Dog Crates & Dog Cages Blog

There’s no feeling like being greeted at the door by your canine companion excitedly jumping up to say “Hi!”—but for the most part, a dog’s jumping proves to be annoying (at times, even dangerous!) behavior. Guests visiting your home don’t necessarily like to be startled by a leaping pet and dirty paws can ruin clothes. Those that are timid of animals can be really shaken up by a dog that jumps up on them and—depending on the size of the animal—there is the risk that your dog may knock small children and elderly people off their feet.

Most people respond with an attempt to calm the dog down, petting the animal gently: however, this only appears to your dog as a form of praise or encouragement. Instead of unintentionally reinforcing the behavior, you can try out some techniques that have proven to work for some pets. No matter which method you decide on, it is incredibly important to be consistent with it. It would be very confusing for your puppy if you don’t react the same way every time he or she jumps up.

Teaching your dog the “Off” command is the most direct way of dealing with the issue. Each time your dog jumps up, stand squarely and in a calm, stern voice say “OFF”. Your tone of voice should prompt the dog to stop immediately. If you don’t want to teach an entirely new command and you’ve already trained your pup the “Sit” command, it can be used to redirect his excitement and halt the jumping. Right when your dog jumps up, firmly command him to sit. This not only transfers the focus on to another action, but proves to be good obedience practice too. Make sure to reward your dog with affection!

Some dog-owners suggest to simply ignore the dog until he’s stopped jumping about and sits down. One reason dogs jump up is to get attention from the people around them: refuse to give this attention and the dog will eventually give up on the behavior. You can physically deny the jumping by turning your body away from the dog as he leaps up to you, deflecting him or making him miss you completely. Don’t make eye contact or show a reaction of any kind to your dog to make it clear that he will not receive attention from leaping up on you. After your dog’s calmed down and stops jumping, you should show him attention and praise.

Remember; be consistent and persistent with the method you choose. Also, begin to discourage the jumping as early as possible. It’s much easier to teach obedience to a young puppy than to an older dog.

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