[northghosts]

We have a 4 month old Springer Spaniel who is biting us. It does not seem to be teething bites either, they genuinely seem aggressive and he is definitely not being playful. He gets enough exercise, has a lot of toys to play with and gets a lot of attention from the both of us.

He does not bite 24/7 but instead has random moments when he will be like this out of nowhere. This can be before/after he's exercised, been played with, fed etc. We've tried to calm him down by giving him toys or a walk (no treats because I don't want to reward this behaviour) but it doesn't work.

Any advice would be lovely because we are getting very upset with this issue.

 

[Canyx]

Very likely it is over-arousal, not aggression.

I hate to say this but it sounds like you've been reinforcing this behavior. He is learning if he gets riled up and mouthy, he gets a walk or toys.

I would recommend giving him a time out (pen, crate, tether, baby gates, etc.) for 15 minutes to let him calm down. It is totally normal for dogs to get even more riled up after walks or after playing. I make it a routine to send puppies straight to their crate, pen, etc. with their chew toys and ignore them. This way they learn to calm down very quickly after exciting situations.

 

[northghosts]

Thanks for the advice! We can’t really ignore him while barking as we have neighbours who complain and he barks quite a bit. It does make sense that it would be arousal, do you think when he is neutered he will stop doing this?

 

[Lillith]

I agree with Canyx. Biting and mouthiness is very normal in a puppy that young. Instead, when he gets mouthy, put a toy in his mouth. If he continues to chew on you, get up and walk away. Step behind a baby gate, close a door, whatever, just withdraw attention for a while so puppy learns that biting humans = fun time ends. If he can't calm himself, then as Canyx said, it's time for a time out in a pen or crate to calm down.

No, neutering is a guarantee of nothing except the inability to produce offspring. It is normal for young dogs to become over-aroused, and removing their genitals isn't likely to fix that.

 

[Canyx]

Nope. I think training and maturity will stop this.
Unfortunately, some dogs bark as they try to figure out what works and what doesn't. It sounds like you are stuck between choosing biting or barking. I would write your neighbors polite messages explaining that you are trying to train your pup, but that the barking will be bad for a while.

You really have to ignore those unwanted behaviors and not let your dog successfully practice them, if you want them to go away.