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My puppy bites and chews everything. Is this normal? How to stop it?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

My 4 month old Shiba Inu chews a lot and not just her toys. Sometimes it is me. Is this just normal puppy behavior? Is there something I should do? I usually hold her to my chest and restrict her from biting and sometimes she will calm down. My husband pinches her ear - biting us = pain for her.

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

Published on February 17th, 2017

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 :)

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

    Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

    Published on February 10th, 2017

    It's very normal for puppies this age to bite on everything they can - this is how they explore the world, and how they instinctively want to play. It's also possible that Bella may be teething, as this process normally starts around 10-12 weeks of age in puppies and continues until 5-6 months when all of the adult teeth are in. This problem will resolve on its own as she gets older, but there are definitely some things you can do to help in the meantime. Make sure that she has a variety of different toys available 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 long-lasting treats and chews that she can chew on, such as bully sticks, large rawhide chews, cow or pig ears, and puzzle toys such as a Kong stuffed with peanut butter. If she is biting you or chewing something she shouldn't, just redirect her to one of her toys instead. Most puppies have largely grown out of this phase by 10-12 months of age, so just be patient and consistent in the meantime :)

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    1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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    Answered By David Elbeze, DVM, MRCVS

    Veterinarian

    Published on April 10th, 2018

    It's absolutely normal, all puppies bite pretty much everything until they finish teething (around the age of 4-5 months), buying many chew toys can help but it usually does not solve the problem 100%.

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