gets older. Please don't hit Simba with a rolled up newspaper or anything else - this is not an appropriate way to train dogs, and will only confuse him and make him afraid of you. Instead, be patient and kind, just as you would with a human toddler who is still learning. Just redirect him to something more appropriate to chew on, and be patient until he gets older :)

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