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The doghouse

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Original poster

dog jumping up at people on walks.

38 replies

miserablemoo · 04/01/2016 17:16

Hello

Any advice would be much appreciated Smile.

8 nearly 9 month old dog. His behaviour at the moment is really bad. The main problem at the moment is on walks he is jumping up at people. I know this is not on. Also his behaviour on the lead is another thread in itself.

I generally let him off but I am very vigilant and normally get him on his lead before he sees anyone or a dog. He is good with other dogs but is not getting to play with them because he will start jumping up on the people. Twice in the last two days I have been caught out and he has seen people before me and twice he was jumping up at them. I apologised. I am so embarrassed. I don't tell him off if he comes to me. He is food motivated so will eventually come for a biscuit but he's doing what he wants to do before he comes for a biscuit.

He is not neutered yet. Will this make any difference? He is very boisterous and to be totally honest he is constantly hard work and I know it's more down to me than him but at the moment there is no joy in being a dog owner Blush.

I suppose I'm asking if the only way I can deal with this is to constantly keep him on a lead? But then I have the problem of a dog that is not getting exercise and his behaviour in the house is destructive. I don't know how to tackle it at all.

Thank you.

OP posts:
Original poster
miserablemoo · 05/01/2016 10:56

Hi

I was thinking it's more a behavioural issue on walks but he is quite boisterous in general so was wondering if neutering calmed them down at all. I want to get him neutered anyway as I don't plan to breed from him at all and I do worry that if we were out and he caught a scent he'd be off no matter how hard I've trained him. He has other issues but don't want to start millions of threads about it as I'd drive everyone mad!

I took cubes of cheese and sausage this morning on our walk. He was far more focused on me than usual. I kept him on the lead for the majority of the walk. Let him off when I knew no one was around and i can see people coming and we practised recall. We saw a few dogs whilst he was on the lead and I tried to get him to sit and focus on the food instead of the other dogs and walkers and it kind of worked but know it's early days Grin

I'm off to Google long lines now. I have never seen anyone using one but l think it's the only safe way to train him.

OP posts:
Original poster
miserablemoo · 05/01/2016 12:00

Sorry me again. I have just been on 3 different vets websites and looking at the info they give about neutering and all of them say that it will calm a dog down. Especially if done before 12 months old. Is this true? I know if I had him neutered tomorrow all of a sudden his recall is not going to magically be 100% and it's training. In what way can neutering calm him down do you know? The doesn't actually say.

OP posts:
LilCamper · 05/01/2016 12:48

It's outdated rubbish Miserable. The current train of thought is to allow a dog to mature physically and emotionally. For a Lab sized dog this is around the 2 year mark.

Like I said above. Neutering will only deal with hormonally based issues. It won't calm down a naturally boisterous dog.

As for keeping his attention when other dogs are around, youtube 'Teaching the Look at That Game' by donna Hill.

Also, very important. NEVER attach a long line to a collar.Only ever use on a harness. A dog hitting the end of a line in a collar at speed can break their neck.

LilCamper · 05/01/2016 13:08

Neutering:What's Behaviour Got To Do With It?

Floralnomad · 05/01/2016 13:10

Just a thought but do you take toys out when you walk . My dog is ball obsessed ,they're his favourite thing in the world - he is not allowed balls at home they are purely for when we go out ( to maintain their appeal) . When we go out I always take at least 2 balls so if he has one I still have one to attract him with and because he is obsessed I can guarantee to attract his attention .

Branleuse · 05/01/2016 14:39

well anecdotally it has calmed every male dog down that ive ever known, so make your own choice about that. I think all responsible pet owners should get their animals spayed anyway, and theres a good chance that it will calm him down, but it wont stop him jumping up

Original poster
miserablemoo · 06/01/2016 10:37

Thanks lilc that's interesting reading. I asked one vet and she said it will help with hormone based behaviour. Luckily he is not humping or anything like that so I'm assuming his behaviour is not going to change much due to being neutered. They won't do it till dog is at least 9 months old and he isn't that yet.

Hi floral. I don't take a ball because it's all little paths and woods. He likes a ball but can give or take it when he's tired. I think he would ignore a ball for a person every time unfortunately. I took him to the huge field the other day to practise recall and play with the ball but as soon as he jumped up at the runner we left.

Last two walks have gone well. He ignored me once due to sniffing so he went straight back on lead. In the house he started jumping up at me and as soon as I folded my arms he sat down waiting for a treat so he knows!

Now kids are back at school and we are back to our routine he is settling down again. Still a long way to go but I see light at the end of the tunnel and I couldn't the other day so thank you.

OP posts:
Original poster
miserablemoo · 06/01/2016 10:39

Bran it's always been the plan to get him neutered but I was going to wait till he was about 1 years old. I won't be waiting now and will probably get it done when he's 9 months old instead. If it calms him down at all in any kind of way it's a bonus!

OP posts:
Floralnomad · 06/01/2016 14:48

I'm not sure you have said what type of dog he is but if he is a large breed you would be best waiting until he has finished growing before having him neutered , particularly if you are not having humping issues .

Original poster
miserablemoo · 06/01/2016 16:26

Hi.

No he's isn't a big breed. I'd say medium to be honest but he is big for his particular breed. Very leggy. Would you suggest to wait still? He has shown no signs of humping at all thankfully! I was thinking to get him done before he started humping so he doesn't get a taste for it! I read that's a hard habit to break once they start and with him being a bit bonkers in nearly every other aspect I didn't want another issue to be dealing with if that makes sense?

OP posts:
Floralnomad · 06/01/2016 21:51

I can only speak from my experience but my terrier was a nightmare humper from about 8/9 months and I had him done under a year old and it certainly stopped his humping .

mum1mum · 03/07/2019 20:03

Just a thought - that saying sorry to whoever your dog jumps up at goes a long way to quelling the situation and helps the person jumped up at feel better - hopefully.
I have been jumped up at and scratched by a dog on my bare legs - the owner shouted at me, refused to apologise and praised her dog. Upside down world!

Nesssie · 04/07/2019 16:21

With the long line, practice recall and running away.
Every so often use your recall word/whistle and then run away from him. He will chase you and you can then give him a treat.
Do it often enough and he will instantly start running towards you when you recall.
Then you can use it when you see other people/dogs. Hold one end of the long line, call him and run.

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