Understanding Puppy Play Biting: Why They Target Your Older Dog's Face (and How to Guide It Safely)

Do you notice your puppy biting your older dog’s face, cheek, scruff, and neck while making growly noises, showing teeth, and in general making the most menacing looks and sounds a dog can muster?

Do you ever watch this situation and wonder why does my puppy bite my older dog’s face?

To the untrained eye, it sometimes looks like a dog fight, but make no mistake these two (Raven and Archer in the pic above) are having the time of their lives.

We like to call this game Bitey Face and it can be played anyplace at any time (not just in a doggy bed made for one).

So what exactly is Bitey Face?

QUICK TIP: Even if your pup’s like playing Bitey Face you may not want them engaging in this activity. One thing we do when we want Bitey Face to end is put our two puppies on a tie-down with their favorite chew toy. One of their favorites is Bully Sticks.

How To Play Bitey Face

You’ll notice your puppies will engage in this game on their own and generally follow the rules in the list below…

1. You need at least two dogs/puppies to play this game.
2. Rough play is the norm.
3. Grabbing cheeks, necks, scruff, faces is all part of the game.
4. Growling noises while showing teeth is commonplace.
5. The game of Bitey Face looks and sounds very scary, but most of the time it’s harmless play.
6. Remember, a game of Bitey Face can escalate so you always want to keep an eye on the players.

Does this sound like the same game you mentioned when you were wondering why your puppy bites your older dog’s face?

Being a puppy Archer doesn’t have the best social skills and he tries to engage the other dogs in our house in games of Bitey Face.  Here are the reactions of my other three dogs:

Linus vs Archer

Linus will play the game, but he has his limits and you can see as well as hear his mood change when he’s done playing.

Archer will test Linus’ limits, but it’s sometimes wiser for the humans to get involved.

Make sure you (the human) break up play if you see a change in either dog’s mood.

Stetson vs Archer

Archer will try to engage Stetson in a game of Bitey Face but to no avail.

Stetson simply runs away or ignores Archer till he stops bothering him. (see just like in crate training, ignoring your puppy’s unwanted behavior actually works!)

Raven vs Archer

While Linus has his limits and Stetson calls “no joy” Raven will indulge Archer for a full 12 rounds of Bitey Face.

They will go head to head like a bout between Ali and Foreman. It’s the Rumble In The Jungle Baby!

How Are Humans Involved in A Game of Bitey Face

QUICK TIP: Another way to break up a game of Bitey Face is by separating your puppies and giving them both a puzzle toy to play with like the Dog Brick Puzzle Toy by Nina Ottosson.

If your dogs engage in Bitey Face it’s usually harmless, but you still want to keep an eye on your dogs to make sure a real fight doesn’t break out.

Here are a few things to keep watch for:

Watch your dog’s body language.  You might want to break things up if:

• Either dog looks tense, moving stiffly or staring.
• Dog’s ears, mouths, tongues are not in a relaxed position.
• One dog appears to be trying to get away from the other dog.
• One dog is always on the top of the doggy pile.

Rough play will sometimes go on for too long and one of the combatants can get overstimulated or aggravated with the other.

Not all dogs enjoy playing bitey face.

Always keep a close eye on your dog anytime he plays with other dogs.

If he’s playing bitey face make sure to break up play every once in a while to give the dogs a break.

If your dog is still overstimulated you can try leashing him or putting him on a tie-down and giving him a chew like a Himalayan Dog Chew until he calms down.

That’s Bitey Face! So, how about your dogs?

Does your puppy grab your older dog’s face, neck, and cheek?

Do your puppies enjoy a good game of Bitey Face?

Tell us a little about the doggy games your furry friends like to play in the comment section below.

UPDATE: We’ve learned over time is that friendly games of bitey face can often escalate. A quick tip for puppies engaging in bitey face is to remove collars so your puppy’s jaw does not get stuck in the collar of the other puppy. You also might notice that some puppies modify the game by also biting and dragging the other puppy by the collar.

Another safety measure is to use the PetSafe Break Away Collar which will break free if the collar happens to get snagged on a puppy’s teeth or any other object like a kennel, fence, bush, crate, etc. 

Keep your puppies safe and always supervise playtime.

Top Picks For Our Puppies

1. BEST PUPPY TOY
   We Like: Snuggle Puppy w/ Heart Beat & Heat Pack - Perfect for new puppies. We get all of our Service Dog pups a Snuggle Puppy.
2. BEST DOG CHEW
   We Like: Best Bully Sticks - All of our puppies love to bite, nip, and chew. We love using Bully Sticks to help divert these unwanted behaviors.
3. BEST DOG TREATS
   We Like: Wellness Soft Puppy Bites - One of our favorite treats for training our service dog puppies.
4. BEST FRESH DOG FOOD
   We Like: The Farmer's Dog - A couple months ago we started feeding Raven fresh dog food and she loves it! Get 50% off your first order of The Farmer's Dog.

Check out more of our favorites on our New Puppy Checklist.