This discussion should have been carried over to another thread as these responses have absolutely nothing to do with the original post or poster. Guess it's too late to change now as this has evolved into an extremely informative thread.

Great posts canis-lupess and agilityk9trainer!!!!!!!!!

One of the first things I learned many years ago is; "you have to think like a dog to train a dog".

Not even the best trainers or behaviorists can teach a dog to "fake it" if they aren't truly happy in what they're doing.

As far as dogs and play fighting; it's normal and natural with dogs that are thoroughly familiar with each other. However in the canine world it's extremely dangerous to expect any dog to know a strange dog is "only playing" when they come tearing at them full force, and immediatly begin roughhousing ad "play biting".

Just as in the human world there are right ways and wrong ways for dogs to become acquainted. It's vital that young dogs learn the basic social skills for their own protection as well as that of other dogs they might encounter.

What if the dog loved to play with children? Is there ever a time that it would be acceptable for any dog to run up to a strange child and begin "play biting"?