While some house holds are accepting and desire a dog jumping on them, it isn’t suitable or desired by all households. Its okay if you wish your dog to jump up but for the people who don’t, this is for you.
A dog is jumping up because:
They are excited to see you
They want to get as close as possible
They don’t know and haven’t been taught to do otherwise
To address this we use the method called Awkward Aunty.
You know that family BBQ you go to and there’s that Aunt you always avoid because she is so embarrassing and uncomfortable to be around? She hugs you for to long, wiping her lipstick on your face when she kisses you and brings up that embarrassing story. You avoid her right? Steer clear!!! You’d rather be elsewhere. That’s what we are going to do to our dogs when they jump up.
If jumping up is so awkward and uncomfortable, the dog will not desire to be up on you.
Now I’m not saying your dog can’t be excited to see you, he has been waiting all day, which is forever for them. And I’m sure you missed him too!
So we are also going to add the 4 Paw On The Floor rule to the Awkward Aunty game. This is where we can reward our dog with food, love and pets, so long as all 4 feet are touching the ground.
So how do you do this?
When your dog jumps up, grab his forearms (Please be careful not to tip your dog over! We don’t want him falling over and hurting himself. So brace yourself to hold him up or bend down if Fido is small)
Hold onto him for long enough and he’ll want to get away
He will start to pull away
Hold him up with you for long enough for him to become uncomfortable
Then let him go (In a safe manner!)
Once all 4 paws are on the floor, he can be loved on and fed
Encourage him to jump & repeat untill he learns, just because some one encouraged him to do it, doesn’t mean it’s the right choice
Give clear instructions to friends & family members on what to do if he jumps on them
Repeat, repeat, repeat until he is clear to steer away from Awkward Aunty and much rather be greeted with All 4 Paws On The Floor