If your husky has been biting at you a lot, you might want to know why and what you can do about it.
This post will show you a number of reasons why it might be doing it and what you can do to get it to stop.
So, why does my husky bite me? Possible causes are that it wasn’t trained to as a puppy, it’s teething, you have inadvertently been encouraging the behavior, it wants attention or excitement.
There are a number of things to consider when trying to figure out why your husky does it. Once you have a good idea of the cause, it should become a lot easier to get it to stop.
Why your husky bites you
Each of the different reasons that your husky bites you will likely come with a number of clues in the way that it does it.
Below, I will mention a number of possible causes and what would make them more likely.
It wasn’t trained not to as a puppy
If your husky is an adult then the reason that it does it could be that it was not trained not to when it was a puppy. If you don’t train your husky then it will behave the way that it feels like behaving. This is unlikely to be the way that you would like it to behave.
In this case, it would help to start giving it training now by starting with basic commands and working your way up from there.
Related: Why does my husky bite its tail?
It is teething
If your husky is still a puppy then the reason that it does it is likely to be that it is teething. This would be more likely if it has started chewing on other things a lot as well.
In this case, it would help to give it lots of toys and bones to chew on and to start giving it training now so that it learns how to behave when it is older.
Related: Why does my husky go between my legs?
You have been encouraging it
It might be the case that you have been inadvertently reinforcing the behavior. This would be more likely if you tend to give it things that it wants when it bites you.
Instead of giving it things such as toys, treats or attention when it does it, try to reward it when it is well behaved and to recognize when it is about to bite and to redirect its focus.
It wants attention
The reason why it does it could be that it wants attention. This would be more likely if you tend to give it more attention when it does it and it does it more when you have not been giving it much attention.
Excitement
Sometimes, dogs will bite due to being excited and it could be the reason why your husky does it. This would be more likely if it does it in situations such as when taking it for a walk or when you come home.
Again, in this case, it would be important to train it not to bite using the tips mentioned below.
Things to consider
Below, are some things to consider when trying to figure out why your husky does it and what to do about it.
How old it is
When trying to figure out why your husky bites you, it would help to consider its age.
If your husky is still young then it would be very likely that it is teething and it has not yet learned that it is not ok to bite.
Whereas, if it is older then it would be more likely that it never learned that it is not ok to bite and that it needs to be trained not to.
When it started biting you
It would also help to consider the timing of when it first started doing it since there could have been an event that triggered it to start doing it.
Some things to consider would be:
- If you moved home
- If someone was aggressive towards it
- If someone moved away
How aggressively it does it
It would also help to consider whether or not it does it aggressively.
If your husky does it aggressively then it would help to get the help of a dog trainer or behaviorist in your area who will be able to show you want to do in a secure way.
When and where it does it
The timing and location would also be something to consider.
If it seems to be doing it more at a certain time then it could be due to being excited especially if it does it in situations such as when you come home.
Whereas, if it does it at random times then it could be that you have inadvertently reinforced the behavior, it is teething or that it hasn’t learned not to do it.
How to get your husky to stop biting you
Below are a number of tips designed to help you get your husky to stop biting you.
Positive reinforcement training
One option you have is to make use of positive reinforcement training. This is where you train your husky to behave in a certain way by giving it things that it wants when it behaves that way and by not rewarding it when it does not.
To use it to get your husky to stop biting, you would:
- Stand up, turn away, and hide your arms when it starts biting them leaving the room if necessary.
- Wait a few moments and then go back to giving it attention and then turning away again if it starts biting
- Repeat the above until it learns that biting causes it to lose your attention
- Reward it with a treat when it does particularly well
You can watch the video below to see more on how to get your husky to stop biting with positive reinforcement training along with more tips.
Avoid negative reinforcement training
As mentioned above, it could be the case that your husky does it because it has learned that it gets things that it wants when it does it.
Instead, it would help to avoid rewarding it when it bites and to use positive reinforcement training to get it to behave the way that you want it to.
It would also help to learn to recognize when it is about to start doing it and to redirect its behavior. To redirect its behavior you could train it to sit or to do something such as give you its paw.
Give it things to chew on
In addition to the above, it would also help to give it things to chew especially if it seems to be in the teething phase. Things that you can give it would include chewy toys, bones and chews.
Be consistent
When training your husky, it is important to be consistent. It is unlikely that you will be able to see noticeable results with just one training session. However, if you stick with it then you will be able to see good results over the course of weeks and months.
Get help
If you cannot figure out why your husky has been doing it, you can’t get it to stop or it does it aggressively, consider getting the help of a dog trainer or behaviorist in your area. By doing so you will get expert guidance on how to train your husky safely.