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Scratching & biting
  • SqueakyTweaky
    Posts: 39Member

    My (almost) 2y/o has been getting in trouble at daycare for scratching other kids (she also does this to adults).  She also bites, though this isn't quite as much of a problem.  And if you're holding/carrying her and she wants something and you don't give it to her, she'll haul off and smack you right in the face.  Sometimes she comes up and scratches us (hard!) up and down the legs. 

    She isn't talking yet; she seems to understand a lot of what we say to her but I don't know if she'd understand the concept of time-out yet.  How else can this aggression be dealt with?  We're tired of getting hurt!! (ha)  She also bites occasionally, and sometimes for no apparent reason.  Tried verbally scolding her but that seems to have no effect whatsoever.  Actually sometimes she laughs. 

    She's mean as hell to the dog too, I bet by the time her little sister gets old enough to pet Buddy he'll be too scared to have it, LOL.  Any suggestions?

  • Mommyoftwo2Mommyoftwo2
    Posts: 36Member

    I think for sure you can start using the time out technique but only 1-2 minutes out for her age. Not sure if you have tried it but when she bites you, I would bite her back. Not hard of course but my mom did this with me and I did it with my kids. They knew instantly not to do that again.


    Sometimes this behavior is actually learned at daycare, have they told you what they do when this happens there? How are they handling it from a disciple standpoint?

  • shate98shate98
    Posts: 2,833Member
    @SqueakyTweaky we had a similar issue. I started using 10 second timeouts. Also, when DS hit or bit me when I was holding him I would immediately put him down and tell him "NoNo." He also torments our Buddy, so he goes into time out for that too.
    "As you wander through your life, whatever be your goal,
    keep your eye upon the doughnut, not upon the hole."
  • BellaBefanaBellaBefana
    Posts: 8,221Member
    I always went with the "no bite" "no hit" myself, but dd wasn't much of a biter, when she got older around 2 1/2 she bit a couple of times at daycare and got time outs which seemed to work. She gets a minute for each year, though if she gets up, she gets an extra minute.

    The other thing she was taught from a very young age is "gentle touches" in both words and sign language.  She's got a pretty volatile temper, but rarely gets physical with it.

    Good luck, biting is a tough one, and daycare will expel for biting out here. 
    Bite me, cupcake!
  • GirdyOleeGirdyOlee
    Posts: 427Member
    I used "sassy water " on DD3. She was a horrible biter, and left bite bruises on her baby brother constantly. It's just some vinegar in a squirt bottle, and when she gets violent in any way, she gets a spray in the mouth. It tastes terrible, and is a great deterrent. It's not harmful for them, either.

    If she gets worked up and angry and I think she might be about to hurt her brother, I warn her, "Do you want the sassy water? No biting/pinching/scratching/pushing/hitting!" It helped SO much. She still has her moments, but it's way better.

    Spankings, time-outs, and biting back never helped, and I always felt bad using those, anyway.

    Good luck!!!
  • meandmy243meandmy243
    Posts: 6,348Member
    What's causing the behavior and cam any of it be anticipated. Also if she's not verbal see about getting her evaluated for speech therapy.
    mom of wild children
    going to the chapel 7/5/2014
  • realtormomrealtormom
    Posts: 648Member
    My dd used to bite me. Once so hard i was bruised for a week. After that, if she bit, i immediately put her down, yelled NO really loudly, then followed up with, Mommies are for kisses and cuddles. Food is for biting.

    It didn't take too long for her to stop. I used a similar tactic for hitting. She then used the same expressions at her day care with other kids, though she said friends are for playing games with and giggling.
    The past has a vote, not a veto ~ Moredecai Kaplan
  • TottyCake
    Posts: 937Member
    I swear by this time out technique that DS8's daycare provider used when he was 19 months till about 3. She made him sit down in the middle of the floor, one minute for each year he was old, facing away from the TV, toys out of reach. It worked wonders. She called it the sit spot. Also, you should reward her when she chooses to make a positive decision.
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