Lead biting

Hi everyone 

we have a problem with our pup, when out walking he will keep biting at his lead. He is just over 71/2 months and has done this periodically for the last 3 months. He was castrated recently and pretty well stopped, but has started again with a vengeance, I don't know why.  He has bitten through 2 leads already. We have tried saying no firmly with no success, also have tried standing still till he stopped with no luck, we've also tried distracting him with some success, but that's really hard to keep up when we're out for longer periods of time. He's especially bad when hes seen other dogs. Really need to stop this behaviour. Any advice would be much appreciated.

This sort of behaviour can sometimes be a release from other tensions, sometimes called  redirection. The key is what triggers it. If he can't direct his anxiety or fear at the actual cause, he redirects it to his lead - or it could be to a person via a bite.

Can you see any pattern? Apart from other dogs as you mentioned?

Dog body language can be very subtle. Ear tension, eyes back, lip licking, yawning are all tension signs.

He will have an invisible radius of space around him where he feels secure . Find out what that is and keep him far enough away from triggers that he is relaxed. Reward his calm behaviour. Gradually, over weeks and months, not days, work on reducing the distance. But - be aware that if your dog has had a stressful episode the stress hormone can stay in the body for up to 48 hours so a distance he was comfortable with the day before might be too close that day. So the safe distance can change, watch his body language.

I agree with JoanneF about stress. Other dogs being a trigger is a big clue. It can happen where he saw a dog on a previous occasion without one being present when he lead bites.

Try leifting his emotions by rewarding happy, calm behaviour in situations where he is particularly stressed. If it is other dogs then the "bar open - bar closed" technique might help. This is where treats are produced when another dog is spotted and fed to the dog (bar open) until the other dog disappears when they cease (bar closed). You will know it is working when your dog looks at you when another dog is spotted.

In the meantime, see if you can find a chain lead (not collar). They are awful on the hands but very unrewarding for the dog to bite. It would be the safer option to prevent a disaster if your dog bit through its lead. You could take a toy for your dog to carry if that helps to calm him. Some dogs love to carry things.

Once again thank you both for your advice. It really never occurred to me that our pups behaviour could be stress related he is such a well adjusted and happy little fellow.

The trainer at puppy class said it was in response to our reaction to his lead biting, and that our pup thought it was all a game. At class yesterday his behaviour was the worst yet! The class took place outside with a total  count of 10 puppies.  

To be honest your explanation makes more sense!  The only clue is when he jumps up and hangs on to his lead is showing the whites of his eyes occasionally, I noticed it today. He has plenty of varied exercise, but in truth not so much playtime or regular training recently. This is something we are rectifying immediately, with lots of praise when apropriate as advised by gypsymum. As he has chewed halfway through his current lead, I'll replace it with a chain lead, I've  been toying with the idea anyway. Maybe it will break this habit somewhat. 

Once again many thanks for both of your replies. I'm really grateful 

Two things; just be careful he doesn't hurt his teeth on the new lead. Maybe let him take it in his mouth gently at home so he feels its hardness and so doesn't have his first experience with it a painful one.

The other thing is that puppy classes can be quite overwhelming for some puppies. Is there a quiet area for him to get some time out?

Hi Joanne 

good idea introducing new lead first, I thought I'd walk him round garden first so there's less distractions.

There is space for time out, but in truth not much opportunity as class is pretty much full on. 

Is the Puppy Class fairly ordered? Ten seems quite a large number. Sarah Whitehead the Puppy Socialisation Guru says that 4 is an ideal number but 6 is ok.

Concentrate on ensuring your puppy enjoys the experience. You can always train new behaviour but dealing with anxieties is much more difficult. I have trained a hooligan nine year old dog. Puppy Classes are all about our puppy enjoying being around other dogs and different people. Try not to fall into the competitive trap of being top of the class in obedience. Each puppy has individual needs and it is very important that these are met.

The class is held mostly outside( we've been lucky weatherise) and as organised as it can be with 10 puppies.

The trainer is knowledgeable and very passionate about his job, but is less then clear sometimes when it comes to teaching. We have 1 more class left on the course and are considering that it may be helpful getting a trainer in on a 1 to 1 basis.

Our pup seems to enjoy the class and is very sociable with both people and dogs alike.

All in all I have, as a rookie owner, found that there is so much psychology to owning a dog! 

Victoria Stillwell has a very good website at www.positively.com for training tips. Please check any trainers carefully as it is an unregulated industry, but anyone who has studied with Victoria or is a member of the APDT will have good credentials. At the very least make sure your trainer uses positive reward based training and not dominance theory which is ineffective and now widely discredited. 

Our course trainer comes with good credentials and does use reward based training. This is our second course with him, and in truth we've learnt so much.

The last day or so the lead biting hasn't been so bad ( we've held fire on the chain lead at the moment ). Giving him more play time and a toy to hold when he grabs the lead has distracted him. Fingers crossed that we're going in the right direction.

Thank goodness for this forum.