Jumping up is a common behavior problem among dogs, but there are several solutions to stop a dog from jumping on you when excited. Most of the time, jumping only indicates that your dog is seeking attention. The good news is that you can train your dog to stop jumping on people and start greeting everyone more politely.
Here's how to curb your dog's bunny rabbit-like behavior.
You might inadvertently be rewarding your dog for jumping up on you by giving them what they want; your attention. Even negative attention may be better than no attention to some dogs so if you are yelling or reacting in a dramatic way when your dog jumps, this can still reinforce the behavior. Your dog doesn't necessarily realize that when you push them off or yell at them to get down that you're attempting to discourage them.
In this case, any attention your dog gets from you or others may be perceived as a reward. It makes sense then that if you want to teach your dog not to jump, it will need to be rewarded for keeping all four paws on the ground, instead of jumping up.
Training your dog not to jump up on people takes patience and persistence on your part. Be aware that there are actions that you should take and others that you should avoid. Be consistent when you're training your dog, and you'll be rewarded with a best friend who keeps its front paws to itself.
The first part of teaching a dog not to jump up involves withholding your attention. There are a couple of ways to do this:
When you're working on preventing unwanted jumping, it can really help to keep some treats close at hand. As soon as your dog is standing in front of you with all four paws on the ground, toss it a treat. Praise your dog as well, but keep things low-key. Too much excitement or high-pitched squeals from you may stimulate another round of jumping. Try to project a calm, quiet, presence.
It helps if you can set up situations to practice with your dog. For instance, if the jumping occurs most often when you come home after work, spend a few minutes several times a day coming and going. Don't make a big fuss over your dog and step back outside if it jumps up. Offer a reward anytime all four feet are simultaneously on the floor.
Once your dog is able to keep four paws on the floor for a few seconds or more, start asking it to sit. Walk into a room or through the front door and give the command "sit." As soon as the dog sits, offer a treat. Practice this over several training sessions. With plenty of repetitions, your dog will start sitting as soon as you walk through the door or enter the room.
It's not enough that you practice with your dog. You should also involve friends and family in this training. Otherwise, your dog may learn that it's not OK to jump up on you but everyone else is fair game. Having other people help with this training teaches your dog to keep all four paws down no matter who comes into the room.
You may have heard about methods of training a dog not to jump that call for physical punishment or aversive. One such method is a knee to the dog's chest. Another is using leash correction—pulling or yanking on the leash—to get the dog off you. There are several problems with these methods:
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