Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Learning How To Stop Dog Jumping Behavior Is Important

By Lee Dobbins


One of the most annoying behaviors that a dog can exhibit is jumping. Annoying as it may be, many experts say this is simply the dogs way of getting closer to you. Even if a large dog has the best intentions, it can be a very scary thing and it may be in your best interest to find out how to stop dog jumping behavior before something bad happens.

The reason your dog jumps up is to have a better view of you. You can minimize this behavior by lowering yourself so that you are at his eye level and then he will not have the desire to leap up at you. While this is a solution for you, there are also the neighbors or strangers that you encounter in public places and naturally you want to prevent your dog from jumping at them. In order to insure that this does not happen, it is necessary to train your dog properly so that he will respond to your voice commands.

Teaching your dog how to sit is very important first step in learning how to stop dog jumping activity. By performing this command, you dog will be distracted from jumping, so you must make sure that he sits when he hears the command. You should continue the training until your dog sits ALL of the time or else it won't be considered successful.

Begin your training with your dog standing in front of you and talk to him gently. If you watch him closely enough you will notice little signs that he is getting ready to jump up on you and wanting to play. At first just gently and firmly say, "Sit" to your dog. He may or may not do this at first and chances are he will not. This is when you lift you knee up to his chest, look at him and gently but firmly say, "Off." Many people make the mistake of telling the dog "Down" but that just confuses him because it is the command to lay down. Remember to say, "Off" and gently use your knee to discourage him from jumping on you.

The next time your dog comes to jump on you, just gently raise your knee to prevent him from getting to your body. This should throw him off balance and cause him to drop to all fours. Gently and firmly say "Off" as you are doing this so he will associate the word with the action. If he tries again, repeat the command and the action. Always praise him and tell him how good he is even when he is not sure of the command, he will eventually understand the action, the command and the reward and should stop the habit of jumping on people.

Dogs who jump on everybody they meet are going to create an unpleasant incident sooner or later. Such behavior is specially dangerous around elderly people and young children. So take the time to learn how to stop dog jumping behavior if you do not want the risk of a lawsuit, or worse. And enjoy you dog.

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