Stop Dog Jumping
If you have been a dog owner for any length of time you know that a dog jumping on you or others can be be frustrating and embarrassing. I know the situation all to well, you come home from a long day at work, you walk into the front door and boom, your greeted with a big wet kiss sharp paws running down your arms or torso, ouch! Or even worse your smaller child get caught in the excitement and gets knocked over and scratched as well.
Well, I am sorry, but this could be all your fault. Let me explain:
Many unknowing dog owners encourage this behavior early in a puppies life. It\’s hard to resist a cute little puppy who is happy to see you. He comes running to meet you, leaps at your knees and what do we you? We reach down and pet or even pitch up the happy puppy and in effect, reword his behavior of jumping on us.
You have just taught your puppy a very nice lesson, if he runs up to you and jumps on your foot or knee he can get praise and affection. Fast foreword a few months and now that little puppy is as much as 5 or 6 times the size that he was, but still thinking like a puppy, (\”if I jump on my owner he will give me love\”). He does not know the difference between his puppy size, of say 4 or 5lbs and his new size of maybe 30 or 40lbs or more, not to mention he is taller now and can reach up to your arms or chest. All he knows is that he wants the praise and affection that he has missed all day long and you taught him how to get it, by jumping.
Is jumping ever acceptable?
You have to make it perfectly clear that jumping is unacceptable. Although owners of small breed dogs or \”toy\” dog breeds may expect their dog to jump, (this is totally up to you) but jumping on an unsuspecting guest could get things off on the wrong foot. That is why, if you do allow your dog to jump, you should at least work the command \”off\” into it\’s training.
For larger dog breed owners, it is very important to teach your dog when and where it is acceptable to jump or not to jump. I highly recommend all owners of dog over 15 to 20 lbs. to work the \”no jump\” command into their regular training. Not, only is it bad form to have a dog jump on a guest, but could you imagine what it must feel like if you were a small child being jumped on by a dog that could easily outweigh you. Not to mention, a large dogs paws are often times heavy enough to gouge into cloths and break though bare skin. It\’s one thing to have to deal with the muddy scratches and scrapes of your own family, entirely different if your dog has inflicted them on someone else.
Reasons why dogs jump.
The number one reason dogs jump is most likely out of pure excitement after a long separation (returning home from work) or during playtime when adrenaline is running high.
A much more complicated and serious reason dogs jump, is to display his dominance over you. Centuries of the pack mentality are still evident in all dogs and if there is doubt in who is alpha in your dogs pack (your family) he may try to exert his dominance over you. One of the behaviors dogs use to show physical superiority is to place one or both paws over a lesser animals shoulders.
Well, how do you know if you have an over excited dog that likes to jump on you or a dog that is trying display is dominance? This is fairly easy to determine, if your dog only jumps on you upon returning home from a long absents, you needn\’t worry, this is just a bad habit that can be corrected. If you find that your dog jumps on you or others in many different situations, then you have a communication problem with the hierarchy in your house and it might be a good idea to brush up on your alpha dog skills.
How to stop the over excited greeting.
Your actions are key to eliminating this annoying and possibly dangerous habit of your dogs. As with most all dog training consistency in your training will speed up his learning curve and prove to be more reliable. To stop dog jumping you have to make it clear to your dog that jumping is no longer tolerated.
Staying with your training routine day in and day out is the only way you will be able to beak this habit of your dogs jumping. Taking a day off and not fallowing though with your training can undermine weeks worth of work, so stick to your plan.
Dog trainers world wide agree that the most effective way to curb unwanted behavior (jumping) in your dog is also the the easiest, and that is to simply ignore the bad or unwanted behavior and reward the wanted or good behavior. There is no need to yell or over correct. Negative attention is still attention and that is what your dog seeks when jumps on you.
Most professional trainers agree that the most effective way is also the easiest way to stop unwanted behavior (such as jumping) in your dog is to ignore him whenever he jumps. No need to yell or correct, although that is usually the first thing that comes to mind when your dog just ruined another pair of nylons or scratch one of your children.
Let your body do all the talking. When your dog jumps on you or is about to jump on you, turn your back and face way from him…i.e. the cold shoulder. Dogs understand your body language much more then the spoken word, so use your posture to get the message though loud and clear.
When you turn away from your dog, cross your arms and advert your eyes, totally ignoring his jump. You will see, by giving him the cold shoulder how quickly he will calm down.
Again, as soon as he has all four paws back on the ground praise him lavishly. Don\’t worry that you may be confusing him, dogs have a very short \”training memory\” and they can only comprehend the reaction you give to his behavior at that moment.
Reinforce the good behavior, as soon as he keeps all for paws on the ground, reward him. If he gets excited again and goes to jump, give him the cold shoulder again. Don\’t worry if the cold shoulder and the praise are within seconds of each other, dogs have a very short training memory and are only capable of associating the reaction you give with the behavior he is presenting at moment. So, it will work really well if you give extreme affection when he keeps his paws to himself and the cold shoulder a half of second later.
To learn more about dog training basics Stop by Matt Closson\’s site where you can find out all about leash training a dog and how you can get a free 6 day training course.
categories: Dog training,dog training tips,dogs,pets,animals,family
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