Swank Pets Dog Blog

I have this problem mainly with my Bichon/Poodle, Muffin. She’s about 12 pounds, so she’s not necessarily a large menacing dog (although she might think she is). This is probably a bigger problem for people with larger dogs, especially with kids or eldery around. However, when guests come over, it may be a little overwhelming when Muffin keeps jumping up on them and sometimes biting their shirts. It happens mostly in two situations. As soon as I grab my keys and put on my shoes, she knows that I’m about to leave and starts jumping on me and biting my shirt. Almost begging me to take her with me and leave her supposedly dreaded home. Of course, she’d rather go with me than stay at home. Heck, I could be going to the dentist’s office but as far as she’s concerned, the dentist is more fun than home anytime. Even worse, everytime we have guests over she immediately starts jumping on them for the first few minutes or so. Some guests don’t mind, but others get a little annoyed. So I did a little research and hope I can help with deterring your dog from jumping on people.

First, I’d like to give a little background on why your dog has this habit of jumping on people. Don’t blame your dog, because this behavior is innate to most dogs. During their puppy stages, you’ll notice that they play a lot by jumping on their litter mates, their mother, and with you when they play. This is just a natural behavior of dogs. Don’t think that you’re the only one with this problem. A LOT of dogs have this problem. Its up to you to train them not to do it.

The first method takes a little anticipation to know when your dog is about to jump up on you. So don’t use this method if you expect guests over. In my case, I know when Muffin is about to jump on me. When she does, I will gently block her with my knee and stop her from jumping up on me. Or I will turn my hips so she kind of gets blocked that way. After the block, be sure to avoid eye contact and walk away ignoring your dog. After a few moments when you know your dog is calm, praise them. Repeat this as necessary and remember to be persistent and patient.

The next method involves GENTLY stepping on their hind toes. Each time they jump up, simply step on their hind toes. Obviously you don’t want to use a lot of force, but the objective is to let them know that if they jump up, a uncomfortable feeling will occur. Next, use a stern “NO!”. Once again, ignore your dog until they have settled down. Then, praise them. Again, repeat this method and be patient.

Personally, I’m still working with Muffin but she’s getting a lot better. I think I’ll have it down within a week. I haven’t had guests over these past few days, so we’ll see what happens when people come over. Luckily, Muffin has OCD with cleaning her paws constantly so she doesn’t have dirty feet. Otherwise, I think everybody’s clothes would have paw marks on them! Hope this helps and happy training!