Is Your Heeler Puppy Biting Excessively?
If your heeler puppy wont stop biting, rest assured that you are not alone. Due to their ancestry, these puppies have a reputation for being quite a handful in the biting department.
Teaching a heeler puppy to stop biting requires lots of patience and determination. And, considering their high intelligence, you must also out-smart them. Fortunately, there are many strategies to use to redirect their behaviors and provide outlets for their natural, instinctive behaviors.
Blue heeler, red heeler (basically, heelers of different coat colors), Australian cattle dog and Queensland heeler: these are just several names used to depict the same breed. In order to better understand why a heeler puppy wont stop biting, you need to look back into this breeds history and what these dogs were selectively bred for.
As the name implies, an Australian cattle dogs country of origin is Australia, and more specifically, Queensland—Australias second-largest state, which is where these dogs were particularly popular.
These highly intelligent dogs are related to Australia’s famous wild dog, the Dingo. The history of the breed informs us that heelers were obtained by crossing imported herding dogs with Dingoes. Sometime along the way, other breeds may have been added into the bloodline (like the Kelpie and Dalmatian, as its been suggested). DNA analysis may be needed to have a clearer insight into this mixed bag of genes.
The term heeler, which is just another name for this breed, refers to this breeds working style. These dogs were selectively bred for controlling and herding herds of cattle with force, by nipping and biting stubborn cattles heels to get them to move.
The Australian Cattle Dog Club of America adds some further details: this is a breed that likes to think for itself. It was crafted to move stubborn cattle by “coming in low from behind, biting the hock of the weight-bearing leg, and ducking to avoid the kick that often follows. An uncooperative bovine doesn’t discourage the dog; rather, the Australian Cattle Dog just becomes more determined to get its job done.”
Personality-wise, the American Kennel Club describes these dogs as being “alert extremely intelligent, watchful, courageous and trustworthy, with an implicit devotion to duty. “
In a nutshell, cattle dogs have the potential for being ideal working dogs and may be quite an asset for those who have a farm. Indeed, still as of today, many heelers are employed on farms with lots of acreage where these dogs can work and romp to their hearts content.
Heelers thrive when provided a job to do.
Second, they can act like a hurt puppy whenever he nips them. During puppy play if a puppy gets hurt, he yelps, stops the play, and turns away. This is how puppies learn how to moderate the pressure of their nips and bites.
First, the dog should learn to control his bite pressure. They can teach him this by offering a treat between their fingers. If the dog gets too rough or mouthy, they need to hold onto the treat and not give it to him. The dog only receives the treat when he offers a soft mouth on their fingers. He will want the treat and will learn quickly what he has to do to get it.
Your daughter and fiancé should also spend a lot of time training the dog, especially the “leave it” command. That way, if the dog looks like he is about to nip someone, they can tell him to “leave it,” and redirect his behavior to a toy or game.
We rescued a 5-year-old cat last year and named her Millie. We rescued another cat, Lexie, when she was just a year old. She is now nine. She was feral for nine months before she was caught and is very timid.
Is there any hope that this dog will stop doing this? I don’t think this dog should be anywhere near children and I worry about future grandchildren. What are their options? I have been nipped a few times as well.
Remove yourself from the room. Nipping is a fun game for many cattle dogs, and ignoring may not be enough for an extremely excited dog. Walk out of the room, close the door and leave the dog alone for a few minutes. This shows the dog that biting means no human contact.
Louise Lawson has been a published author and editor for more than 10 years. Lawson specializes in pet and food-related articles, utilizing her 15 years as a sous chef and as a dog breeder, handler and trainer to produce pieces for online and print publications.
Give the dog plenty of exercise. Cattle dogs are high-energy breeds, and under-stimulated dogs may turn to nipping as an outlet for excessive energy. Take the dog for frequent walks, let the dog run in the yard and throw her favorite toy for her to stimulate her mind and body.
Teach the puppy a “leave it” command. Place a favorite toy on the ground near the dog, and allow the dog to approach the toy. When the dog reaches for the toy, tell her “leave it” in a stern voice and hold a treat in front of her nose. As soon as she turns away from the toy, reward her with the treat. When the dog attempts to bite your ankles, tell her to “leave it” and reward her when she stops biting your leg.
Ignore the dog when she bites your ankles. Many cattle dogs bite while playing, so stand still and look away from the dog. Ignoring her takes away the fun out of nipping, and she will direct her attention to another activity.
Stop!! Puppy Biting!! NOW!! Australian Cattle dog (blue heeler)
Pet advisor Cathy M. Rosenthal agrees with future grandma, the Australian blue heeler who nips needs to be controlled, and she advises on a household cat feud that seems unending.
I am heartbroken for my daughter and her fiancé. About a year ago, they adopted a 7-week-old Australian blue heeler. The dog has always been a nipper. Very early on they got a trainer to help stop this bad behavior to no avail. They paid a small fortune to have the dog live with a trainer for five weeks. It helped a little, but the dog does not like a collar and will bite/nip when that is put on him. They recently had a dog walker quit because the dog had bitten him three times. He sent pictures of his bloody hand.
Is there any hope that this dog will stop doing this? I don’t think this dog should be anywhere near children and I worry about future grandchildren. What are their options? I have been nipped a few times as well.
Nipping and biting are fairly common practices for Australian blue heelers. They are herding dogs, which means they nip and bite the flanks of other animals to “herd” them in a particular direction. Even so, you can’t have a dog who nips and bites people, so there are things your family can do to limit this behavior.
First, the dog should learn to control his bite pressure. They can teach him this by offering a treat between their fingers. If the dog gets too rough or mouthy, they need to hold onto the treat and not give it to him. The dog only receives the treat when he offers a soft mouth on their fingers. He will want the treat and will learn quickly what he has to do to get it.
Second, they can act like a hurt puppy whenever he nips them. During puppy play if a puppy gets hurt, he yelps, stops the play, and turns away. This is how puppies learn how to moderate the pressure of their nips and bites.
Your daughter and fiancé should also spend a lot of time training the dog, especially the “leave it” command. That way, if the dog looks like he is about to nip someone, they can tell him to “leave it,” and redirect his behavior to a toy or game.
Australian blue heelers also need a tremendous amount of exercise, so frequent and long walks or games that expend a lot of energy are a must.
Finally, look for triggers and work to reduce them. For example, if the dog nips when the collar is put on, leave the collar on him. (Unless it’s a training collar that must be removed.)
Because the dog is sometimes breaking skin, though, have your daughter consult an animal behaviorist who can determine his triggers and recommend specific behavior modifications that may help. Until the dog moderates his nips and eliminates his bites, he needs to be monitored around everyone, especially children.
Dear Cathy,
We rescued a 5-year-old cat last year and named her Millie. We rescued another cat, Lexie, when she was just a year old. She is now nine. She was feral for nine months before she was caught and is very timid.
Lexie always got along with my other cat, who has since passed, but Lexie and Millie don’t get along. They chase each other and hiss and yell at each other. I have even seen them hitting each other with their paws. Lexie spends all day under a bed. We keep them separated with a baby gate when we aren’t home. Every evening and night, we give Lexie a chance to spend time outside of the bedroom.
We don’t want to give Millie back, but we can’t continue to have them not get along and have a baby gate up. They will use the same litterbox and eat out of each other’s dish. But when we tried feeding them on opposite sides of a door, Lexie refused to near her food if she hears Millie.
Cats can take weeks or months to establish their territories and learn to get along. If the baby gate helps, leave it up for now. They can still smell each other and can get used to each other that way over time. Feed them so they don’t see or hear each other and get some feline pheromone spray or plug-ins for the house and a feline pheromone collar for them to wear. Pheromones can relax cats and relaxing them can reduce the friction in the home.
Cathy M. Rosenthal is a longtime animal advocate, author, columnist, and pet expert who has more than 25 years in the animal welfare field. Send your pet questions, stories, and tips to [email protected]. Please include your name, city, and state. You can follow her @cathymrosenthal.
Products linked from Boomer to Amazon have been vetted and recommended. As an Amazon Associate, Boomer Magazine earns from qualifying purchases of linked products.
Δ Copyright © 2023 Ross Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved. BOOMER Magazine™ is a trademark of Ross Publishing, Inc.