October 6, 2022, 12:11 pm | Read time: 5 minutes

Joyful jumping can become problematic depending on the size of the dog. People may feel intimidated or simply annoyed—but it doesn’t have to be that way. At the PETBOOK Dog School with dog trainer Verena Backhaus, owners learn essential basics of dog training and how to solve common issues. This time: How to train your dog not to jump.

The good news first: Learned behavior in dogs, such as jumping up, can usually be unlearned. Important: Neither verbal nor physical violence leads to success in solution-oriented training. Here’s how to do it right.

Reasons for Dogs Jumping Up Are Varied

Jumping up is not always an expression of overwhelming joy in dogs. The reasons can be varied. 

The Dog Seeks Attention

Even as puppies, dogs learn, like toddlers, that they only need to beg long enough to get the attention they want. This need can be satisfied in the form of food, petting, or play. The puppy or young dog remembers this “success” and continues this strategy as an adult dog.

Primal Instincts

In the dog world, the higher-ranking animal is greeted or appeased by licking its lips. That’s why many dogs, after jumping up, give a hearty lick to a person’s face. Perhaps the dog also wants to clarify the hierarchy? Then jumping up is more of a “bump,” meaning: “I’m the boss here.” This dominance behavior should be immediately and consistently stopped.

Jumping Up in Dogs Due to Fear

Just as small children hide behind their parents, a dog may seek refuge with its owners in the face of danger. If it’s a small dog, many people automatically pick it up to protect it, for example, from an aggressive, larger dog.

Other Causes

With a young dog, lack of physical or mental stimulation can trigger the unwanted behavior. Jealousy, when a baby or another pet joins the family, can also be a reason.

Also interesting: PETBOOK Dog School–teaching your dog to sit

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Guide: How to Train Your Dog Not to Jump Up

You can also find the following guide in the video above.

Exercise: Teaching the Dog to Stay Down

If we want to teach the dog to stay down, training with treats is a good option:

1. Place a treat in front of the dog and let it eat it immediately. Repeat this process twice.
2. Increase the exercise by holding the treat up and moving it in the air, then quickly bring it back down and place the treat at the dog’s feet so it can eat it. Repeat twice. This way, the dog first learns that the treat is always on the ground.
3. Further increase the exercise by moving the treat more in the air, even raising both arms, and using your voice to lure. But always give the treat only on the ground–this way, the dog learns despite distractions that it’s wise to stay down.

Important: If the dog jumps up during this exercise, lower your arm, don’t look at the dog, and wait until all four paws are back on the ground. Count to three internally. Only when the dog stays down, raise the treat again and place it in front of the dog. Repeat this training frequently. Do not unnecessarily prolong the individual exercises until the dog makes a mistake.

In parallel, you can start training the dog not to jump up in specific situations. For example, when you come home and the dog wants to jump up in excitement:

1. Instead of ignoring the dog, immediately place a treat in front of it when it runs up. The dog realizes it doesn’t have to vie for attention. It gets it, but down below.
2. You can repeat this exercise more frequently at first, but eventually, you can phase it out.

Also interesting: PETBOOK Dog School–how to teach your dog the “Off” command

Include Visitors the Dog Jumps On

To ensure the dog doesn’t jump on visitors at home, it’s best to enlist one or two friends or relatives to help with the training. Here’s how:

1. When the visitor comes in, they make an upward motion with their arms (see basic exercise above), but without a treat in hand. The dog owner places treats for the dog on the ground, directly in front of the visitors’ feet.
2. Repeat this exercise with every visit. Once you notice the dog expects the treats at the visitors’ feet, you can move to the next step:
3. During the next visit, don’t place the treat down, but hold it in front of the dog’s nose and lure it away from the visitors. This way, the dog gradually learns to hold back a bit when visitors arrive.