Dr. Judith Levy: "Freud was the first to posit that what we construe as meaningful or valuable is determined by both conscious and unconscious factors, and that meaning-making is a subjective experience, invariably effected by inner conflict."

Do dogs have "inner conflict?" I think so. I see a constant conflict between the dog's predatory and social natures, between his natural aggressive, predatory energy and his desire for maintaining positive social connections with others. In fact, this conflict is also an integral social dynamic of wolf packs. So it's probably a basic part of a dog's DNA.

Dr. Levy says that Donald Winnicott, a British pediatrician and psychoanalyst, coined the term "transitional object" (often referred to as a "security blanket"), and stressed the importance of the "developmental trajectory influenced by the interaction between mothers and babies, and emphasized the importance of play."

In human development a transitional object is something that enables very young children to move beyond the stage of needing the mother's warmth, comfort, and especially the oral pleasure that comes from breast-feeding (or even bottle feeding). Common transitional objects include dolls, teddy bears, pacifiers, or blankets.

Puppies—like babies and young children—are very oral. They also go through a stage where they're weaned off their mother's milk. Since pacifiers, thumb-sucking, and security blankets satisfy the infant's need to stay connected, orally, to a primary source of satisfaction—i.e. the mother—, and since puppies also nurse on mother's milk, it's not much of a stretch to suggest that puppies also need transitional objects in order to go through normal oral development. Simply put, like babies, puppies need something to help them reduce their oral tension.

In the litter transitional objects—or "chew toys—include a brother or sister's ear, tail, or paw. Puppies who have numerous litter mates learn very quickly that soft chewing doesn't stop the oral pleasure, but that biting down too hard causes stress and conflict.

Once the puppy comes home to his owners, he needs lots of new, and actual chew toys, of various types, made with varying degrees of hardness and softness. It's also essential, in my view, that the owner use his or her fingers as transitional objects.

This is very natural, and easily done. In Natural Dog Training Kevin Behan writes: "I've raised a number of puppies and I've never taught them not to bite. They've simply outgrown their oral phase in their own due time just as human babies outgrow their oral phase. I let them grab my hands and bite as much as they want while I stay perfectly still. It isn't long before their teeth can exact an excruciating crunch. When that happens, I yelp in pain. The puppy is more shocked than I am, and his flow of pleasure stops. After the shock wears off, should he persist, I simply stop interacting with him. ... The worst thing to do is to confront him, say No, or hit him. This is only going to make him defensive and produce the very behavior you're trying to inhibit. When I consult with owners who have a puppy that is biting too hard, it's always because they fought him over this urge."

To me this approach makes sense on many levels. From a Freudian point of view, saying "No" to a natural drive, especially during a developmental phase, is a sure way to create neurotic behavior later on. From a Pavlovian or Skinnerian standpoint, how better to reinforce your puppy's desire to feel connected to you than by allowing him to softly mouth your hand? (Normally enjoyable for both parties.) And what nicer way to correct him for biting too hard than saying "Ow!" as if you've been hurt?

I discovered, quite accidentally one night, that allowing an adult dog to mouth your fingers can also solve behavioral problems in dogs who've been punished for their oral urges when they were pups.

Roughly ninety percent of my training practice involves helping people solve behavioral problems in adult dogs. And ninety percent of all behavioral problems in adult dogs stem from puppies being punished for using their teeth during their oral phase. So whenever I take a case history from a potential client, I always ask about the pup's oral phase, and what was done to control and manage it. Then, when I first meet the doggie, I always look for indicators that the dog's urge to bite has been repressed.

What are some of the indicators? The primary one is that the adult dog has forgotten how to play.

Puppies are born knowing how to play. If they're raised properly, they never forget. If they're not raised properly, they either "don't like to play," or they play too roughly. The one game that puppies who've been punished for mouthing usually won't play is tug-of-war. The feeling of biting down hard on a toy, held in the owner's hand, becomes extremely unpleasant for such a dog. This is a shame. Playing tug with his owner should provide the ultimate pleasure because it provides the maximum release of feelings that have been, as Freud put it, "dammed up to a high degree."

How did I discover the therapeutic value of letting a dog use my hands as a "transitional object," transitioning him from a troubled doggie who's forgotten how to play, to one who plays like a puppy again?

Years ago, I got a call from a family who'd adopted a black lab mix puppy with behavioral problems. I went to their home and met Tippy, so named for the white tip on the end of his tail.