Dog Obedience Training Tips

Biting issues with Yorkshire Terriers are common, but can be easy to remedy. There are many causes for the biting behavior. A lot of the behavior problems in Yorkshire Terriers begin as a puppy. Starting young on correcting behavioral patterns can help out a great deal. Many of the reasons for biting include teething as a puppy, fear or pain, and even being territorial. These are all bad habits that need to be addressed immediately. While Yorkshire Terriers have small mouths, their teeth are incredibly sharp.

Yorkshire Terrier puppies that are teething tend to want to chew and bite anything that they can get their tiny mouths on. It is during this time that it is best to train your dog what to bite and what not to bite to avoid any issues with biting in the future. A teething puppy grows their teeth in stages over a period of time. Within the first month of life, they will begin growing their puppy teeth. Once the teeth have finished growing in, there will be a total of twenty-eight teeth. Between four and seven months, they will begin losing their puppy teeth, which will be replaced with forty-two adult teeth. These teeth will start with the incisors at four months old and will continue with the canines at five months and the molars at six months. By ten months old, all of the adult teeth should be fully grown. It is in this time that they will want to bite and chew on anything and everything in their path.

The best way to handle a teething puppy is by the use of chew toys. Keeping chew toys that can be frozen is good for the puppies teeth. It will provide something positive to chew on and it will help with the pain of exposed nerves. The most important thing to do is keep anything that can harm the puppy, such as electrical cords, shoes, and anything small, out of reach. Some Yorkshire Terrier puppies will seek to chew on their owners hands to relieve the pain. This is not a good behavioral pattern and needs to stopped before it really gets started. The best way to do this is, when your Yorkshire Terrier puppy starts to chew on your hand, shout “ouch”, or something similar, rather loudly and pull your hand away. When a Yorkshire Terrier puppy is with their litter mates, they become accustomed to having their litter mates yelping when they are bitten while playing. Immediately put a teething toy with your dog and praise them when they start to bite and chew on it.

Biting in adults can be a bit more difficult to remedy. First, you will need to know what is causing the behavior. Yorkshire Terriers will bite out of aggression if they feel that their territory is being invaded. This over protective behavior should be stopped right away. The best way to handle this is by using the same techniques you would use on an unruly toddler. The time out technique is actually quite effective. When your dog bite you or nips at you out of aggression, remove him from the area that he is protecting and put him in a room by himself, preferably a bathroom, for a short period of time. At the end of that time, take him out of time out and put him back in the place that was problematic. If he still bites, repeat the process until the behavioral issues stop.

However, if your Yorkshire Terrier is biting for a different reason, you must find what the problem is. Using other behavioral ques, you can decide whether the issue is internal or external. If he is hiding more often, or does not want to be picked up or held, he may be injured, in pain, or sick. Dogs do not outwardly show it when they are sick or in pain. It is animal logic that showing pain or illness means showing weakness and another animal may take advantage of that. Using the behavioral ques, you can determine whether or not to take your Yorkshire Terrier to the Vet. Sometimes, however, to modify the behavior of a dog, we must examine the behavior of the human. If you are acting outwardly aggressive towards your dog, especially while it is backed into a corner, it will most likely bite you. Be mindful of how you manage your pet. Some behavior are instinctual and cannot be stopped by simple training.