How to Stop a Puppy From Biting

Whilst having a puppy is an exciting time, many people will often run into the issue of biting especially during play time.

Although it’s important to play with your dog to develop your bond and encourage their own development, it’s important to stop play if your dog becomes overexcited.

Always be mindful that you’re not sending your puppy into a frantic state of mind during play and if you feel like this is happening, just stop at that level, let the dog settle down and return to them later.

Toys for puppy biting

Petplan’s behaviourist, Nick Jones, recommends toys which are strong and durable for dogs, particularly as these are the safest! Some appropriate toys to play with your puppy include:

A rope with two loops – this toy can be used as a pulling game, however, watch out that you’re not overexciting your puppy with an aggressive game of tug of war as this could bring your dog into a state where you could be dealing with biting
Rubber stuffable toy – you can put some paste or some soft dog food in this toy to help keep your dog occupied for slightly longer periods of time
Rag toy – this toy comes in different sizes and is therefore great for all breeds. The rag toy is perfect for dealing with puppy biting because it has many tassels on the end that the puppy can really get into and play with it

How to stop a puppy from biting

If you find that the dog is diverting away from the toy and onto your hand, just bring your hand away and use a simple command like ‘no biting’.

Don’t shout at the dog, speak calmly with a flat voice. If that command is still not working and you’re feeling at a loss, then just stop there. Leave the room and let the dog calm down.

Return to the dog a few minutes later where you will find he or she is much calmer and you can return to your play and interaction with the puppy.

Get a puppy insurance quote

We pay 97% of all the claims we receive

90% of claims are settled within 5 working days

We can pay your vet directly

No penalty for claiming

Get a quote

Related Videos

[{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/clicker-training-tips-how-to-clicker-train-a-puppy/", "image":"How-to-clicker-train-your-puppy.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog training-video", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"How to Clicker Train a Puppy", "intro":"Puppy clicker training is a common and effective method of training which ...", "meta":"Puppy clicker training is a common and effective method of training which enables us to mark desirable behaviour. The clicker is a very simple device which makes a little click when you press it." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/dog-recall-training-tips/", "image":"Dog-recall-training-2.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog training-video", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"Dog Recall Training Tips", "intro":"Puppy recall training is probably one of the most important things you can...", "meta":"Puppy recall training is probably one of the most important things you can undertake as a dog owner as it will help keep your dog out of potential danger." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/how-to-crate-train-a-puppy/", "image":"How-to-Crate-train-a-Puppy.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog training-video", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"How to Crate Train a Puppy", "intro":"Crate training a puppy should always be a gradual process and dog owners s...", "meta":"Crate training a puppy should always be a gradual process and dog owners should avoid rushing at all costs. Another key thing is not to force your dog to stay in the crate and to ensure the introduction to the crate is a positive sequence of events." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/how-to-stop-a-puppy-from-biting/", "image":"How-to-stop-a-Puppy-Biting.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog training-video", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"How to Stop a Puppy From Biting", "intro":"Whilst having a puppy is an exciting time, many people will often run into...", "meta":"Whilst having a puppy is an exciting time, many people will often run into the issue of biting especially during play time." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/how-to-teach-a-puppy-to-lay-down/", "image":"How-to-teach-a-puppy-to-lie-down.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog training-video", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"How to Teach a Puppy to Lay Down", "intro":"Training a puppy to lie down is useful for some reasons, and naturally fol...", "meta":"Training a puppy to lie down is useful for some reasons, and naturally follows on from the ‘Sit’ command in your puppy’s training." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/how-to-train-a-puppy-to-sit/", "image":"How-to-teach-your-puppy-to-sit.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog training-video", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"How to Train a Puppy to Sit", "intro":"Training your puppy to sit doesn’t need to be difficult, especially if you...", "meta":"Training your puppy to sit doesn’t need to be difficult, especially if your dog is food driven. This is because small food treats are a great way to lure your dog into the desired position and teach them the behaviour you wish." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/lead-training-puppy-tips/", "image":"How-to-lead-screen-your-puppy.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog training-video", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"Lead Training Puppy Tips", "intro":"Lead training is a great way to develop good behaviour in your puppy. As o...", "meta":"Lead training is a great way to develop good behaviour in your puppy. As our pet behaviourist, Nick Jones, says: “Prevention is always better than cure” and indeed, a lead should be looked at as a safety device before anything else." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/puppy-toilet-training/", "image":"How-to-toilet-train-your-puppy.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog training-video", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"Puppy Toilet Training", "intro":"There are some classic signs of a dog suggesting that it might need to go ...", "meta":"There are some classic signs of a dog suggesting that it might need to go to the garden, particularly sniffing the floor or maybe near the door where the dog would usually go out to the garden." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/intro-to-puppy-training-video/", "image":"intro-to-puppy-training.jpg", "tags":"", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"How to train your new puppy", "intro":"Introducing a young and playful puppy to the concept of training can seem ...", "meta":"Introducing a young and playful puppy to the concept of training can seem an impossible task, but with the help of Petplan’s expert behaviourist, Nick Jones, we’ve compiled our top tips for laying the right foundation." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/mental-stimulation/", "image":"mental-stimulation.jpg", "tags":"", "categories":"dog training training-video", "title":"Dog Tricks and Mental Stimulation", "intro":"Keeping your dog mentally stimulated is an important way of burning off ex...", "meta":"Keeping your dog mentally stimulated is an important way of burning off excess energy. Under stimulated dogs can exhibit unwanted behaviours so it's important to incorporate mental stimulation into everyday life. Along with our expert behaviourist, Nick Jones, we've prepared a few tips to keeping your pup engaged and stimulated within the home." },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/dog-walking-behaviour-training/", "image":"7R9A7930.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog training-video", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"Tips for a Successful First Walk", "intro":"We're on hand with Petplan’s behaviourist, Nick Jones, to put together adv...", "meta":"" },{ "url":"/pet-information/dog/advice/advanced-dog-recall-training/", "image":"dog-recall-training.jpg", "tags":"puppy dog recall training", "categories":"puppy dog training training-video", "title":"Advanced Dog Recall Training", "intro":"Following on from our previous introduction to recall training, Petplan’s ...", "meta":"Following on from our previous introduction to recall training, Petplan’s behaviourist, Nick Jones, is back to look at more advanced recall techniques. " }]