Nipping/biting to snapping at the air... is this an improvement?

[confused_guy]

Edit: TL;DR: is air snapping instead of nipping/biting escalation an improvement, or something to be worried about?

Edit: formatting

So we adopted an adolescent puppy around 6 weeks ago. He was 7 months at the time, and he is a heeler/Aussie/dachshund/basset mix. After the first few days of him getting adjusted to our home, we noticed that he was VERY VERY mouthy, and this progressed from just general mouthing of our hands, to nipping, to trying to play aggressive/frenzied tug-of-war with our clothes (and then he'd catch skin when he'd snap to get a better grip on our clothes), to eventually actual chomping on our arms if we had long sleeves on when he wanted something or was frustrated. This was definitely worse when he got tired, but it really was just a constant thing.

I'll admit we didn't do a good job of managing it at first (we weren't prepared, the previous owner hadn't mentioned the mouthiness and he didn't display these behaviors both times we met him prior to adopting him). We tried reverse time out, yelping, disengaging, redirecting... all of that made it so much worse. I was covered in bruises and he broke skin a few times.This was also much worse with me (F) than with my husband (M). My husband tended to be a lot "firmer" with him, and as a result our pup started nipping/biting him a lot less. I was hesitant at first, but I started doing the same-- now, whenever he starts nipping or chomping, we immediately stand over him, issue a very firm and deep, "NO," and if this didn't work, we would gently but purposefully get him on his side on the ground while gently holding his head/neck away from us and tell him to "settle" in a soft tone until he calmed down. This started working almost IMMEDIATELY. The biting is so, so, so much better now. After these episodes he just goes to his normal self, so no indication of fear or aggression or anything like that.

However, this leads me to my question-- nowadays, usually a very firm NO is sufficient to get him to stop (while standing over him), but instead of escalating, he starts gnashing his teeth/snapping at the air. It's never at us, but it's mildly alarming to hear those sharp little teeth snapping together.

Is this an indication of improvement (it seems to me like he's frustrated but is trying not to take it out on us), or have we made things a lot worse? I just want to know if this a warning sign of potentially problematic behavior in the future so we can get a trainer involved and nip it in the bud. If we've effed up, also let me know what you would do to remedy the situation.

 

[mykell]

@confused_guy How much sleep is he getting each day? What kind of outlets does he have to get his sillies out? Are there predictable times when he gets mouthy?

Personally I don’t advocate for intimidation tactics like scolding, hovering or alpha rolls. You might be seeing calm, but it could be shutdown and learned helplessness (really watch the face for stress signals). Technically air snapping is better than mouthing/biting but I don’t think the core issue is being tackled.

It would be worth it to find a trainer who can help address the function of the behaviors and the underlying emotions going on (like you said it could be frustration), coming up with a coping strategy for your dog to choose to instead of mouthing you, and bringing clarity to your cues.

 

[confused_guy]

@mykell Thank you for your comment. This is super helpful. I actually didn't know what we were doing had a name (alpha roll). I personally am not a fan of these tactics either, but I got to a point where I just couldn't take getting hurt anymore and I didn't know what else to do.

Another point for context: this behavior was also admittedly a lot worse when we were having work done in our backyard and we didn't have a great way for him to get all his zoomies out. Mental stimulation (puzzles/games, training) only goes so far-- he's a puppy and needs to zoom! He also won't go on walks from our house (we're working on it, he just wants to run back home if he see it), so true physical stimulation was lacking for a bit and can still be a challenge. Now that we are back to his usual schedule of morning + lunch playtime outside + one evening walk where we drive him to another area of the neighborhood and walk (he gets ~14-16 hrs of sleep a day also), I am trying to work on more +R ways to curb the biting behaviors.

When he's tired (won't settle after playtime or a walk) it's always the worst, but a close second would be when he's frustrated or really wants attention. We are still working on "learning" him since we haven't had him since he was super little and thus have no baseline for his behavior. After the craziness of the holidays, I do plan on working with a trainer. I'm thinking some in-home training aimed at behavioral issues would be best here... *Tiger King voice* "I will never financially recover from this"

 

[mykell]

@confused_guy Your frustration is totally valid! Makes sense that he gets chompy with the backyard work and when he’s tired or wanting attention. It’s awesome that he is getting good rest each day too.

Have you tried something like a herding ball or flirt pole to get the physical energy out? You could also add cues/rules to make it more challenging mentally.

Perhaps in those times you predict chompiness to provide some kind of calming activity or reward a behavior before he has a chance to escalate could help lower his arousal.

I also watched this webinar on The Role of Arousal a while back. Even if you don’t think or are unsure if there’s aggressive component, it could give some insights until you bring in a trainer.

 

[cathyj]

@mykell Yes, this! Flirt pole, and playing a structured game of tug is huge - many of these breeds have a genetic predisposition for chasing, biting and barking so giving the dog a constructive outlet fit these drives is important.

 

[confused_guy]

@mykell Oh man he LOVES the flirt pole. Haven’t noticed a huge difference in how he acts based on that type of stimulation, but we’re still working on “drop it” and I think that’ll help with his engagement with it (he doesn’t want to give back the lure once he catches it). And our herding ball just came in the mail today! I’m really excited to use it.
I am absolutely going to try to start getting ahead of the behaviors, and I’ll check out that resource! Thank you so much!!

 

[mrs41intx]

@confused_guy When he bios your hands you can try pushing down his tongue. This is slightly uncomfortable for dogs. Has done a lot of good with many dogs. Any playing around with the mouth toggle etc. will work on bettering bitte inhibition. As bad as is is with your dog, this is maybe not an option anymore.
I would be curious how exactly you redirect him. Does he start nipping you and then you immediately get a chew toy for him or give him food? This will only reinforce it, since the dog is then getting rewarded for the behavior. As bad as it is you might want to try to startle the dog when he does it. Squirt him with a bit of water or clap your hands loudly. When he then stops you can redirect. This will teach him what to chew and what not to. If you don’t feel comfortable doing this you can also just grab his collar and restrain him until he calms down, then redirect. When it’s this bad you won’t get far without correcting the behavior in some way.