I've got a full blown adolescent on my hands- jump jump jump!!

4797 Views 15 Replies 5 Participants Last post by goldhaven, Oct 1, 2009

Doodle

Discussion Starter · Sep 30, 2009

Well, Brady has officially become the "typical" golden adolescent. He tests his limits in general, but the biggest problem is he has started jumping on people again. We are re-inforcing and practicing our training, but he is just so excitable and happy to see people that our success is hit or miss. If you wouldn't mind sharing any tricks or techniques you have for combatting jumping in an adolescent I'd really appreciate it! Thanks!

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tippykayak

· #2 · Sep 30, 2009

Make sure he's never reinforced for jumping. A lot of the time, a friendly person will pet a dog who jumps or otherwise interact. Those positive experiences can make it hard for the dog to understand that jumping isn't fun.

What technique are you using? We use the "statue" trick, where you become boring and face the wall when the dog jumps. When he sits or otherwise behaves, we come back to life and play. Timing is crucial, as is getting all guests to do the same thing. Facing the wall is also helpful.

Also, have all guests ignore the dog for the first 5-10 minutes, until he settles down on his own. Goldens are so people-oriented that they learn to get overexcited by company. It also helps if you ignore them for the first 5 minutes you're home too, so comings and goings don't get too exciting.

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Doodle

Discussion Starter · #3 · Sep 30, 2009

As a young pup we used Victoria Stillwell's technique of removing him from the room if he jumped (you jump, you can't be in the room with the guests) for a minute or two, like a time out. This worked well as a pup, but not so well now. The problem I see with this technique is it puts the responsibility of control on me, not on him where it should be. He doesn't jump on me or my husband or family he sees all the time. It's everyone else, and I'm sure you know it's very hard to get others to do what you do. I'm constantly hearing "oh I don't mind if he jumps" and I say " but I do." That's another part of the problem.

goldhaven

· #4 · Sep 30, 2009

Doodle said:
He doesn't jump on me or my husband or family he sees all the time. It's everyone else, and I'm sure you know it's very hard to get others to do what you do. I'm constantly hearing "oh I don't mind if he jumps" and I say " but I do." That's another part of the problem.

That is a huge part of the problem. No matter how many times I tell guests to ignore the dogs, I have a SIL that comes in saying in a high pitched voice, "wheres my babies". I won't answer the door until I have them under control and calm and as soon as she enters, all control goes out the window. She would have all 6 of them in her lap if they would fit. Now, every time I know she is coming, I put the dogs outside. I only invite people in that will help with the training, not hurt it. Most people are great and love to "help" with the training. My only problem is SIL. Now she doesn't even get to see them. It seem like if I let her continue to do this, that one instance sets me way back in training. I think it is very confusing for the dogs if they are "allowed" to jump on some people and not others. It is like 1 step forward and 3 steps back.
I have a sign on my door that says, "Dogs in training. If you do not have an appointment, please do not ring the bell. We don't answer the door for unexpected guests". This has cut down on just about all solicitations and gives me the opportunity to prepare the dogs when I know someone is coming.

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Doodle

Discussion Starter · #5 · Sep 30, 2009

Well I'm glad to hear it's not just me....I have a sign up too that tells people to take a step back from Brady and turn away if he jumps...don't continue to pet him! I hate to tell you how many people still ignore this. Sign? What sign? Grrrrrr....

tippykayak

· #6 · Sep 30, 2009

Yeah, I'd only let the dog greet people who are on board with your training plan, at least at this point. If every time he jumps, the person turns, faces the wall, folds her arms, and becomes incredibly boring, you'll have removed the reinforcement. Every time he's reinforced for greeting, you'll need to have a guest who does it "your way" about ten times in order to undo the damage.

Doodle

Discussion Starter · #7 · Oct 1, 2009

tippykayak said:
Every time he's reinforced for greeting, you'll need to have a guest who does it "your way" about ten times in order to undo the damage.

That's exactly what's happening!!!! I'll just have to insist that people follow the rules and I'll probably tick some people off...oh well. I love your new atavar picture, by the way.

Oaklys Dad

· #8 · Oct 1, 2009

My guys are still very bad. I try to teach people the same technique Tippy described but unfortunetly I can't train everyone they meet quickly enough. Just tonight, while on our walk a young kid came running to his front yard and wanted to pet my guys. I told the kid to give me a second to settle my boys down and make them sit but the kid started jumping up and down and so did Caue and Oakly :doh: I finally gave Oakly a little leash leeway and the kid got to pet Oakly.

Doodle

Discussion Starter · #9 · Oct 1, 2009

Oaklys Dad said:
I try to teach people the same technique Tippy described but unfortunetly I can't train everyone they meet quickly enough.

That is so true. You're out walking and all of a sudden someone's there in front of you and before you can start to explain they're already petting him.
Well, I have some good news to report now. We had someone at our house tonight to do our annual furnace/AC maintenance. Brady approached him and was very well behaved. He ran off and got a toy to present to the man, danced around him a bit while he talked to us, but he never jumped or acted inappropriately. And when I called him away so the man could work, he came right away and sat with me. Yesterday he was a juvenile delinquent, today, a perfect gentleman. Oh the joys of adolescence!!!

Oaklys Dad

· #10 · Oct 1, 2009

I find my guys only jump on certain people and I can't quite figure out the exact thing that triggers them. For some reason they are more likely to jump on non dog people than dog people. (I wish it was the opposite)

Doodle

Discussion Starter · #11 · Oct 1, 2009

Oaklys Dad said:
I find my guys only jump on certain people and I can't quite figure out the exact thing that triggers them. For some reason they are more likely to jump on non dog people than dog people. (I wish it was the opposite)

That's interesting. Brady is the opposite. He smells other dogs on people and gets out-of-control excited. Maybe your guys are trying to convert the non-dog people.

2Retrievers222

· #12 · Oct 1, 2009

I had trouble with Logan like that it was almost if someone came from behind with two hands shoved you in the back, he put his whole body into hitting you with chest when he was 90lbs.

I tried ignoring him squeezing paws the knee up kept doing it

after getting a face full of teeth I waited until his next leap and on his way up I pulled down on his scuff putting him to the ground yelling no loud

its worked

tippykayak

· #13 · Oct 1, 2009

Doodle said:
That's exactly what's happening!!!! I'll just have to insist that people follow the rules and I'll probably tick some people off...oh well. I love your new atavar picture, by the way.

Hey, thanks! I was startled when the dogs posed themselves in a picture that would look perfect when cropped as a square.

As far as guests, I try to talk to them in advance with a sort of "help me do some advanced dog training" angle. You want your dog to be eligible to be a therapy dog someday, or be a canine ambassador for the breed, or some other advanced situation in which impeccable manners are an absolute necessity. Whether you actually do any of that down the road or not is up to you, but try to convince your potential guest that they need to help you train a serious working animal.

That way, you don't have to yell at them, and they'll feel like a jerk if they don't help.

tippykayak

· #14 · Oct 1, 2009

Doodle said:
That is so true. You're out walking and all of a sudden someone's there in front of you and before you can start to explain they're already petting him.

I have this same problem. I usually give up on trying to manage those situations and try to set up a dozen controlled practice situations in order to make up for it.

tippykayak

· #15 · Oct 1, 2009

Oaklys Dad said:
I find my guys only jump on certain people and I can't quite figure out the exact thing that triggers them. For some reason they are more likely to jump on non dog people than dog people. (I wish it was the opposite)

I've seen this a bunch, and my theory is that dog people often lean in towards the dog, which in dog body language can tell the dog "slow down" or "I'm coming to you."

Scared people tend to lean back and put their arms up, which seems to say to a dog, "come chase me," "jump on me," or "let's play."

Try imitating the body language of a scared person with your pup and train him that it means "sit." When I throw my hands up and yelp, my dogs know to sit. It's a command cue now, so when the neighborhood girl does it, they sit expectantly. It's adorable.

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goldhaven

· #16 · Oct 1, 2009

tippykayak said:
I've seen this a bunch, and my theory is that dog people often lean in towards the dog, which in dog body language can tell the dog "slow down" or "I'm coming to you."

Scared people tend to lean back and put their arms up, which seems to say to a dog, "come chase me," "jump on me," or "let's play."

Try imitating the body language of a scared person with your pup and train him that it means "sit." When I throw my hands up and yelp, my dogs know to sit. It's a command cue now, so when the neighborhood girl does it, they sit expectantly. It's adorable.

It is easier to train the dogs than it is to train the humans

:
Thanks for that tip

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