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Writer's pictureDan Stelter

How to Stop Your Dog from Jumping


brookfield-dog-walker-dog-jumping-image

Oh no! He’s doing it again…


Your dog is jumping on you or your guests. It’s not the end of the world. Worse behaviors do exist. But it sure is annoying.


And worst of all, your dog could knock someone over and seriously hurt them!


So how do you put an end to this problem in the most humane way possible?


Why Do Dogs Jump Anyway?


There are actually many theories as to why dogs jump on people. Some claim it has to do with dominance behaviors between dogs. Others say it’s merely because of greeting behavior between dogs.


However, no scientific research has ever ultimately concluded what the case is.


Truthfully, at least from an anecdotal perspective anyway, your dog probably just feels a lot of excitement to get attention.


More than likely, you’re unwittingly giving your dog attention for their behavior. Some dogs even thrive on negative attention.


And what if you’ve already tried yelling or pushing your dog off?


Well, honestly, the dog may think of that as positive attention, even though you intend it to discourage their behavior.


How to Stop the Jumping


Even though you now have a sound understanding of why your dog jumps, it still takes a lot of patience and persistence to stop your dog’s jumping.


And it requires a combination of behaviors to avoid and to engage in to help your dog stop.


Here’s what to do:


Attention to Withhold


When you enter your home, and your dog decides to jump up, immediately cross your arms and show your back to your dog. Do not make any sound, no matter how tempted you may feel.


If your dog runs around to your front, turn and show your back to your dog and again keep your arms crossed in the front. And again, refrain from making any sound. Once your dog stops jumping, then you can give him or her attention.


You can also try a second method. If you walk in the door, and your dog jumps up, turn right around and go back outside. Wait a few seconds and then head back inside. If your dog jumps up, go back outside again. Keep repeating this process until your dog is calm. And then give them attention.


Attention to Give


Now that you know what to withhold, take a second to learn what attention to give your dog.


First, make sure you have your dog’s favorite treats handy. When they are calm, with all four paws on the ground, give them a treat. You can also tell them,”Good dog,” in a calm and gentle voice.


Make sure not to be too excitable when praising your dog. Don’t excitedly yell “Good boy!” or make any exaggerated physical movements. This behavior could trigger your dog to begin jumping again!


Your dog will learn quicker if you practice this a few times per day, rather than only when you come and go. And you only need to spend a few minutes doing this. As long as you follow the steps in this guide, your dog will likely pick up pretty quickly.


How to Entrench Your Dog in Good Behavior Further


Once your dog routinely keeps a few feet on the floor for several seconds, train them to sit.


As soon as you walk into your home, tell your dog to,”Sit,” and give them the physical sign you want them to use to learn to sit. The moment your dog sits, give them a treat.


Keep practicing this for several sessions. And, one day you will enter your home and have a dog who sits instead of jumps!


Include Other People in Your Dog’s Training


Dogs are extremely smart animals. If only you do the training, they may learn that it’s not okay to jump on you, but that it is okay to jump on everyone else.


Insert other family members and friends into this training where you can.


A Couple Mistakes that Could Ruin Your Dog’s Training


When you train your dog not to jump, you need to avoid a couple major mistakes. If you don’t, your dog simply won’t learn not to jump. And they’ll just keep right on jumping.


So, as you train your dog, don’t use your knee to hit the chest of your dog. And don’t use a leash to yank the dog off you.


Why?


Several reasons:


  1. If you do either of those with too great of force, you can seriously injure your dog.

  2. After being knocked down, your dog can interpret your actions as play. As a result, they’ll keep jumping just like always.

  3. If you only train your dog when on a leash, they may learn to simply not jump only when leashed. Then, the moment you take them off their leash, they’ll begin jumping again!

  4. Both of these techniques can cause pain or fear. When you use fear, you erode trust with your dog. This can also spiral out of control and cause other undesirable behaviors, such as aggression and phobias.


So that’s all there is to it. Just as with anything related to training dogs, it takes patience, consistency, and love.


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