Should you stop your dog from putting his teeth on you when playing?

Our 9 month old Maltese has started using his teeth when we are playing. He doesn't bite really. He just kind of puts his mouth around my hands or arms. It doesn't bother me, but I have a 2 year old and I don't want him to do that to him. So how do I stop him, or is it just a phase he is going through? I know that 2 is a little young to have a dog, but we found him locked in a cage in the backyard of our past neighbors house. I absolutely couldn't leave him there and I didn't want him to go to a shelter where he could be put down. He had a lot of health issues when we took him to the vet, so who knows if he would have been adopted. I just said all that so that people who will want to say that I shouldn't have gotten a dog with a toddler in the house will know why I did. Thanks for any help!Should you stop your dog from putting his teeth on you when playing?
It's good that he doesn't hurt you - he has good bite inhibition. If he ever was to bite out of fright then he probably won't do much damage, so that's reassuring to know. (Dogs can only learn this through mouthing/biting).



What you should do to get him to stop is withdraw all attention from him. It's negative punishment - when he does it you stop playing and there's no more fun. When he doesn't do it you play with him for longer. You have to be consistent but it is effective.Should you stop your dog from putting his teeth on you when playing?
get a small spray bottle from a store like target (about $1) and put it parts ways with hot sauce and part ways with water. Whenever the dog starts to play roughly (mouth around you) spray the mix into his mouth.



It may seem mean but you do want to stop this behavior. While you may not mind the two year old could easily get hurt this way, even without the dog intending to hurt him/her.
You should really stop him doing that, this behavior is called mouthing, something puppies often start to do. Letting him do this at a young age will start to teach him that it is ok to use teeth on a person.

Even if he is not agressive, with a two year old child it could still prove dangerous. You will also need to make sure that as your child gets older, you teach them boundraries with the puppy, to stop either one of them getting hurt.
It is just a phase he is going through, known as mouthing, but unless you show him it is wrong now, he will continue to do it into adulthood.



When he puts his teeth on you, either say 'no' firmly or let out a high pitched 'aat', stand up, turn away from him and totally ignore him for a minute or so.



Then you can return to what you were doing with him.



Give him lots of praise for chewing on his toys.
No dog should ever be permitted to put its teeth on a human (or other dog, cat, etc). You stop it by a firm ';NO'; ,stop play immediately and turn your back on the dog.



Both my children were raised from infancy with dogs, cats, horses, rabbits, chickens and geese. Training dogs and children is similar - you wouldn't let your child bite, would you?



Another way to stop this would be for you to yelp, as his littermates would do in the same circumstances.



I have owned and trained dogs (most from rescue groups) for over 40 years, and never had a failure.
Ok if the dog is basically ';holding'; your hand while playing then I wouldnt worry about it remember dogs dont have have hands so they use their mouths like we do are hands while playing. As for too young that my friends is just a stupid myth. I have an older brother and when he born the first thing my mom did was bring him home and introduce him to Skeeter who was a Pom. That dog protected that kid as if he was his pup. If my brother would fuss in his crib and mom didnt hear him Skeet would run out bark at mom and get her to follow him to get my brother. If you let the dog be as equal as your child in the family structure you will be amazed how that dog will protect that child.
YES!!!!!



However, you did not describe with how you play with your dog.



Never play with your hands. Play with a toy. Dog can tug on toy, no touchy your hands. And, very important: with tug play, the dog must release toy on your command.