Dog Jumping on People?
Here is How to Discourage This Behavior

When dogs meet, they tend to initially sniff each other under their tails. If both are friendly, they may then proceed to sniffing each other's faces and even start playing. Because we are humans, dogs fortunately skip the "anogenital investigation" part and go straight to jumping up, possibly followed by some enthusiastic facial licking.

Puppies start the behavior of jumping on people at an early age. Most likely, dog owners reward such jumping up behavior by petting the puppy and talking to the puppy in an enthusiastic way.

Have you ever slapped your thighs while encouraging your dog to run to you and saying something like "Here, boy (or girl)! Come to…" and then stretching your arms in anticipation of catching him or her? With this encouragement and innate love of jumping, I would be surprised if our dogs did not jump up at us as much as they do!

Because dogs are opportunistic beings which tend to repeat behaviors that are rewarded, the dog jumping on people behavior will increase in intensity. And before owners realize it, they end up with a large, heavy dog leaving muddy paw prints on everybody's clothes!

The Ideal Jumping on People Candidate

Because of their eagerness to come close to their humans, puppies are number one candidates when it comes to jumping on people. But large dogs that have received little or no training on how to stop jumping are not that far behind. As you can see, any puppy or dog in good health is a candidate!

Many dogs with a jumping habit are high-energy, happy dogs eager to throw a party for the owner's arrival. These enthusiastic "dog jumping on people greetings" are often also reserved to other friends and guests.

While some dog owners are accepting of this dog jumping on people behavior, it is also true that guests and the occasional pedestrian may not be too happy of being greeted in such a boisterous way. Especially if the dog leaves paw prints all over their expensive business suits!

But dogs don't jump only on people. Some dogs jump over fences, furniture and other barriers. Follow these stop dog jumping fence to escape instructions for details.

How to Stop Dog Jumping on People Behaviors

Stopping a dog from jumping on people does not exclusively depend on training the dog. Indeed, for the most part it involves training the people interacting with the dog.

What usually happens when our dog jumps up at us? We say something like "Stop it, enough already, down boy…". Sometimes, we may pet him.  If he is lucky, he may even sneak in couple of quick licks while you are trying to get him down.

All this attention is very rewarding and encourages even more dog jumping in the future. Frankly, if I were a dog and getting all this attention, I would be jumping at my owner every chance I had!

As a general rule, the more the dog is allowed to jump on people and guests, the more the behavior will repeat in the future. The best way to stop your dog from jumping on people is to stop rewarding his jumping. For this approach to work, it is imperative that all people interacting with the dog abide to the following rules:

1. No more petting, talking or looking at the dog when it jumps.
2. No more scolding the dog for jumping. Some dogs see this as a form of attention.
3. No pushing, kicking or stepping on paws to stop the jumping behavior. These are outdated approaches that may stimulate defensive dog and puppy aggression.

Tips for Stopping Dog Jumping

So what to do to stop a puppy from jumping up? The best way to handle this is by ignoring him.

Try to immediately cross your arms and become as boring as a pole, possibly turning your back to your dog. Once the dog gives up jumping, you may then turn around and if your dog is calm enough, you may ask for a "sit" (visit training your dog to sit for step-by-step instructions). If your dog complies, then pet him calmly while sitting nicely.

If the dog continues to jump all over you, cross your arms and turn around again. If he still persists in jumping up at your back, leave the room and continue training once he is calmer.

Here is another technique you may find helpful…

Take your dog's favorite treat and let him see and smell it. Slowly raise your hand above your shoulders. Is your dog jumping up trying to get the treat? Good, let him jump as much as he wishes, but don't give him the treat just yet.

Offer him the treat only when all his paws are on the floor and he is no longer jumping up. Pet him. Tell him how good he is. You can't imagine how quickly your puppy will learn from this exercise!

Finally, keep your greetings very low key. When you return home and your dog jumps up at you, just ignore him. Greet your spouse or children. Only then turn your attention to your dog. By this time, he is not as excited as he was just a couple of minutes ago when you came in and is less likely to jump at you.

Here is a brief video that talks about some of the things we just covered in this article...

Final Thoughts...

While jumping may look like a cute behavior in puppies and small dogs, it is important to realize that jumping can also create problems and even be dangerous at times. Small children can be easily knocked down, items can be broken and people may not wish to have their clothes ruined by muddy paws.

Dog owners must also consider that a jumping dog can cause a lawsuit to happen in today's litigious society.

Teaching a dog jumping on people an alternative behavior is an important part of your dog's training on how to become a great member of society.