How To Stop My Dog From Biting When Excited?
[Everything you need to know]

author
Aaron Rice Expert Dog Trainer
Written: January 17, 2022

Being excited is one of the best feelings to have! The rush, the heart pumping, the feeling! It’s just….exciting! Everyone expresses their excitement in their own way. 

Some people jump, some dance, some scream, some sing, or some simply sit quietly with their hands in their mouth. Dogs have their way of expressing their excitement too! 

Some of them jump and bark, some run around, some lick your face or rub against you, some put out their tongue and stare and some, well, bite.

While everyone has the freedom to do what they want to, we don’t want anyone else to get hurt in the process as well. This is why a dog that bites when excited is, sadly, a sign to act immediately!

Why Does My Dog Bite When They Are Excited?

There are a couple of reasons why your dog might be portraying this behavior. Some of the most common reasons are as follows.

  • They are trying to grab your attention by biting you. Sometimes they might just want to hold your hand or leg in their mouth but end up hurting you nevertheless. It is their way to ask you for your dedicated time towards them. If you have reacted to their biting or given them attention previously due to biting, then this behavior has been likely reinforced.
  • Mouthing your hand or some other body part like your feet or ear or nose makes them feel comfortable. Now, this may not make sense to us, but animals communicate in their own way, and they have their unique body language.
  • Your dog has pent-up energy that results in such behavior. Lack of the needed amount of physical activity in canines can make them restless and anxious. In such cases, mouthing, jumping, or biting has been commonly observed.
  • They are used to play fighting. This is generally true with dogs that are a part of a canine group or have a companion at home. Dogs play and fight with each other. This involves a lot of biting and mouthing. In this case, they don’t realize that humans are built differently.
  • Lack of bite inhibition. This is when the canine understands how much pressure is good while mouthing or how much pressure is durable when they bite or mouth. This knowledge comes to them when they are a part of a litter or a pack of dogs. 

When dogs play with other dogs, they jump on each other, play fight, mouth, and bite. In this process, they learn bite inhibition, which is how to bite in ways that don’t hurt others. If your dog has not had the opportunity to get these lessons the natural way, they are oblivious to how strong and injurious their biting can be.

Can you train a dog not to bite?

Dog’s are pretty trainable beings. That’s a good part about having a dog. You can make your dog become a much more disciplined pet with the help of training. 

In case of their biting habit as well, you can train your dog and stop this behavior. With the help of obedience training, your dog will learn to respect you and your commands. 

A dog may also be biting you when they feel insecure, scared, anxious, or uncomfortable. They may want just to mouth your hand and hold it. Or they may bite you out of fear or stress. 

This will need you to dig a little deeper and take care of their mental needs. See if they are feeling safe. Help your dog get calmer. 

Take care of their nutritional needs and give your dog the much-needed exercise. Tire them mentally and physically every day to help their appetite go up and get some good rest.

How to Stop a Dog From Biting or Nipping When Excited?

To solve the problem, you must first know the problem. This is why make sure you observe and get to know why your dog is acting the way it is. There are many reasons why dogs might feel the need to bite; for example, your dog might want to play, be happy, scared, or even protect you (because they think you are in danger) by pulling you to go somewhere!

If your dog seems bothered because of something else, you must dig deeper into it and maybe consult a professional dog trainer before jumping into anything. Be careful when your dog is excited. The most common problems that come in this case are biting in public places or around children.

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