# Springer Spaniel pup very hyper and nippy!



## Kris Roche (Mar 11, 2016)

We have a new English Springer spaniel who is 10 weeks old and very hyper and very very nippy. No matter how many times I shout NO and offer her a chew toy she will always comes back to chomp on me or my childrens Hand. arm, leg... When I shout no she actually growls alittle and barks back, but when I then offer her a chew toy she will happily bite this for about 1 min and then shes seeking out us again, she is quite a handful and I have needed to give her some time out in her little pen at the moment as she can get quite full on. Has anyone here got any advice for a very hyper and bitey pup? Ps.. I am quite a novice when it comes to puppies.


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## rottiepointerhouse (Feb 9, 2014)

First thing is to say this is perfectly normal puppy behaviour, she is just a baby and they explore things with their mouths. Second thing is absolutely stop shouting at her, it won't achieve anything and might make her frightened/mistrustful of you in the future. Some people find letting out a loud yelp or owie type of noise helps but with some dogs this can ramp up the excitement so the way I've always dealt with it is to have something else to stick in pups mouth to redirect them on to. If that doesn't work and pup is getting over excited then time out - either pop her in her pen or if possible just remove your self from the room, shut the door and leave her for a short while then go back in and repeat if necessary, she will soon get the hang of it and realise biting takes humans away.

Here is a free download of a book by Dr Ian Dunbar - lots of useful advice and a whole chapter on mouthing/bite inhibition (chapter 5)

http://www.dogstardaily.com/files/downloads/AFTER_You_Get_Your_Puppy.pdf


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## rottiepointerhouse (Feb 9, 2014)

I used to carry one of these around with me all the time - my rottie loved it - she was a terrible biter as a pup and loved hanging off trouser legs too - I've still got the original one she had as a pup

http://tug-e-nuff.co.uk/chaser-tugs-rabbit-skin.html


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## labradrk (Dec 10, 2012)

Try a slightly different method.....when she comes at you to bite, stand up, turn around with your back to her and ignore her until she backs off. Then verbally reward and give a toy. Rinse and repeat when she tries it again. If she is getting too wound and up and wild she's probably over tired so putting her in her pen is wise. If you find she is getting wound up at certain times of the day or night (late evenings around 9pm is classic.....) then it helps to pre empt by doing some sort of activity BEFORE the wildness kicks in.....giving the pup a few food related activity toys works well, and/or doing a very short training session.


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## Twiggy (Jun 24, 2010)

Kris Roche said:


> We have a new English Springer spaniel who is 10 weeks old and very hyper and very very nippy. No matter how many times I shout NO and offer her a chew toy she will always comes back to chomp on me or my childrens Hand. arm, leg... When I shout no she actually growls alittle and barks back, but when I then offer her a chew toy she will happily bite this for about 1 min and then shes seeking out us again, she is quite a handful and I have needed to give her some time out in her little pen at the moment as she can get quite full on. Has anyone here got any advice for a very hyper and bitey pup? Ps.. I am quite a novice when it comes to puppies.


Most puppies are hyper and nippy. In fact I've had been extremely worried if any of mine had simply sat in a corner.

Try and see it from your pup's perspective - she has spent several weeks honing her play biting skills with her litter brothers and sisters then all of a sudden she is thrust into a new situation and finds her new playmates don't like her type of games...!!

Was she born understanding the word "NO" - of course she wasn't but as far as she's concerned you are paying her attention and any attention is better than none.

I spent an hour this afternoon explaining the above to the owners of a 16 weeks old lab bitch puppy who I was led to believe was aggressive, disobedient and wouldn't listen to the word "NO". What I found was a perfectly normal and in fact sweet and clever adorable little puppy. It took all of 10 minutes for the pup to realise that mouthing my hands, jumping up or biting my shoes didn't invoke a reaction but plonking her little bum down brought praise and tasty tit-bits.


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## Kris Roche (Mar 11, 2016)

Thanks all for not judging me for my Puppy Novice title and for the great advice. I usual rescue older dogs so having a puppy is new to me. I guess shouting would be quite harsh but she really has very sharp teeth and can really give one of my younger kids a nasty surprise with her gnashers, I do try and redirect her with appropriate dog toys and the turning around only aggrevates her more TONIGHT the most! Now as a poster just commented over tiredness. Well tonight she travelled down to my mothers farm and she had full run of a gated paddock and she had an immense time, I watched her and she had the word happy stamped all over her! Loved it! and since then shes been full on nip nip nip bite bite chomp chomp, growl growl. So yes I suggested time out and she is now fast asleep in her sleeping pen. I will try all your advice and try and get into her head more instead being defensive.. lets be honest puppies teeth, they are like razor sharp pinzors they really hurt lol xx


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## Siskin (Nov 13, 2012)

Kris Roche said:


> Thanks all for not judging me for my Puppy Novice title and for the great advice. I usual rescue older dogs so having a puppy is new to me. I guess shouting would be quite harsh but she really has very sharp teeth and can really give one of my younger kids a nasty surprise with her gnashers, I do try and redirect her with appropriate dog toys and the turning around only aggrevates her more TONIGHT the most! Now as a poster just commented over tiredness. Well tonight she travelled down to my mothers farm and she had full run of a gated paddock and she had an immense time, I watched her and she had the word happy stamped all over her! Loved it! and since then shes been full on nip nip nip bite bite chomp chomp, growl growl. So yes I suggested time out and she is now fast asleep in her sleeping pen. I will try all your advice and try and get into her head more instead being defensive.. lets be honest puppies teeth, they are like razor sharp pinzors they really hurt lol xx


Puppies are not nicknamed Land Sharks for nothing
Springer pups seem to excel at being hyper and bitey especially in the evenings, if the amount of threads started on here about springer pups is anything to go by. It's a trial they set their owners, if you get through it then the prize is a lovely adult dog that you will love.
Sounds like she was just plain tired this evening and was taking it out on you, children are the same, absolute horrors when they are overtired, it's just a matter of learning to read the signals from her and acting as you did.
Usually standing in a corner with your back to the pup works well although they will jump up at you to get your attention, so wear jeans. It won't be much longer before she gets that biting etc is a no no and will calm down a bit. Have you tried a stuffed Kong or a long lasting chew? Food usually works to stop them biting you. I gave my retriever calf hooves (not the filled ones) which I got from Zooplus which kept her occupied and gave her something to chomp on other then me. Also, chewing is very soporific for dogs and will encourage her to sleep.


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## Kris Roche (Mar 11, 2016)

Siskin. Thank you! Your reply made me laugh and smile. When we got Willow our Springer spaniel, My father warned me : KRIS Springers will knock a tray of tea out of your hands in house as adults!! if you do not give them proper guidence as pups! They want to morph into with love! So start NOW with obedience training!...I best knuckle down. I dont want to be losing trays of tea ..... xx


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## JoanneF (Feb 1, 2016)

Kris Roche said:


> turning around only aggrevates her more


If mouthing and nipping has previously been successful in getting your attention, then you introduce the new response of ignoring her when she does it, it's really common for her to exaggerate the behaviour - her thinking is 'this used to work, now mum isn't responding, I'll do it even harder!'

Persevere - what you are experiencing is very normal and she will outgrow it.


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## botty (Dec 20, 2007)

Hi know what you going through as we have a 5 month of cavalier King Charles he is teething very sharp some have come out we got him a antler chew from the pet shop or the vets sell them they will last for ages just google them 
Also we got him a Kong which you can fill with peanut butter and biscuits or carrots and apple pop it in the freezer for few hours that keeps them good
Puppy can be very demanding and try your patience but also very rewarding


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## chissy 15 (Mar 13, 2013)

You could be describing my Hogan when he was a pup and yes he's a springer
It was mostly evenings he was like it and the only things that worked were either turning our backs on him and walking out of the room and shutting the door for a few minutes or putting him in his crate with the door shut. When in his crate he would settle and sleep.
Persevere, it will get better and with proper training springers can be very biddable dogs. Mine is also very loving


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## Nettles (Mar 24, 2011)

Oh yep, they're mouthy little buggars, especially when they're tired. 
I found any form of attention at all resulted in even more excitable munches on skin from my springer girl. Standing still and ignoring didn't work for her either. She just nipped even harder to get your attention.
A quick training session to get her using her brain instead of her teeth or popping her in her crate to calm down if she was over tired usually worked.
As you've already experienced, no amount of physical exercise ever seems to tire them out. Phoebe could run and run all day long and still have an abundance of energy.. but I always have a very sleepy puppy after a good nosework session or some puzzle games


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## Cedar (Jun 17, 2015)

We have had two springers from puppies and both of them went through bitey and hyper stages. With Tawna, our first springer, I couldn't wear a skirt or dressing gown without her grabbing onto it and hanging on. I had pulled threads in all my jeans too! At the time it felt like it will never stop. We found that yelping etc did not work for them, but staying calm, ignoring and redirecting on to a toy worked well for both. 
Once they started training and had something else to think about, the biting got less and less. The quickest way to tire a puppy out we found was to make it use it's brain! Both of ours turned into very loving, cuddly and gentle dogs, so don't despair!


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## Wiz201 (Jun 13, 2012)

Twiggy said:


> Most puppies are hyper and nippy. In fact I've had been extremely worried if any of mine had simply sat in a corner.
> 
> Try and see it from your pup's perspective - she has spent several weeks honing her play biting skills with her litter brothers and sisters then all of a sudden she is thrust into a new situation and finds her new playmates don't like her type of games...!!
> 
> ...


Wish I could give you rep for this!


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