New puppy

[stephanielcruz]

Hey all~ I was hoping to get a little advise. I currently have an 11 month old Westie, and 3 weeks ago we got a second Westie (almost 3 months). Madison (11 mns) is a girl and Murphy (3 mons) is a boy. My husband and I thought having a boy and a girl would be better than two girls (we aren't breeding)... they get along well, and they constantly play... the problem is that sometimes the little boy can become overly aggressive. He hasn't bitten Madison to the point of causing pain, but he has become aggressive enough that he has bitten me twice (drawing blood) and my mother. I don't think he does it on purpose, but I'm just surprised because Madison was not like this at all. yes, when she was teething she was mouthy, but not to the point of drawing blood. When Madison is not with Murphy he just chills out and is very sweet, so do you think it's a jealously thing? or he just gets so worked up playing with her that he doesn't realize he's being so aggressive? He will be starting puppy kindergarten in a few weeks (after the rest of his shots), and then obediance school as well. I just wanted some thoughts on this subject... we currently hold his snout and tell him no when he bites, and redirect him to a toy... let me know if you have any ideas. Thanks so much in advance.

[ginagt]

The rule in my house is if your teeth touch my hand the game is over. Which means if we are playing/hanging out whatever and teeth so much as touch me I say "ouch" in a high picth voice, get up and walk away and my puppy is totally ignored for 5 minutes. Then I come back and play as if nothing has happened, if the teeth come out and touch me again, "ouch" and another 5 minutes of being ignored. If you (and everyone) are consistant, it won't take long for your puppy to learn.