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Original poster

dog jumping up

70 replies

oxocube · 21/09/2010 12:45

I'm sorry if this topic has been done to death but could anyone advise me on what to do with my goldie who is 7 months and keeps jumping up at strangers in the woods. I KNOW I should have sorted this by now but I guess its the age old scenario - what is cute in a 10 week pup is not cute in a 23 kg adolescent who has just jumped out of the lake and is covered in mud!

So, I've accepted that this is my problem and not my dog's, everyone in the house is now following the same rule of fold arms and turn away and give no attention until she is sitting down, and I've asked the kids to let their friends know that this is what they must do rather than make a fuss of her but what about when she is out and off the lead? TBH, this is when the main problem occurs as she is so excited to meet everyone. She seems to forget all her training and refuses to come back until she has 'greeted' the stranger.

If I notice anyone before she does, I distract her or call her back to me and put her on the lead until trouble has past but this won't solve the problem. Is is something she will outgrow as she matures? Can I use clicker and treat to stop her jumping and if so how? In all other respects, she is adorable.

Thanks for any help

OP posts:

Bella32 · 21/09/2010 12:51

What I do, oxo (maybe not textbook, but hey ) is to recall my dogs with a lovely big smelly treat when we see somebody coming. I then make them sit and wait for the treat while the people pass. Has worked brilliantly, despite well-meaning walkers who go up and greet your dogs saying 'But I don't mind' - I always answer 'Yes, but some people get really cross'

Was actually complimented on how 'obedient' my dogs were the other day. Blow me

HTH

Original poster

oxocube · 21/09/2010 12:58

Thanks for the quick reply Bella. When I walk Phoebe this afternoon, I'll try that. She is very partial to hotdogs! Its amazing how all the tricks, the training, the clicker stuff we did, just goes straight out the window sometimes .

I am also trying to teach her things she knows and does consistently at home and when we are alone (such as 'stay' and 'wait') in different/public situations to avoid the jumping but she seems to revert to puppy behaviour as soon as she sees a new 'playmate'

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Original poster

oxocube · 21/09/2010 13:00

Bella, do you put your dogs on the lead while they wait until people pass then get their treat or do you not need to do this?

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Bella32 · 21/09/2010 13:03

Negative, oxo. No lead involved. Large smelly piece of sausage dangled in front of their nose instead

Do you teach 'wait' or 'leave'?

Original poster

oxocube · 21/09/2010 13:18

Ah, now there's a question! When we are playing a game eg I have something she wants such as a treat, a stick, I ask her to sit, then to lie down and to 'stay'. She's actually pretty good at this and can stay about 30 seconds or so! When I get her out of the car and need to put on her lead, I ask her to 'wait'. I don't think I've used 'leave it' unless she is trying to eat poo .

Typing this, I can see why the poor dog might be confused Should I introduce 'leave' when she is about to jump up do you think? Or just try the juicy sausage?

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Bella32 · 21/09/2010 13:23

Ah - now there's a question

I recall, but I do use 'leave it' if they're showing interest in the other people/dogs. And heaps of praise when they come back. Then I make them wait for the sausage.

You won't get it 100% straight off, but if you're consistent then one day she will come straight back to you and wait obediently. Honest. They then actually start to anticipate, and will turn and head back to you wehen they spot someone, knowing that there's a sausage in it for them

Original poster

oxocube · 21/09/2010 13:30

Cheers Bella! You're a star. Will let you know how it goes this afternoon

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Bella32 · 21/09/2010 13:47

You're welcome. Hope it works now

midori1999 · 21/09/2010 22:16

Echo what Bella has said.

Also, I would get her to meet people whilst she is on the lead, so you can have complete control over her. If people want to say Hello, give them clear instructions on how they must do it. It's not helped by the fact that well meaning strangers often say they don't mind and actually, they don't, so they therefore encourage your dog to jump up. Even my extremely well behaved girls, who have no intention of jumping up will think about it if someone waves their arms around enough and other peope are the route of all evil where dog training is concerned, IMO. If only we could train the general public, the dogs would be fine...

Bella32 · 21/09/2010 22:36

Yes, exactly Midori

Nearly started a thread once entitled 'Bloody walkers!' but feared it might have descended into a bunfight

midori1999 · 21/09/2010 22:55

Go on, I dare you...

Bella32 · 21/09/2010 23:05

Ha ha - I knew you would! Was going to put it in Chat as well, for maximum exposure

Might just do it one of these days - if another troop of ramblers insist in wrecking all my hard work again

Original poster

oxocube · 23/09/2010 19:35

Well all was pretty good (she is SUCH a greedy dog!) until the last 5 minutes of the walk when she spotted a small child and her mum and bounded over twds them . I didn't spot them in time and the mum was obviously (and justifiably) scared/ cautious and lifted up her child, very unimpressed.

Am still working on it. Using the lead more than usual and really working on all the turning away/ positive reward stuff. Its a long process I fear as everything I've read here confirms that labs and retrievers are especially prone to jumping up

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midori1999 · 23/09/2010 21:11

I really don't find retirevers are any more prone to jumping up than any other dog. In fact, our staff x is like he is on a pogo stick sometimes. (especially at the back door when I shut them out to clean the kitchen floor!)

If your recall isn't 100% I would keep her on a longline until it is. I know she's a puppy and these things can't be helped, but it's not very nice for someone to have a strange dog bounding over to them. I adore dogs and understand that puppies are puppies, but I would be really annoyed if I was walking my dogs and someone let their dog run over to me. Sorry.

Original poster

oxocube · 24/09/2010 17:03

midori, please don't apologise. I asked for advice and I know you are right. Its NOT acceptable for a dog to behave like this and I need to put it right. Thanks for posting

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Blondeshavemorefun · 26/09/2010 21:38

knew bella would advise and also knew she would use hot dogs

Original poster

oxocube · 27/09/2010 07:24

Today I'm using bits of chicken left over from last night's dinner .

Doing lots of work on recall (with bribes/treats/toys) when there is nobody in sight but still, the minute she spots someone else, she is off! As a result, she is on the lead a lot more than usual until I crack this

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Bella32 · 27/09/2010 07:28

Hang in there, oxo - you'll sort it.

Yes, roast chicken even trumps hot dogs in our house. Though it's far too good for the dc

Bella32 · 27/09/2010 07:29

Rundown ?

What are spellcheckers on?????

ShinyAndNew · 27/09/2010 07:40

I might be one of those walkers. I love dogs greeting me. Having one of my own though, I am sensible enough not to approach dogs who are clearly under control, but if one comes bounding towards me it's greeted by me.

And roast chicken I have discovered is the only thing my dog will recall with. He now gets his own chicken bought

anonymousbird · 27/09/2010 07:42

Oxo, my lab didn't so much do the jumping (DH responsible for sorting that - sorry, not entirely sure of his techique!) after the first couple of months, but for ages and ages did the whole running off to "greet" nearly knock people over thing to great embarrassment.... I used to hold her with me with a treat always at the ready, to start with on a lead, to teach her she couldn't go and it was worth staying.... she sussed it pretty fast. So have progressed, mostly, to not needing a lead.

Now and for a while (she is 2) she has been pretty good. Occasionally she cannot quite hold the control (sigh) but mostly she can. She is better for DH than for me. With him she wouldn't dare!

anonymousbird · 27/09/2010 07:57

And lots and lots and lots of arranged meeting people, ie. in a normal non walking situation. Just so people become a little less interesting and she won't feel the need to go and say hello to every single one she sees.

I completely sympathise, ours was so similar for quite a long time (months certainly).

Have just had a flashback to us stopping the jumping. Our trainer told us simply to ignore and turn our back on her until she sat. It worked. Doesn't sound like it will, I was seriously skeptical, but it really did work. Then treat and praise, treat and praise. Of course! I know you can't ask walkers to do this, but if you, family members and friends you see regularly can get in the habit, then it might help.

Even these days, when DH comes through the door, his habit is still to wait until she is sitting nicely next to him (she doesn't jump but still gets ridiculously uber excited every time he comes home). Now it takes a couple of seconds. In the past, it could take up to a minute of him just standing there, not even making eye contact until she got the message....

And I should add, that mine is a silly brown one, not a nice sensible black or gold one... so we start from a base of her being pretty much useless, your dog will probably pick all this up much quicker than ours.

Anyway, good luck, must dash, kids to dress! Will check in later. Have a good day!!!!

WynkenBlynkenandNod · 27/09/2010 08:15

Another one saying hang on there, it improves. Plog was an utter nightmare, I could barely keep her feet on the floor hanging onto lead and harness for dear life when we got her. As a result she wasn't able to go off lead for very long at the beginning.

We did what Bella said about sitting then treating and also leave it. She's hugely better now and more interested in other dogs than people and I trust her enough to not have to stick her back on lead if there are people with offlead dogs approaching. She is nearly 16 months now which probably isn't comforting but homestly it does go past quickly.

And she doesn't jump at visitors now. A friend came round the other day and couldn't get over how calm she had become in comparison and my neighbour has been commenting on how good she is. She was very bad though in the beginning and I honestly thought she would never improve.

To his great annoyance, the only person she jumps at is DH but that is because he cocked up and inadvertently reinforced jumping so his own fault!

Bella32 · 27/09/2010 08:52

Lol Wynken - my dh was also harder to train than the dogs

If you've got Jean Donaldson's Culture Clash, oxo, she gives lots of ideas for training recall with increasing distractions. But it still takes time. Remember to be extra vocal and incredibly excited when they do come back sharpish - even if passers by think you are a loon

Original poster

oxocube · 27/09/2010 09:04

oh this is so reassuring! Just back from the woods and the chicken was a good incentive. Wynken, she is much more interested in dogs than people and if I spy a walker with a dog, I'm not so worried as she always rushes to play with the dog and sometimes gives the owner a cursory sniff. Its when she sees walkers, runners with no dog that's the problem. Often, they don't like dogs and almost certainly don't want to have a filthy 8 month 23 kg retriever jumping up at them .

So lots of recall, lots of treats, lots of walking on the lead seems to be the order for the next few months. Anonbird, that's just what we are doing at home and she rarely jumps up at us now so it does work. Its outside that she seems to lose all sense of having ever seen a clicker/been given any sort of training!! I guess she is also a 'teenager' now and Gwen Bailey does say that this time often becomes difficult for dogs and owners alike.

Thanks for all the positive sories. I was beginning to feel like a bit of a failure as a dog owner

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