When it comes to puppies biting, mouthing and chewing — prevention is the key.
Don't allow the puppy to play with or chew on anything that you don't want him to chew as an adult dog. Remove any valuable items from the puppy's level and when playing with your puppy, give him something he can chew and play with. Puppies are often teething and exploring the world using their mouths at this young age, so you need to offer them an outlet.
If your puppy does get hold of something "naughty", you can teach him a "leave it" cue and then replace the object with a puppy toy or chew. By giving your puppy an option that is even more fun than what he originally was going to do, he will find it worth listening to you.
When your puppy bites you while you play with him, you can yelp loudly (much like another dog would do if it was playing with your puppy) and then turn your back on him and be silent, to show the fun stops when he bites. You may have to repeat this for several play sessions before your puppy understands biting is not fun. Next time you play with your puppy, offer him a fun toy to bite instead of your hand.
If your puppy is biting your clothes, you can say "uh-oh" and stop moving (or growl at him if that's not enough to make him stop). When he stops, say good boy and give him something appropriate to chew on instead. If he is not interested in the other thing then try having some treats and doing a training session with him, to occupy his brain with positive things.
On walks, carry treats with you to re-direct your puppy's behavior as needed, if he goes to bite your pants or his lead, ask him to do a behavior he already knows such as sit, or to follow your hand with the treat, and reward him for it! Distraction and re-direction are great tools for these situations. You can also give your puppy a toy to carry on walks if he really likes to have something in his mouth.
You can find these tips and many more in the Trust and safety lessons in our Puppy program.
If you have some questions or need some specific help with your puppy, please feel free to book a call with our puppy experts and we will gladly chat about your puppy and help you with any issues.