It sounds to me as if you have tried quite a few different approaches, and I'm sure you are frustrated. But every one of the attempts to remedy your dog's mouthiness you have described is based on a parent-to-child sort of disciplinary relationship, and not on a more dominant or leading canine group member's communication of authority to a subordinate. In plain English, you are trying to teach your dog to understand "human," rather than communicating in "dog." Although I am not recommending you get on all fours and start trying to "out-dog" him, it is important to communicate in ways that will be how you intend. I know you are trying to teach your dog to inhibit his biting behavior, but your attempts are having the opposite effect; you actually are accidentally teaching him to bite more! This is due to what is called reinforcement; anything you do that helps make your dog's behavior successful, that causes him to conclude his action provokes a desirable reaction, will reinforce the behavior. When your dog bites you, you "distract" him with your penny can, but you probably are looking at and speaking to him as well. This means his negative behavior gets your attention, which can be a positive thing to a dog, even when it is angry or disapproving. This is an effect he can cause, and this keeps him in a leading rather than following role with you and your husband. Using varying tones of voice, such as "firm" vs. "nice," doesn't work in the intended manner, either. Saying "No bite!" firmly while petting and feeding a dog would result in those words, in that tone of voice, being a signal that good things were about to happen! Why not bite more to get more, if that is the way things work? On the other hand, equally or even more problematic, if you were to try to "put your money where your mouth is," scolding angrily and then personally punishing the animal to show you "mean it," you would teach the dog either to avoid you altogether or to continue the behavior and fight back when you attempted to "discipline." Either way you wouldn't teach your dog any conclusions regarding its own behavior. When being punished, the dog is focused upon the punisher; although it may learn certain behaviors provoke humans, punishing has two possible outcomes, neither optimal. It teaches dogs either to inhibit behaviors to avoid harm from another individual, or it teaches them to repeat the behavior more and more deliberately to provoke the other individual. This kind of discipline is more of a personal interaction between human and dog than a cause-and-effect education between the dog and the act of mouthing a human. Some dogs increasingly misbehave in reaction to their owners' personal "discipline," and they learn a way of relating that keeps the dog acting as catalyst (leader), and the owner responding (follower). The problem is, in all of your efforts you still are responding personally to your dog's negative behavior. Mouthing is, in the first place, a behavior that communicates the dog's sense of itself as a leader rather than follower in its relationships. To help teach your dog better self-control, you need to stop trying to control him in reaction to his misbehaviors. Instead, teach him improved self-control, using logical consequences. With his leash on, sit on the floor, setting the dog up for the next round of human chew-toy experimentation. Whenever he places his mouth on you, shake the penny can (or pull the collar as you shake the can to be certain his biting behavior is inhibited), but say nothing, and do not look at him! Unlike in the past, this behavior gets nothing positive but does have a remote negative consequence: It doesn't feel good, and the dog's train of thought is interrupted each time the behavior is attempted. Do not leap to reinforce him positively when he has stopped, or the conclusion he may come to might be "Bite; stop biting; get a pig's ear and attention." Consider biting a "red light," and reinforce impersonally as I've described. When he is standing, not mouthing, ignore him. Consider not biting to be a "yellow light"; it doesn't require a positive or attentive reaction from you; the absence of negative (the penny can sound and collar correction) is positive enough! Wait until your dog opts for a passive posture, such as sitting or lying down, and then begin to pet him. The light now is green, with his energy redirected into a preferred passive social demeanor. But be ready! As you place your hand on his nose or head, he is going to experiment with these new rules. Each time he mouths or bites, his behavior must fail and be interrupted impersonally; when he is not biting he feels better, and when he actively and subordinately is seeking attention, he will be successful! This will result in your dog wanting to sit or lie down near you and wanting to refrain from biting, due to his own decision-making and will, not yours! It takes patience and consistency, no matter how tenaciously he tests you. He will get the message, but it may take several weeks of stoicism on your part!

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