How to Stop a Dog From Getting too Excited

For this Omaha dog training session we helped Rubble, a one-year-old Old Engligh Bulldog. His guardians set up this session to learn how to stop a dog from getting too excited.

When Rubble gets too excited, he has trouble listening. He also starts to chew and jumps on everyone, invading their space.

Rubble showed me his excitement right away when I got to the session. He also didn’t respect my personal space.

I did not try to engage with Rubble. I definitely did not pet him when he was too excited. Anything a dog is doing when you pet them is what they think you are rewarding. Petting an excited dog that jumps up and invades your space will make them do this more in the future.

With any dog, especially an excited one, you want to make sure you’re petting with a purpose.

When we moved into the living room, Rubble got all revved up again. In fact, he got even more excited than in the first video and had trouble controlling himself.

His guardians laughed and told me that was normal for him. Sadly, things had gotten so bad that the family’s kids were now avoiding him. They felt frustrated and annoyed.

I pulled out a chain leash and attached it to his collar before stepping on it about two feet away from where I clipped it on. I call this a leash time out and have found it to be an excellent way to disagree with over excited energy and behavior.

Tips to Stop a Dog From Getting too Excited

While the leash time out can help settle a dog down, it only works if the dog is NOT filled with too much unspent energy. While they are often perceived as lazy or fat dogs, Bulldogs are usually quite athletic and have good energy. Not as much as a lab or pointer, but enough that it can become a real pain if not dealt with properly.

I recommended that the guardians increase Rubble’s daily exercise and start a journal of these efforts. I have some clients who take a morning walk. Then, they play a game of fetch in the middle of the day. They also do what I call maintenance fetching a few times in the evening.

Fetch is a great way to burn off a dog’s energy as they get to run at full speed in pursuit mode which is a much better work out than a walk. Don’t get me wrong, a walk where the dog stays close is a good way to help it respect us as leaders.

Rubble really needs this. However, this type of walk is so slow that most dogs feel unsatisfied. They need more energy to burn.

If we don’t help the dog release their pent-up energy, we can’t be upset with them. We are not giving the dog what it needs to succeed.

The family should change their daily exercise activities. They should write them down in a journal. This will help them find the right mix. They want Rubble to show the behavior and energy they desire.

But while burning off Rubble’s excess energy is going to really help, it’s not going to solve the behavior problems. I spent an hour thinking of new ways for the humans to interact with the dog. We want to help him delay gratification. This will help him develop more control.

We also want to add structure to daily activities, like petting. This will help him see the humans as having more authority. In turn, he will treat them more respectfully instead of as playthings.

I also reviewed a list of consequences I created a few years ago. These help me respond to unwanted actions and behaviors. These are based on how dogs talk and interact with each other. Most dogs understand them right away.

To help the family practice, I guided them through a leadership exercise. This exercise asks the dog to ignore a tasty meat treat on the floor. The goal is for the dog to eventually give up trying to get the treat.

I ran through the exercise a few times until I knew Rubble understood what I wanted. Once that was the case, I coached all the members of the family though it until they had the same results.

It took time, patience, and determination. Eventually, even the youngest family member could run through the exercise with Rubble.

ROADMAP to SUCCESS

• Increase Rubble’s daily exercise while journaling the activities and results to find the right combination.
• Use the leash time out any time Rubble’s energy gets out of control (but first make sure his energy has been burned off).
• Pet Rubble with a purpose so he starts to identify as a follower who has to ask for attention instead of demanding it.
• Avoid petting Rubble any time he is in an over excited state of mind.
• Introduce rules and boundaries and enforce them consistently within 3 seconds to help Rubble learn what is and is not allowed.
• Use the escalating consequences to disagree when Rubble breaks a rule or boundary.
• Get into a habit of claiming everyone’s personal space and not pet Rubble when he gets too close without an invitation.
• Practicing claiming the door so Rubble learns to keep a respectable distance when guests arrive and not get over excited.
• Practice the Leadership exercise daily to help the humans get better at using the Escalating Consequences and Rubble learn to respect them.