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If your dog has a tendency to jump up and you would like to stop your dog jumping, don't worry as this is perfectly normal behavior. If you consider how a dog would act in the wild, it becomes apparent that all the dogs in the pack are at the same 'eye level' as each other.
This means that wild dogs can interact with each other at their own level. This also applies when submissive dogs interact with dominant dogs of the pack either by licking or sniffing. It is therefore no surprise that your dog may want to get close to your face. The most direct method a dog will use to elevate itself amongst the pack, is to jump up and (in some cases) attempt to lick your face. Jumping up rarely involves aggressive behavior.
How To Stop Your Dog Jumping
One method you can use to reduce the amount that your dog jumps up is to interact more with your dog at its level. Get down to your dogs level and interact with him. Be aware that some dogs can become excitable and nip or become excessively boisterous. With you face nearer to your dogs' face, extra care must be taken.
If you have a dog that is slightly older, or has been in an animal shelter or rescue, keep your thumb inside the dogs collar whilst down at its level. If your dog shows any forceful, aggressive behavior, you can easily pull your thumb to the side. This will move the dogs head away from yours without causing any bruising or strain to the dog’s neck. Remember, the idea is to train and teach your dog, not to punish!
Although this method helps reduce jumping, you will eventually need to train your dog not to jump up at all. The following method will show you how to achieve this.
Stand in front of your dog with the dog standing. Stand and wait until you see the dog is about to jump up. A jump up is normally preceded by a slight lowering of the rear and a tensing of the back leg muscles. Also you can usually tell by the look in your dogs eyes whether it is about to jump up. The trick is to catch the jump up before it happens.
When you spot these signs, issue a firm command to 'sit'. You will need to train your dog to sit before you can begin using this method. Teaching your dog to sit is the first thing you should teach your dog before moving on to other behavior issues.
More than likely, your dog will still jump up anyway. If he does, raise your knee slightly, so that the dog’s chest bumps your knee. DO NOT stick your knee out! Just bring your knee up in front of your body as a 'buffer'. At the same time, put your hand palm facing outwards, in front of the dogs face. Issue a sharp command: 'Off'. Some people use the command 'Down' but this should be reserved for teaching your dog to lie down.
The idea here is to prevent the dog successfully jumping up, whilst at the same time breaking the dog’s visual lock on your face with your hand. (The main reason he was jumping in the first place.) With enough repetitions, your dog will gradually become less and less likely to jump up. In the early stages of training, always praise and\or give your dog a treat when he obeys your commands. This positive reinforcement will help things along. This can gradually be reduced over time until your dog stops jumping up altogether.
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