My dog jumps all over my guests! How can I stop him from doing that?
Training is happening all around us. The more your dog jumps on people, and likely is getting the attention they want, the more history and reinforcement is being built that JUMPING WORKS. Jumping is a very normal and biological behaviour, changing established behaviours can take time, but can be reduced or eliminated with training.
Things you could try are… Put your dog outside or away until everyone has entered.
Often the biggest excitement is right at the beginning. Once everyone is settled, give your guests instruction on what to do if the dog jumps, and then let the dog in.
Use a leash!
We can control our dog much better on leash and take away opportunities for them to make mistakes. By using a leash you can keep your dog out of the way and limit contact. When your dog is able to settle down and your guests are settled in, you can then start interaction.
Don’t move to interaction before your dog is mentally calm. That may mean several people coming over without any contact before you can get to the stage of contact. Taking your time to get it right is okay.
Practice your routine even if there isn’t anyone to jump on!
Whether that’s putting your dog away first, or leashing them before opening the door, practice the steps several times before people come over.
Tether train your dog.
Often if you have your dog bed right near the tether, the dog will learn to stay on their bed. By using a tether, even if they make a mistake and got up, they can’t jump on anyone. Train the tether before you need it. Dogs need to learn they can only move in a certain area and to calm down in that area. When the dog has been able to settle down on their tether, then we can unhook them.
A really, really good stay.
Train a place cue, but be prepared to train and maintain it. This can be difficult when we have guests, as our attention is often divided. This can be more time
consuming, but once trained, the dog can manage the behaviour without too much help from you.
Explore the options and figure out what will work for you. Change doesn’t happen overnight, but with some consistency, you can expect to see a reduction of the behaviour over time.
Emily Garland, CPDT-KA, MFA
Trainer and Behaviour Specialist
Find what works for you and your dog. Always remember, every dog is unique. What works for one dog may not work for another. Any information contained in this section are suggestions on different training techniques to try. For advice specific to your dog consult a trained professional.
