Comments on: Toddler Biting: Why it Happens and How You Can Stop It

By: Jackie Currie

Jackie Currie — Tue, 03 Dec 2019 23:42:22 +0000

In reply to Eli Richardson. Thanks Eli! I hope this post helps!

By: Eli Richardson

Eli Richardson — Mon, 02 Dec 2019 17:11:23 +0000

It’s interesting how a biting toddler will benefit by watching how one treats the victim first. My sister has been having this problem with her son. I’ll pass her the advice so she can avoid this problem at the daycare.

By: Jeanne

Jeanne — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 18:01:03 +0000

I am a home daycare provider. I have an 18 month old that is grabbing toys from other kids and he bites the other child on the hand. I have been trying to shadow the child and when he tries to take a toy from another child I Intervene right away. The only time he bites is when he can’t have the toy that he wants. Do you have any advise?

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Thu, 01 Sep 2016 14:02:00 +0000

In reply to Marianne.

“That tip” recommends “a drop or two”, Marianne, which is far from a “high dose”. And to clarify, PURE vanilla extract contains alcohol, but the majority of people don’t use pure vanilla, as it’s ridiculously expensive. I hope that helps to ease your concerns.

By: Marianne

Marianne — Thu, 01 Sep 2016 05:44:40 +0000

Just to add: vanilla is poisenous in high doses, so that tip does not come without consequenses.

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Sun, 12 Jun 2016 12:54:18 +0000

In reply to Sarah. Hi Sarah! I'm scheduling your question on my Happy Hooligans fb page for the evening of the 13th. Please check in to see the feedback you get from my community!

By: Sarah

Sarah — Sat, 11 Jun 2016 03:57:05 +0000

My 2 year old sees a cousin of same age a few times a year. I’m dreading next meet up as the other child is a biter. The parents are dealing with it, I understand it and appreciate its a phase, but no matter how we try to supervise and prevent it, it happens, it’s a quick but painful arm bite. My kid is only 2 and I don’t want them bitten, is there a great fancy dress costume with sleeves that would serve as arm protection or a solution to spray on sleeves that tastes so foul as to shock the biter? there has to be away to practically protect your child when you are knowingly putting them in a biters path. As the visits are so infrequent a temporary solution is fine. Any advice, tips gratefully received.

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Fri, 20 May 2016 10:59:00 +0000

In reply to kay. I'm going to ask your question on my Facebook page, Kay. That way my readers can offer you some advice, and hopefully some will be basing it on their own similar experiences. Watch for your question later this morning (May 20, 2016).

By: kay

kay — Thu, 19 May 2016 03:20:03 +0000

my 4 yr old child has down’s syndrome, he bites when he gets frustrated, when he is hungry or sleepy. He is non-verbal so he can neither complain nor explain to me what happened that made him so mad. He bites his 2 yr old sister who has started to bite back, but that doesnot solve anything.. both my kids get scolded for their behaviour. Neither has bitten anyone other than each other but it happens so fast in front of my eyes that i am often unable to stop them in the deed. I keep counselling them both but i think it is related to him being unable to express himself, and will not resolve till he becomes verbal…
any suggestions?

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Tue, 15 Mar 2016 04:32:14 +0000

In reply to Nathalie. Watch for your question on my Happy Hooligans facebook page on the evening of March 15th, Nathalie. I hope you get some helpful feedback!

By: Nathalie

Nathalie — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 23:59:57 +0000

My 4 year-old daughter has always had, and still has, crying/tantrum episodes every single day. it’s humiliating. Bedtime is so stressful EVERY DAY! And this is not the only time she is out of control.
I have tried it all; routine, stories, positive reinforcement, games, etc, etc., still, nothing works. We can’t figure it out…we would appreciate your input…I’m all ears!!! Thanks!!

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Mon, 18 Jan 2016 04:21:32 +0000

In reply to Jen. Often a child who is teething will bite others to bring some relief. If an amber necklace reduces the pain and discomfort of teething, it could very well reduce the biting behaviour as the child may not feel such an urge to bite for relief.

By: Jen

Jen — Sun, 17 Jan 2016 08:47:11 +0000

In reply to happyhooligans. How does the amber beads help with biting? I know they help with teething but never heard biting before

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Wed, 04 Nov 2015 21:31:29 +0000

In reply to Teri. When you're not around, it's up to the supervising adult to teach him, and consistency is best. You could show your daycare provider this article, and work together to implement the same consequences at home and at daycare so he'll get the same response every time it happens, Teri.

By: Teri

Teri — Wed, 04 Nov 2015 03:25:37 +0000

My lo is 21months old he has just started biting at daycare, and he doesn’t do it at home. How can I teach him not to bite when I’m not the one he us doing it around?

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Sat, 26 Sep 2015 13:19:21 +0000

In reply to Jen. Awww, bless her heart!

By: Jen

Jen — Thu, 24 Sep 2015 15:52:11 +0000

Oh, I wish this would have been around when my daughter was a bitey toddler! (She’s 8 now and doesn’t bite anymore.) For a few months, it seems like all I ever said was, “NO BITING. Biting is MEAN and it hurts.” I’d like to say that all that repetition did the job, and maybe it did, but the biting thing ended when she herself was bitten by a squirrel. She ran up to me crying, showing a tiny puncture on her finger, pointing at the squirrel and saying, “No bite? No bite?” I gave the NO BITING lecture to the squirrel, took the kid to the doctor (she was fine, whew), and she never bit anyone again.

By: Charlotee

Charlotee — Sat, 04 Jul 2015 19:31:23 +0000

Putting a toddler child in time out is not at all developmentally appropriate. That child (aged 1-2.- When most biting occurs) has no idea what it means to “think about wheat you have done”. Simply redirecting the child or removing him from the situation would be a much better approach. Of course, bottom line for all biting incidents is to find out why they are biting….it it hunger, teething, frustration, lack of communication? Being proactive is what will stop the biting…. Figuring out the cause of biting and watching for the trigger signs…
Maybe introducing baby sign language to help reduce frustration will help tremendously.
Biting for toddlers is a phase and most will outgrow it once the cause is figured out…..

By: Renee

Renee — Sat, 25 Apr 2015 12:43:30 +0000

There are a lot of good suggestions here but I would caution against the amber necklace. They are not for chewing on and can break and become a choking hazard. It may work to wear it if biting is from teething, but being in the chew object section of the article, I don’t think that that is clear.

By: Τζένη

Τζένη — Fri, 10 Oct 2014 06:48:32 +0000

Oh god! You would be shocked at the sight of my bitten 23-month- old child! The biter was a 26 month old classmate of his! 7-8 bites on one cheek and one on the other plus nail scratches! Exactly one week ago! Do you think the biter needs professional help?

By: Angie

Angie — Sat, 04 Oct 2014 12:01:10 +0000

I mind an 18 month girl who is such a lovable child, unfortunately she has bitten a two year old on 3 separate occasions, not through malice but through affection, excitement, frustration. these are the only two little ones I mind, she hasn’t done it to any other child in any of the playgroups. the first incident the 2 year old was grabbing something out of her mouth and her fingers ended up next to her mouth so she bit her. The other two occasions they where in the shopping trolley both giving hugs and cuddles to each other, the little one started hugging the bigger ones arm who in turn tried to pull her arm away and next minute the little one sank her teeth into it.. older child was comforted and little one said sorry when I asked her too, but she doesn’t fully understand. Unfortunately this has only just started happening and is a new thing to me and my parents. and we will have to be more vigilant, but that cant always be the case.

By: Amy

Amy — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 01:13:11 +0000

Possibly some advice here for autism also? It would be great to have news directly related to it! More songs about not biting would be great to pass onto people I know!!

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Sun, 28 Sep 2014 12:20:02 +0000

In reply to Maria. Hi Maria, Ouch! Understandably he's biting back to stop his cousin from inflicting pain. I think the first step would be to supervise them very closely when they're together and intervene as soon as you see his cousin going in for the grab. You could apply some of the biting solutions to the cousin's pinching habit. I would suggest teaching your child to say or shout NO as soon as his cousin makes a grab for him. It might startle him enough that the pinch won't happen, and at the very least, you'll be aware that it's about to happen. Have you discussed this with the parent of the pinching child? Does he pinch others or is it just something that happens when he's with your child. You might share this post with his mom, and suggest that she use it as a guide to help her son break his pinching habit.

By: Maria

Maria — Sun, 28 Sep 2014 08:24:05 +0000

My 2 1/2 yr old son only bites when another child (whom is a very close cousin who is the same age) instigates a “fight.” the other child is a big pincher and is always grabbing my sons face to pinch or squeeze his cheeks. And that is when my son has ample oppurtunity to bite him. And I feel like I am the only one punishing sometimes. We have went over time and time again that biting hurts and will try the “teeth are for food” advice. I don’t know what to say, just let him stand by and get pinched and squeezed?? Biting is not the solution, but how can I tell him to not let the other child get his hands on him?

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Sun, 28 Sep 2014 02:36:52 +0000

In reply to Lori kujawa. Many of the suggestions in this article can be used or modified for a 5 year old, Lori, but I would suggest you click on the link in the post to read about Oral Sensory Issues. It's quite possible that at that age, biting is related more to Sensory Processing than teething. Lemon Lime Adventures is a site full of information about Sensory Processing. Just click on the link in the first part of my post, and it will take you there.

By: Lori kujawa

Lori kujawa — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 20:57:10 +0000

What do you do when the biter is five?

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 16:50:29 +0000

In reply to Debfavebie. In the case of a toddler who is teething or who has sensory needs, the urge to bite may be too strong for them to be able to control it. Teaching them that some objects are fine for biting is a safe solution. By telling them that they can't bite anything, you take the risk that the child WILL bite someone. I love hearing from my readers, and encourage all views of opinions, but in the future, you might consider refraining from telling someone a point they've made is "a bunch of bull". Especially if you'd like them to respectfully consider your opinion, Deb. There are kinder, less critical ways to disagree. :)

By: Debfavebie

Debfavebie — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 16:16:15 +0000

Telling.them to.bite themselves or giving them a toy or object to.bite Instead is bunch of bull. That is still.promoting biting. Biting.is biting,.they.don’t understand the difference. They get frustrated.cause they have not learned.words to express feelings. That’s what they meed to.learn. keepig watch.for conflict is a must. Read.the books. Teeth are.not for.Biting and hands are not for hitting p
Often bluey

By: Kate Lloyd

Kate Lloyd — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 10:06:54 +0000

Oh Jackie, how I wish this information was available to me when my little girl was going through this stage. Thank you so kindly for such a great post full of great information for parents and carers.

By: David Walters

David Walters — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 01:45:47 +0000

Lots of useful advice here. It is a common problem in a nursery setting. Often it is the same child being bitten and it is difficult for some parents to understand when their own child is the victim and not someone who is a biter themselves. I will share some of these with my staff

By: happyhooligans

happyhooligans — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 01:26:54 +0000

In reply to peggy. I'm sorry, I don't, Peggy. Have you tried goggling it?

By: Charlotte @ Pirate Monkey Mama

Charlotte @ Pirate Monkey Mama — Fri, 26 Sep 2014 20:49:44 +0000

My little guy is a biter but he only bites me or, occasionally, my husband. I really appreciate the tips you’ve laid out here. Some I’d already figured out but I’ll definitely be incorporating more of these now. Thanks for puttng it all in one place.

By: Dayna @ Lemon Lime Adventures

Dayna @ Lemon Lime Adventures — Fri, 26 Sep 2014 19:40:50 +0000

What a great post. So nice to have all this advice in one place.

By: peggy

peggy — Fri, 26 Sep 2014 13:12:05 +0000

do you have any advice on trying to potty train a child with a slight austium