This video explains easy exercises that you can do with your puppy to teach him to have a soft, gentle mouth.
Use Mealtimes to Train
If you consistently use one meal per day to teach your puppy to have a soft mouth, you will make a lot of progress.
Easy Exercise
You can do this with any puppy, even a puppy with a rough mouth.
- Put a piece of food in your fist and move it towards your puppy
- If he opens his mouth and puts his teeth on your hand, say, "Ouch" (even if it doesn't actually hurt) and quickly move your hand away
- Repeat this until your puppy sniffs or licks your hand
- Say, "Yes!" and open your fist
More Difficult Exercise
As your puppy gets more practice, try this exercise.
- Put a piece of food between your fingers
- Move it towards your puppy
- Even if you feel just a little bit of teeth, say, "Ouch!" and remove the treat
- If your puppy is gentle, say, "Yes!" and give it to him
Troubleshooting
Some puppies have REALLY rough mouths (I have the scars on my hands to prove it). If this is the case with your puppy, do the Easy Exercise more frequently until your puppy starts to understand. As you feel more brave and do the More Difficult Exercise, give him the piece of food even if he is a LITTLE more gentle. You can't expect perfection right away.
Try and get a little more progress each time.
