An Easy Ways to Stop a Dog From Jumping Up on People

For this Santa Monica dog training session we worked with Doodles Juno (left) and Zeppelin, sharing a tip to stop a dog from jumping up on people.

Of course we covered a number of other things in this session. We started off with foundational elements; introduced a marker word, went over dog consent and cut off signals, practiced some hand targeting, talked about the importance of celebrating desired behaviors and how to teach dog manners.

Anytime you have a dog jumping problem, it’s important to look at the big picture. Some of the contributing factors when dogs to jump up on people are a lack of impulse control, not knowing a replacement behavior and managing the dogs energy. And sometimes because we pet them when they jump up on us.

Since pent up energy can contribute to dog jumping problems, I shared a number of tips on dog exercise such as feeding the dogs out of a snuffle mat, using treat dispensing toys, playing tug-of-war, using a doggy backpack on walks and what I like to call the doggie stairmaster.

But mental stimulation is helpful too. We went through cookie in the corner and I recommended that the guardians do a Google search for scent games. Since the dog nose uses approximately 60% of its brain when it’s sniffing, scent work is a great way to drain excess dog energy.

Since Zepplin had issues with people touching his paws, we went through a body handling exercise. I recommended the guardians practice it in steps until they are able to touch, hold and grasp Zeppelins paws without any cut off signals. This will take a little practice, but once they finish, he should feel much better and more comfortable when people touch his paws.

We finished up the foundational elements on this at home dog training appointment by discussing the importance of rules and structure as well as dog motivation. Creating a scenario where your dog wants to do the thing that you want is a Dog Behaviorist trick that can solve many dog behavior problems. When we create set ups that help ou dog learn the behavior we want, we are literally setting the dog up to succeed. Its always a wise strategy.

How to Stop a Dog from Jumping Up on People

It was really important to the dogs guardians that we came up with a solution to their dog jumping problem due to a senior family member who visits. In these sort of situation, dogs jumping up on people can be a serious and dangerous problem.

I pulled up my camera and had one of the guardians film me as I demonstrated my technique to stop dogs from jumping up on people. If your dog has a jumping problem, you should definitely check out the free positive dog training video below. I go over 2 different methods to train a dog to stop jumping on people at the door.

The great thing about these easy ways to stop dogs from jumping up is how easy they are to teach (as long as you arent practicing in a real situation). The practice needs to happen on a regular basis for a few weeks. I would like to see the guardians practicing this exercise with each dog three times a day in short one to two minute practice sessions. Short and frequent is the best approach when modifying an unwanted dog behavior.

It’s also important to go at the dog’s pace and build success on top of success. Once they see it for themselves, people sometimes call this the secret to stopping dog jumping; but it’s really just teaching your dog a replacement behavior and desensitizing them to the excitement of the door.

It will take a little time and practice, but based on how dedicated the humans are, I’m guessing it won’t take long for these dogs to stop jumping up on guests at the door.

To help the guardians remember all of the tips we shared in this in-home Santa Monica dog training session, we recorded a roadmap to success summary video that you can check out below.