If your husky has been biting your hands and arms, you might be wondering why and what you can do about it.
In this post, I will show you a number of reasons why it might have been doing it and what you can do about it.
So, why does my husky bite my hands and arms? Possible reasons are that you have been inadvertently rewarding it, excitement, teething or that it just needs to be trained not to do it.
There are a number of things that you can consider to help you figure out why it has been doing it. There are also a number of things that you can do to get it to stop biting your hands and arms so much.
Why your husky bites your hands
The different reasons that it might have been doing it will likely come with some clues. Below, I will show you a number of common causes and what would make them more likely.
It wants attention
The reason that it does it could be that it is looking for attention. This would be more likely if it does it when you have not been giving it much attention, it would normally get something like a walk or you tend to give it attention when it does it.
In this case, it would help to avoid rewarding it with attention when it bites your hands and arms, to reward it when it is being well behaved and to redirect its focus when it is about to bite your hand or arms.
It is teething
The reason that it bites them could be that it is teething, this would be more likely if it has started doing it suddenly, if it has been chewing on other things and if it is still a puppy.
In this case, it would be important to train it to behave the way that you want now and to give it lots of things to chew on like toys and bones.
It wasn’t trained not to as a puppy
If your husky is no longer a puppy but it still bites your hands and arms, it could be the case that it is because it was not trained not to as a puppy.
If your husky is not trained to behave in a certain way, it will behave the way that it feels like behaving. The way that it feels like behaving is not likely the way that you want it to so it would be helpful to train it to behave the way that you want.
Related: Why does my husky bite other dogs?
You have inadvertently been reinforcing the behavior
It could be the case that you have inadvertently trained your husky to do it by giving it things that it wants when it bites on your hands and arms.
Instead of giving it things that it wants, when it does it, try to recognize when it is about to bite, to withdraw your hands and to redirect its focus.
Related: Why does my husky bite my feet?
Excitement
The reason that it does it could be that it gets excited and it is trying to show its excitement. This would be more likely if it does it in situations such as when you come home or when you are about to walk it.
In this case, it would help to withdraw your arms and attention when it starts doing it and to reward it when it stops biting.
Things to consider
When it started doing it
When trying to figure out why your husky has been biting your hands and arms, it would help to consider when it first started doing it since it could be the case that an event caused it to start.
Things that might have happened could include:
- Inadvertently rewarding it for doing it one time
- It started chewing on other things as well (it probably started teething)
- You stopped giving it as much attention
How old your husky is
It would also be helpful to consider its age. If it is still just a puppy then it would be more likely that it is teething. Whereas, if it is an adult, it would be more likely that it has not learned that it is not ok to do it and you need to train it not to do it.
How aggressively it bites your arms and hands
How aggressively it does it would also be something to consider. If it does it aggressively then it would help to get the help of a dog behaviorist in your area who will be able to help you train it in a secure way.
When and where it bites your arms
The timing and location that it bites them in could also be useful to consider.
If it tends to do it at a certain time such as when going out for a walk then it could be due to excitement or because it is trying to get you to give it a walk.
If it seems to do it at random times then it would be more likely that it enjoys doing it and that you need to train it to stop.
How to get your husky to stop biting your arms and hands
Below are a number of options that you have that can be used in conjunction in order to get your husky to stop doing it.
Train it not to
One way to train your husky not to do it would be to use positive reinforcement training. This is where you get your husky to behave in a certain way by rewarding it when it behaves the right way and not rewarding it when it doesn’t.
To use it to get it to stop biting, you would:
- Stand up and prevent it from biting your arms or hands by leaving the room if necessary.
- Wait a few moments and then go back to giving it attention and then preventing it from biting them 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 it to stop doing it.
Avoid negative reinforcement training
As mentioned above, it could be the case that it has been doing it because it gets things that it wants when it does it.
Instead of rewarding it when it does it, try to redirect its focus before it starts biting and to train it not to using positive reinforcement training.
Give it other things to chew on
In addition to doing the tips mentioned above, it would help to give it lots of things that it is ok to chew on especially if it is still a puppy. Things that you could give it would include toys or bones.
Be consistent
When you are training your husky, it is important to be consistent. It is unlikely that you will be able to see dramatic results with just one training session. However, if you train it consistently, you will be able to get better results over the course of weeks and months.
Get help from an animal behaviorist
If you are unable to get your husky to stop doing it or you can’t figure out why it does it, consider getting the help of a dog behaviorist in your area. By doing so you will be able to get expert advice tailored to your particular husky.