Tis The Season to End Jumping
By Susan Sharpe on Sunday, December 4th, 2011 |
During the Holidays if you have lots of people dropping by the house, this can be a perfect time to work on teaching your dog not to jump on visitors. Dogs naturally jump to greet and welcome people. This is perfectly acceptable behavior in dog societies, but it is not acceptable for most people.
Begin with the immediate family. Instruct all family members that when the dog jumps on them, they are to turn their back from them, without saying a word. For many dogs being talked to, even scolded is better than being ignored and they will continue to jump as long as people are interacting with them. Saying down means lay down if your dog has had some training and that is not what you really want him to do and this will only confuse him. Silence is best when he is jumping. Turning away and ignoring the jumping is even better. As soon as the dog has all four feet on the floor, calmly talk to your dog, pet him and even give him a treat if you have one handy. Your dog will learn that jumping on you gets him nothing, having four feet on the floor gets him what he wants. Your attention!
If you find yourself getting frustrated, resist the temptation to scold the dog. Then they learn persistence. If he keeps jumping on you, you eventually give him some attention and he would rather be yelled at than ignored. So if you become irritated, find the nearest door and go into that room that is, leaving the dog on the other side. Count to 20 and then go back into the room with your dog. If the jumping resumes either continue to ignore, or retreat back into the other room. Your dog will learn that jumping makes you go away and that is the last thing that he wants.
You must now get your dog to understand that this applies not only to the family, but also to anyone who comes in the door. You have to get your friends and family involved in this exercise. As they walk in the door, explain to them that they are to ignore the dog unless all four feet are on the floor. Then and only then can they interact with the dog. This is where the hard part comes in. Many of them will say, “that’s ok, I love dogs.” At this point you must not yell at your dog, but yell at your friend. They are encouraging your dog to continue his jumping habit. Tell your friend that it is not ok for them to let your dog jump on them because then he will want to jump on others and he could injure someone.
If you don’t have time to explain the exercise to people as they come in, put your dog’s leash on him. As people come through the door, stand on the leash giving the dog just enough length to stand comfortably but not enough room to jump. Each time your dog jumps on someone and gets attention for it, your losing ground on your training. It will take a wide variety of people and situations before your dog understands that this applies to all people at all times.
Some guests may want to help you take care of your jumping problem by using positive punishment. Hitting or kneeing the dog when he jumps on them so that he won’t jump on others. This can backfire. The dog may stop jumping on people who come in, but it is likely that he will become fearful and cautious of visitors to the home. He may even begin growling at or hiding from new people coming into your home.
Holidays can be an exciting time for people as well as our pets. Having a dog that welcomes guests into the home without jumping will be more enjoyable. Start working with your dog before the holiday rush and the Holiday season will be enjoyable for both humans and canines.
Tip of the week: It doesn’t seem to matter how big a dog is, there is someone out there who will allow the dog to jump on the and even pet them when they do so. You must get everyone who spends time with your dog to understand that jumping gets the dog nothing. Bark questions to: Canine Companion, 11652 North - 825 West, Huntington, IN 46750 or email info@caninecompanion.us
Canine Companion conducts dog training classes in Fort Wayne, Huntington and surrounding communities and behavior consulting nationwide. Along with their combined 30 years experience and endorsement by national organizations, the lead trainers are graduates of Purdue University’s DOGS! Program and have earned the title of Certified Pet Dog Trainer through the Association of Pet Dog Trainers.
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