How to Stop Puppy Biting: A Land Shark Survival Guide

If your puppy is treating your hands, shoes and furniture like a tasting menu, you are not alone. Puppy biting is normal, particularly during teething, but you need not simply wait for it to pass.

Work out what your puppy needs, then calmly redirect them. They may need a suitable chew, a toy, quieter play, a toilet break or, very often, a nap.

We learnt this during Bilbo Beagle’s land shark phase. Between five and seven months, cushions, books, furniture and shoes were all fair game. Raising our voice only made him more aroused. A calm swap worked far better and helped protect both our belongings and our relationship with him.

 Why do puppies bite so much?

Puppies explore with their mouths. Biting and chewing can be part of play, an attempt to gain attention or a way to investigate an interesting texture.

Teething adds another reason. A puppy’s baby teeth are gradually replaced by adult teeth, usually from around three and a half to seven months, although timing varies. Tender gums and the urge to chew can turn an already mouthy puppy into a determined little land shark.

Biting can also increase when a puppy is overtired or overstimulated. If your puppy has been playing, meeting visitors, attending training or exploring somewhere new, frantic biting may mean they need less excitement rather than more exercise.

Before responding, ask whether your puppy is teething, starting a game, due for a meal or toilet break, missing a nap or overwhelmed by a busy environment. The answer changes what you should do next.

 How to stop puppy biting in the moment

When sharp teeth make contact, it is easy to react loudly. For Bilbo, that added energy and made matters worse.

Keep your movements and voice calm. Pause the interaction and offer an appropriate alternative, such as a flexible puppy-safe chew, food-filled rubber toy, tug toy or ball.

If your puppy bites hands or clothes during play, stop moving briefly. Waving your hands, pulling fabric or pushing the puppy away can make the game more exciting. Redirect them to a toy, then continue playing with the toy rather than your body.

If they repeatedly return to biting, calmly end the interaction and help them settle. This is not punishment. An overtired puppy may need a toilet break followed by quiet time in a safe pen, crate or sleeping area.

 Use the “art of the swap” for stolen objects

The biggest mistake we see is trying to take something away without offering anything in return. Chasing a puppy for a shoe can become a brilliant game. Grabbing an object may also teach them that approaching people make treasures disappear.

With Bilbo, we used a high-value swap. We held a pizzle in one hand, placed the other hand out with the palm facing upwards and said, “Give”. We did not reach for the stolen object while he was focused on it. We waited until he had committed to the pizzle and was happily chewing before calmly collecting the item.

Bilbo is a food-focused beagle. Your puppy may prefer a ball, squeaky toy or short game of tug. Choose something your puppy genuinely values and make the exchange worthwhile.

Practise with safe, low-value objects. Sometimes return an allowed item after rewarding the release, so giving something up does not always mean losing it forever.

Do not try this alone if your puppy freezes, stiffens, growls, snaps or guards objects. Stop reaching towards them and ask a qualified reward-based trainer or veterinary behaviour professional for help.

 Is it teething, play or overtired biting?

Watch what happens immediately before the biting.

A teething puppy may settle into repeated gnawing and search for different textures. You may notice tender gums, extra drool or small spots of blood on a toy. Contact your vet if there is heavy bleeding, obvious pain, a broken tooth, refusal to eat, facial swelling or a baby tooth sitting beside an emerging adult tooth.

Playful biting is often bouncy and social. Your puppy may chase moving hands, grab clothing and return enthusiastically after redirection. Use a toy to continue play without teaching them that human skin is part of the game.

Overtired biting often looks frantic. Your puppy may race around, ignore familiar cues and repeatedly launch at ankles or clothing. More stimulation can make it worse. Try a calm toilet trip, reduce household activity and help them settle.

The practical question is whether your puppy needs a safe chewing outlet, a different game or rest.

 How to choose an appropriate puppy chew

No chew is right for every puppy. Age, tooth development, size, chewing strength and tendency to gulp all matter. Ask your vet if you are uncertain, particularly while baby and adult teeth are changing.

During teething, avoid extremely hard items. Veterinary dental guidance warns that non-bending objects can fracture teeth. Cow hooves and horns are therefore not our choice for a teething puppy. We reserve these harder chews for dogs whose adult teeth are fully in, and still use them cautiously because hard chews can damage adult teeth too.

For Bilbo, a pork pizzle was useful as a high-value swap. Bonza also offers goat pizzle and shark cartilage as options owners may consider. These products vary in thickness and firmness, so choose for your individual puppy rather than assuming any natural chew is automatically safe.

Look for some give rather than rock-hard resistance. Select a piece too large to swallow whole and remove it when it becomes small enough to gulp. If your puppy tries to swallow large pieces, choose another activity and speak with your vet or trainer.

Always supervise chewing. Stay close enough to notice pieces breaking off, rapid gulping, bleeding, distress or changes in the chew’s size.

Teach comfortable mouth handling early. In calm sessions, touch your puppy’s muzzle, lift their lips and inspect their teeth, rewarding each step. This can help with routine care and emergencies such as choking. You can also hold a chew so hands nearby feel normal. Do not suddenly grab it. Stop if your puppy stiffens, freezes or guards.

Edible chews contribute energy to the diet. Adjust portions where needed and introduce unfamiliar proteins gradually, especially for puppies with sensitive stomachs.

 Prevent puppy biting before it begins

Management gives your puppy fewer chances to rehearse unwanted behaviour.

Put shoes, books, children’s toys and remote controls out of reach. Block tempting furniture where practical. Keep suitable swap items in the rooms where trouble happens, rather than searching after the puppy has stolen a cushion.

Plan regular sleep and quiet time. Balance walks and exciting play with sniffing, simple training, food enrichment and calm activities.

Rotate toys and notice what your puppy prefers. Some value food, while others will exchange a forbidden object for a ball.

Most importantly, reward the choices you want repeated. If your puppy picks up their toy, settles on a mat or chews an approved item, quietly acknowledge it.

 When should you ask for professional help?

Normal puppy mouthing should gradually improve with maturity, management and consistent reward-based training. Seek help if bites cause significant injury, the behaviour escalates, your puppy appears fearful, or you see freezing, hard staring, growling, snapping or guarding.

A qualified reward-based puppy trainer can observe the context and create a plan for your household. A vet should assess sudden behaviour changes, mouth pain, damaged teeth or other health concerns.

 Puppy biting FAQs

 At what age does puppy biting stop?

There is no exact deadline. Teething often settles once adult teeth have emerged, commonly by six or seven months, but playful biting can continue if it remains rewarding. Redirection, rest, management and training all help.

 Should I yelp when my puppy bites?

Some puppies pause, while others become more excited. Bilbo fell into the second group. If noise increases your puppy’s arousal, stay quiet, pause the game and redirect them instead.

Should I punish my puppy for biting?

Avoid shouting, hitting, muzzle-grabbing or physical corrections. These responses can increase fear or arousal without teaching an alternative. Reward-based training prevents unwanted behaviour and reinforces better choices.

What should I give a teething puppy to chew?

Choose a size-appropriate option with some flexibility, supervise closely and avoid rock-hard items that may damage teeth. Your vet can recommend choices for your puppy’s age, mouth and chewing style.

What if my puppy will not swap?

Increase the value of your offer and practise with less exciting objects. Try food, a ball or a favourite toy. If your puppy guards the item or shows tense body language, do not reach in. Get help from a qualified trainer.

 The land shark phase does pass

Puppy biting can be exhausting, especially when your home and hands are taking the damage. Bilbo taught us that calm, worthwhile swaps worked much better than raised voices or battles over stolen shoes.

Ask whether your puppy needs a chew, play, food, a toilet break or sleep. Keep good alternatives nearby, reward appropriate choices and seek professional help if you see pain, fear or guarding.

For Bilbo, flexible edible chews such as pork pizzle, goat pizzle and shark cartilage gave him an appropriate outlet during teething and made useful swaps for forbidden objects. Choose according to your puppy’s size and chewing style, and always supervise them.

The goal is not to stop your puppy using their mouth. It is to calmly help them learn where those little teeth belong.