Some dogs can become overly excited during a game of chase and may start nipping at the heels of their human playmates. What ways do you teach your dog to play without nipping?
Here are some tips from vetstreet.com!
This behavior is unlikely to stop on its own; unless you intervene, it will become a habit. To put a stop to the nipping, it is important to avoid any situations where your dog would normally chase while also teaching her alternative behaviors to perform instead.
Dogs should always be supervised around children, especially when a dog exhibits unpredictable behavior like heel nipping. This behavior is frightening for a child. Unfortunately, the more the child screams and tries to get away, the more exhilarating and intense the situation becomes for your dog. This makes it more likely that your dog will respond with harder or more frequent heel nips or that she may jump up to nip the child’s arms and sleeves.
Teach Your Dog an Alternative Behavior
It is important that you teach your dog an alternative behavior, like down stay, to replace the nipping. Work with your dog on leash in a location with minimal distractions. Once she is successful at down stay, add distractions like someone walking by. Build up to more dramatic distractions, like a person jogging by or jumping up and down. Once your dog is comfortable holding a down stay even with these distractions, move your training to a more challenging environment, one where your canine would normally chase — your backyard, for instance.
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