Stop dog jumping

Hi, my name is Sue Walton, and I love teaching others my insider tips to dog training. While you can learn the basics of what you need to know from my articles, I sincerely recommend you get hold of a copy of 'Secrets to dog training' which was formerlly known as 'SitStayFetch'. Daniel Stephens provides you with breed specific  training tips and secrets quite unlike anything else you will find.

Attempting to get rid of dog behaviour problems such as jumping up seems to bring out a dark, albeit imaginative, side of human nature. But training can be accomplished much more humanely and effectively using positive reinforcement. Here are some ideas for getting your dog to stop leaping gleefully for your chest as an expression of his affection.

Before you start:

You will need the following: a generous cupful of finely chopped, exquisitely tasty treats (hot dogs or Cheddar cheese work well) and a handy noisemaker. Dog trainers prefer to use a clicker (the things you used to drive your parents nuts with) which can be purchased from one of the companies in my Commercial Links section. Other good noisemakers include whistles, squeaking Latex dog toys (don’t let your dog play with them), kids bike horns, and anything which fits in your hand and makes a short, unique noise.

First:

Teach Flyer that every time you click (or squeak, beep, etc.), he’s just earned a treat. This is a cinch. Click, toss him a treat, and do it again. Click and treat a number of times in a row, then put the treats away for now. Do this a few times until Flyer catches on. Then you’re ready to start training.

Training:

Your goal here is very simple; to teach the dog that he will be rewarded for having all four paws on the ground. This is plainly incompatible with using his front paws to artistically dab mud on your new shirt! When the dog jumps on you, ignore him. Don’t shove, pet, laugh, scream, or even look at the dog. Vow to yourself that never again will you react when he jumps on you. But when he gets off you, click, then toss a treat on the ground.

This accomplishes two things. One, you just rewarded him for having his paws on the ground, and two, he will have to keep all four on the ground to eat the treat, thus giving you another chance to reward him. He will gulp the treat, then glance up just prior to launching himself at you. Click! Reward him before he has a chance to misbehave again. Continue to click and treat as long as he keeps his paws on the ground.

If he jumps on you again (he will!) , ignore him completely. Click and toss a treat down when he gets off. When he gets good at this, make him stay on the ground for a few seconds, watching you, before you click. Slowly lengthen the period of time he can stay off you between clicks, then, when he’s really good, try substituting a pat on the head for the treats. After all, your attention was what he wanted on the first place! You just taught him an acceptable way to get it.

Things to think about:

Your job is to catch the animal doing something right. It is a scientific fact that every time you reward a behaviour, you increase the probability of its happening more frequently. This does not mean your dog will be perfect overnight. It means that every time you reward him for good behaviour, you have increased the chances of his doing better tomorrow. And the next day.

You are building good behaviour by rewarding consistently over a period of time. Don’t lie to your dog. Give him a titbit every time you click. Always drop the treat on the ground, rather than giving it to him on your fingers, which might make him jump for your hand. Happy Training!