Biter :( - Midland,MI

You need to stop giving her the feedback she is getting for biting and pinching =whatever it is she likes the reaction. i would immediatley say no biting and move awya from her/ stop what you are doing. Stop all interaction with her when she bires or pinches she will get the message.

It can be difficult to curb biting in some children. When we had this happening in our toddler groups, here is what I did:

Keep teething toys handy. When kiddo does the big "open mouth, moving in for the bite", we'd offer a teething toy.'You can bite this'. Sometimes, biting is to relieve pain from emerging teeth, and teeth can be moving way below the gumline, so even nonemergent teeth can cause pain.

Keep the response minimal. If the child bites me, I put them down in a safe place and hand them the teething toy. "You may not bite me. You may bite this."

It's very important *not* to shout, get upset, talk talk talk or provide an emotional response. I know, I know-- it seems impossible, but I'm on target here-- the more response you give, the more interesting the moment becomes, the more likely your little one is to bite again simply out of curiosity.

When my son would bite during nursing, I'd say 'Let go', remove him from the breast, "you may not bite me, all done boo boos" (which was our term for nursing) put him down and walk away. (I wouldn't offer teethers at this time, as the message was "I do not interact with you when you do this".)
That said, we were alone and no other children were present as possible targets.

So that's my strong suggestion: be proactive when you can, move your child when necessary and keep your responses as minimal as possible.

And just to be clear: biting back, hitting, slapping, flicking or any kind of physical punishment is only going to confuse things for your little one. And just to put your mind at ease: Your little girl is pretty typical in this regard. A lot of kids bite. We teachers have to keep a special eye out when a child goes through a biting phase. And if it happens at school, the teachers should be spending more time comforting the hurt child and very little time discussing it with your daughter. At this age, a lot of words don't work. "Biting hurts. You may not bite." is simple and doesn't reward the biting with lots of corrective attention.

My older son was a biter. I don't know why he did it. When he did, we firmly told him "No, that hurts" and stopped holding him. He eventually got the point but it took a few months. He later started biting a playmate, but stopped after consistent punishment (telling him no, time outs). I think this is fairly common although I don't know why some kids do it and some don't. Good news is they grow out of it. My son is a well adjusted happy and healthy 5 year old who doesn't bite anymore :)

Maybe I'm old-fashioned, but when my kids did this type of thing, I just "finger-flicked" them a bit on the chin, and said " OUCH!!! No biting". They quickly got the message. It doesn't hurt them, just stings a bit. The loud "OUCH!" also startles them.

I was a biter. It spelled the end of being nursed. I grew out of it.

I would just say "NO!" when either the biting or pinching occurs. And it might sound harsh or mean or counterproductive, but sometimes doing back what they're doing shows how it hurts. So give a little pinch back and show how unpleasant it is. That could break that habit real fast. Sorry if I offend anyone but 'giving as good as you get' can stop some behaviors.

Sounds likeshe's attention seeking.

My son did the same thing. He grew out of it around three years old.

Just be lovingly firm and consistent about this, using simple words to explain the issue. Consistency and gentle, firm interruptions of the biting and pinching should work over time. I hear that I was quite a biter in my day! I have no idea why!

You didn't say if she is biting/pinching while breastfeeding? If that's the case, a SHARP "no", take her off the breast, set her down on the floor and WALK AWAY.If she is biting during play or to just bite/pinch, the solution I have seen work...it sounds mean...you might try biting/pinching her back. She will cry, have her feelings hurt, look at you like "how COULD you?" but it shouldn't take more than once or twice for her to get the message. Since she smile/giggles afterwards, she knows she has your attention with this powerful behavior. When my oldest was only 10 or 12 months, we used to go to Le Leche League meetings. There was a toddler there who bit my daughter ever chance he got. No matter what his mom said/did nothing worked until my little tiny girl dug into his arm with all she had. He NEVER bothered her again. I know it doesn't follow the Golden Rule but....

I would have to say bite her back. I did it with my daughter. It worked. Not hard enough to do any damage.. just enough to get the point across. Good luck with it!

My son, youngest of five (14 months old) has been a biter and pincher and hitter and screamer and he is as cute as can be. My 16 year old daughter said that it's a good thing he's so cute! =D We've really had to toughen up with him. Scold him, put him in time outs, and stay on top of discipline. Out of five kids, I've had 3 of them that were stinkers and we had to correct young. My other two were more passive and compliant. Whew! =D Anyway, we just stay consistent and persistent on what is good and bad behavior. They're not too young to understand this. My son is doing much better. Lots of bad habits being broken and he's happy and so is the rest of the family. Good luck!!

Too many teeth and he's a biter...take him off the breast, use the pump and bottles and if he pinches, take his little hand and say "NO you are hurting mommy".

If he starts biting other children, you or the care provider will need to correct him immediately with talking and time outs and removing him from the child he bites for a while.

Blessings......