Great Pyreneese Mouthing

by Haley
(Tulsa)

We have a seven month old Great Pyreneese with a little bit of Anatolian in him. We got him at six weeks, and mouthing and biting has always been an issue. From the beginning, we would try all sorts of different tactics to get him to stop biting, such as yelping and stop playing with him, using tea tree oil or bitter Apple to deter him from biting, grabbing his nose and giving a firm no. He has basically stopped, but when playing, or when he's really excited when people come over he begins mouthing again and has bitten hard enough to hurt. He also does this when he is being scolded, and will begin to get aggressive. He especially does this when he grabs an item he's not supposed to have and I take it away. When he does this, I make him go in his crate as a time out , and when time out is finished he doesn't usually resume the behavior. He's a very sweet dog, but he can be very dominant and possessive, I'm not sure if this is him trying to exercise his dominance. I hoped that he would outgrow this behavior, as I have wracked my brain trying to figure out ways to make him stop biting. It worries me, as he is already way too big to be doing this, and although he is being playful when doing it, I worry as he gets bigger that he could really hurt someone. Thanks so much for your help!