Many dogs jump up when greeting their owners, friends and other pets, but in many cases this is not behavior that should be encouraged. You, as the dog's owner, may not mind, but guests may well be annoyed, frightened or simply worried about hygiene issues of having a dog's face close to their own.
Some trainers have advocated kneeing a dog in the chest to stop it from jumping up. I DO NOT advise this - it may hurt the dog or your knees and it will almost certainly not cure the behavior. We need to look at the reason the dog responds and tackle the problem from its root.
The behavior usually begins with a trigger, such as a knock at the door or a doorbell ringing. The dog will be immediately alert and ready for a visitor - he thinks that it is his job to welcome a guest, to check a stranger, to keep the pack and the territory safe. This is where the problems begins, because it should be the owner who has the responsibility of welcoming, checking and maintaining safety, not the dog.
So, when the trigger occurs, put your dog away in another room. You have effectively controlled your dog's behavior and can now welcome your guest in your own way. You will have raised your status in the pack and reduced your dog's, showing him that you are in control of who enters the house and in what manner they are greeted. You will also have saved your guest from being jumped on!
When your dog is allowed through to see your guest, do this in a controlled manner and don't allow him to jump up. As soon as his behavior is anything less than acceptable, banish him to another room. He will soon realise that he must follow your rules if he wants to stay with you and the guest.
If your dog jumps up at you yourself when you come back home, there are two strategies for dealing with this. The first is to ignore your dog for a good five or ten minutes when you the enter the house. Don't look at him, don't speak to him and don't react if he does something to get your attention. Just turn away and ignore even bad behavior. He will be very confused at first, especially if you're in the habit of making a big fuss of him on entering the house, but after five to ten minutes he will settle down and maybe even lay down quietly. Then you can call him to you, praise him and give him a little treat.
If your dog jumps up at you, it's because he has been rewarded in some way for this behavior. Even being told off or shouted at can seem to be a reward to a dog that's desperate for attention. So when he jumps up, hold his front paws and keep him standing up on his back legs. Don't let him down and stretch him upwards a little. He will wriggle and want to get down, even mouth your hands to make you let go of his paws. Let go and reward him when he is back on the ground where he belongs.
If he jumps up again, go through the same procedure until he learns that jumping up produces a situation he doesn't find rewarding. You must be firm, kind and consistent to ensure that the message is being received loud and clear.
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