how do i stop my 5 month old pitbull puppy from biting?
Puppies learn not to bite or more importantly how to bite (i.e. gently, not the face) from their litter mates. Because your puppy was removed from his litter at such a young age, he never learned this skill. Now you must do the job that his litter mates never did. First of all, it has nothing to do with being a pit bull–all puppies are the same. Secondly, when he is biting he is attempting to play, not fight or harm you. When puppies play together, if they bite too hard or in the wrong place, their siblings will yelp and stop playing with them. The puppy wants to play, so this teaches them what not to do if they want to continue playing. Over time, they learn that gentle biting in the correct areas is acceptable and that their siblings will continue to play, which is the desired result. You need to play the role of the missing siblings. Play with your dog, allow him to bite your forearm or wrist very gently and continue playing. But if he bites you hard or in the face, loudly yelp and say "No", act very hurt, stop playing completely, turn your back and ignore him. At this age, it might take a while for him to unlearn what he has gotten used to, but it will eventually work. If he wants to continue playing, he will learn to bite gently and stay away from face (an maybe hands if this is what you choose to teach him). This is the desired result, because at some point in the future if he should feel cornered of threatened–or he’s just looking to play–he will bite very gently and not hurt anyone. Maintain consistency with this training with everyone the dog plays with and he will learn to be a happy and healthy playmate.
