Dog Obedience: Teaching Your Dog Not to Jump Up on People

Dog obedience training is an important part of pet ownership, and one lesson your pet needs to learn is how to greet people properly. That means NOT jumping up on people, as you don’t want anyone to get scratched, bruised, or knocked down. And beyond the potential hazards, getting pummeled by an overly excited pooch can be frightening, particularly for people who aren’t all that comfortable around dogs.

If your dog jumps up on everyone who walks in your home, you’ll want to find a way to keep that from happening. Below, the dog obedience training experts at Blackwood Canine offer advice on how to teach your pooch to greet people politely.

Be Ready for Dog Obedience Training

First off, you need to take control of the environment. Every time your dog succeeds in jumping up to greet you or anyone else, the behavior becomes more of a habit. So, the key is to stop your pet from wanting to jump up.

How do you do that? Decide what you want your pooch to do instead – such as sitting or standing with all four paws on the ground – and have treats on hand to provide a reward for proper behavior. To make sure that you can always grab a few treats before you go inside to greet your dog, you may want to keep a supply in your car, place a treat jar on your porch and stash some in the garage.

Once you have tasty rewards at the ready, use dog gates to block off the front door or any other entryway to your Portland home where jumping happens. This will stop your pooch from pouncing on you when you come in and set the stage for success with dog obedience training.

How to Stop Your Dog from Jumping Up

Teaching your dog to greet people without jumping up takes patience and persistence. According to dog obedience training experts, it’s a good idea to start working on the behavior problem when your tail-wagger is calm – not when they’re geared to pounce. When the time is right, here’s what you can do.

Withhold Your Attention

The first step to stopping your dog from jumping up on people involves taking away something they want – your attention. To do this, turn your back as soon as they leap and don’t make a sound. If your pooch circles around and jumps again, turn to face the other way. Repeat this action until they calm down, then offer a greeting.

Reward Good Behavior

As you move the gate and greet your pet, toss a few treats on the floor nearby. Don’t hold out the treats in your hand, as that can backfire and lead your dog to jumping up for more. Offer praise if they remain seated or keep all four paws on the floor, but keep it low-key – too much attention and praise may spark another round of jumping.

Practice Greeting Others

When your pooch is ready, ask a friend or neighbor to stop by for a dog obedience training session. Make sure your tail-wagger is next to you when they enter the room, and if they stay in place instead of jumping up, your helper can greet them and offer a reward. If your dog jumps, your helper should turn and walk away.

As you continue to practice, your dog should get better at greeting people – but obedience training is no easy task. Being consistent with your efforts is crucial, and if even one member of your family allows the jumping to continue, you may have trouble curbing the problem. To avoid issues with obedience training, make sure everyone is on the same page before you begin.

How Blackwood Canine Can Help

If you’re dealing with a dog who has a bad habit of jumping up on people, you don’t have to go it alone. Dog obedience training is far easier with professional help, and you can always call on the expert team at Blackwood Canine.

Every dog is unique, and there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to canine behavior problems. The obedience training approach outlined above may not be quite right for you and your pooch – and our professional dog trainers can find a way to teach your pup how to politely greet people.

Blackwood Canine offers a range of dog obedience training options for Portland pet parents. Our puppy jump-start program helps instill proper behavior at the start, and adult dogs can benefit from our private obedience training lessons, held in-home or at our state-of-the-art training facility in Scappoose. And for dogs in need of extra time and attention, we offer board-and-train boot camp programs.

Correcting canine behavior is our specialty, and we use positive reinforcement and rewards-based methods to help dogs of all ages, breeds and temperaments learn how to behave. If you’re struggling to train your pet not to jump up on people when they enter your Portland home, our experienced professional dog trainers can get them on the right track. For details on our dog obedience training programs, or to schedule a consultation with Blackwood Canine, give us a call or fill out our online contact form today.