http://www.care2.com/greenliving/how-not-to-play-with-a-puppy.html
How Not to Play with a Puppy
Adapted from City Dog, by Patricia Curtis (Lantern Books, 2002).
It may be cute when a little puppy play-bites your hand, sleeve, or pant leg, or chews on your shoelaces, but before you know it, the dog grows up and, meaning no harm, sinks its teeth into someone’s hand, or rips a sofa pillow.
Here are six good rules of puppy play to keep your dog safe and to make sure you don’t encourage behavior that will spell trouble later on.
Don’t play just before or after feeding.
Don’t play on a slippery surface, such as wood, vinyl, or tile. The puppy needs secure footing, or it can tear a muscle or dislocate a joint.
Don’t do anything to provoke aggression, even in play.
Don’t play tug-of-war with a puppy. It can cause damage to the puppy’s jaw.
Don’t encourage or permit a puppy to bite anything but its own toys.
Don’t play with a puppy for more than a few minutes at a time, because it will become over stimulated and exhausted–or aggressive. Extended romping is especially harmful to a large-breed pup, whose bones are not
yet strong enough to support its weight in hard play.
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3 comments
add your comment »I think all of the listed ideas are very good but I have to agree with the other people that have commented. I have dogs that are partially pit bull which is said to be the most aggressive and as a puppy and even know I have played with them how you say not to and I've never been bit by them.
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oh please! i've wrestled and tugged and gone quite a few rounds with my dogs when they were puppies (we're talking chow chow's and akitas) and not once in the 30 years of raising these two breeds (together..in the same open range yard) have I ever had an incident of displaced aggression..not toward humans or even other dogs..cats on the other hand..well :) It's not how you play with the puppies, it is how you raise the dogs. These tips are all cute but nothing takes the place of good old common sense.
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So basically, don't play with a puppy the way it wants to be played with....play with it like a Victorian child? Huh, I knew a lot of dogs growing up who were wrestled with as puppies and they turned out totally obedient and non-bitey. Guess modern dogs are more fragile.
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