Jumping Up

Jumping up is a very common behavior concern that owners have. It can be prevented during puppyhood by using an errorless learning program called Sit To Say Please. “Off” or no jumping can also be EASILY be taught to an adult dog or older puppy that has already learned this bad habit. The key is to build self-control, so that even when they are excited, they can be successful with this cue.

Self-control, you’re probably thinking that would be great, but how do I teach my dog self-control? To build your dog’s self-control start by making a list of everything that your dog gets excited over things like dinner time, fetch, going outside, getting pet, greeting a new friend and getting a treat. Once you know what your dog loves teach him to ask for these things by requiring him to sit before accessing this. Be consistent and do this every single time he gets anything he gets excited about. Your dog will soon offer sit when he sees something that he wants.

You also want to make sure that you have a treat or reinforcer that your dog loves. For some dogs this could be a yummy piece of cheese, others their favorite ball and others it might be the chance to run free and sniff in the backyard.

Why do dogs jump?

Dogs jump to greet people. They jump to see things they normally would not be able to. Dogs jump to reach things that they normally can’t reach. They may also jump to take things from you that are out of reach. Some dogs jump to initiate play or jump up when they are overstimulated. What scenarios you see your dog jumping in can be a major hint to how you work on fixing the jumping with your dog. Most dogs jump for several of these reasons until they have been taught not to.

Okay, so how do I teach my dog not to jump?

I have broken the answer up into categories: Dogs who jump to greet, dogs who jump to see and take, and dogs who jump to play and are overstimulated. If your dog fits more than one category follow the videos for each category.

Once your dog has self-control and you have your reward picked out try each of the following videos in order. Do each video in your category for one week, 2 times a day for 10 minutes then do the next video the following week. By the end of the three weeks your dog should be a manners master!

Dogs that jump to greet

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Video 2

Video 3

Dogs that jump to steal

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Video 2:

Video 3:

Dogs that jump to play or when overstimulated

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Video 2:

Video 3:

Teaching your dog not to jump is going to be a perfect behavior to brush up on before you start having family in town for the holidays. This is also an important skill to brush up on before welcoming a new baby home as jumping can be dangerous around small children or elderly. Hope you enjoyed Jumping into training with me!