Doodle Jumping

[DJ]

I am loving my Winton, but some who visit me are startled by his joy at seeing them.

He will jump straight up on their front.. I have read that the "people" should fold their

arms and turn away, but this is harder to get THEM to do than train my doodle!

Any one had this problem and solved it?

 

[Natasha]

We did the following - and, yes, we had to practice it.

1) Placed a pillow in a spot about 6 feet away from the door where he could see people coming through the door but was too far away to lunge at them.

2) Taught him to "go to your pillow" by saying the phrase then leading him there with a piece of chicken then telling him down and treating. Repeated 5 times a day for several days until he was doing this step consistently.

3) DH went to the front door (on the outside) and knocked and then I told Rouser "go to your pillow." Repeated this step multiple times per day until he would get right up, go to his pillow, and lay down.

4) DH went to the front door (on the outside) and rang the doorbell and I directed Rouser to go to his pillow and stay. Repeated this step multiple times per day until he would run to his pillow and lay down.

NOTE - we have not yet opened the door. We're just knocking and ringing the bell. And he's getting lots of high value treats throughout this whole process.

5) This time, DH rang the bell and I opened the door and I repeatedly said "stay" and gave him treats with the door open and DH still outside. We repeated this for several days and I increased the duration of his stay over time. Also, in the beginning, I would have DH open the door himself so I could stay right there next to Rouser and say "stay" and feed him treats. Over time I would distance myself from Rouser - first just standing up and blocking him, then taking a step 1 foot away, then two feet away, etc. Until I could get to the door, open it myself, and I could count on Rouser staying in a down stay.

NOTE: Step 5 is the most important step. If he starts getting up when you are two feet away - go back to being one foot away. Don't try to build too quickly. Depending upon your dog, this step may take a long time to get past but it is really worth it to stick to it.

Step 6: Repeat step 5 but DH would come in the house, close the door, approach Rouser and treat him and then release him. This was the toughest step for Rouser as he LOVES my husband and he would try to get up as soon as my DH came toward him.

Step 7: We did this same exercise when my husband had been at work all day as that is when Rouser is the most excited. That was a BIG exercise in patience for all of us, but he got this pretty quickly.

Step 8: Invite a friend over (preferably one who has dogs and, therefore, understands) and let them know before they get there exactly what you want them to do: Ring the bell, wait patiently while you get your dog in a solid down stay and have treated him a few times (he's going to be excited because he can smell your friend). When you open the door, your friend should remain outside, calmly not looking at the dog. If you can, have a partner inside helping you by staying close to the dog and just treating him over and over while repeating stay. If all is going well, greet your friend with a hug, pass her a treat, and invite her inside. Let them go over and get down on his level, treat the dog and maybe give him a good belly rub so that he has a chance to smell your friend in a calm manner. Then everyone can proceed into the house with your friend in front of you. If you think your dog might still try to jump up, PLEASE put him on a leash and keep him calm and away from your friend until he can approach your friend calmly. If things don't go well, just ask your friend to go outside and repeat until your dog is successful.

I promise you this works. Whenever the doorbell rings, Rouser runs to find one of us and then immediately runs to his pillow. We don't have to say anything. Rouser still crowds people a little bit once he's released, so we take responsibility for ushering our guests in front of us and then blocking Rouser to keep him from getting under foot. I also have a toy or a chew stick handy so that I can distract him.

The goal is to give your dog something to do when the doorbell rings. He needs a routine that will help him focus and remain calm. You need to remain calm as well and you need to direct your dog. He should not be off leash at any time until he can demonstrate that he will stay off of your guests and be calm.

[Deb Stanton]

I saw basically the same thing you described above on an episode of "It's Me or the Dog", and that's exactly the way the trainer had a couple break their dog of going balistic when the doorbell rang. It's what I'm working up to with Wakefield. I'm just going slowly until I can get someone down to work with me on this. Once I've got him obeying the commands without hesitation he should be good to go. I know it's going to be a long, timeconsuming process, but will be worth it :)

[Debbie Penny]

Both my doodles are kennel trained, when some one comes, I have them kennel in before I open the door, this way they are contained, ignored, and when have settled they are permitted out. It helps a lot, and neither jump on guests. Their kennels are both located in the kitchen nr the back door, and they are also trained to kennel in on entry to the house after being out back. Saves for a lot of mess of paws through out with the spring wetness. All the best.

[Natasha]

That's a great idea Debbie.

I know that we all love our dogs, but jumping is just not ok. For one, it's dangerous (aside from being annoying). Second, it's better to keep your dog calm than to let him or her get overly excited. To humans, excitement is fun and we think it means that our dogs are happy. But consider, too, that it is also an expression of stress.

The kennel is a great way for them to settle down, get to smell the person and become familiar with them being in the house, and then socialize when they are calm.

[Holly Doodle]

We also kennel Holly when we have guests coming over. We keep her in there 5-10 min until she's calmed down and has gotten used to the new voices and scents, and then we let her out. It's worked wonders! As far as jumping on people in general, we took an obedience class at Petsmart where we walked around the store and the workers would approach. When she jumped on them they ignored her, and as soon as her butt was on the floor they would give a ton of praise and treats. We reinforced it at home, and she now very rarely jumps on anyone. It's something you could try at home with a few friends and family. I think the most important thing is to be consistent with whichever method you choose :).

[Debbie and Thomas]

I worked very hard with my doodle to stop him from jumping up. Guess what...he NEVER jumps up on me.....BUT he jumps up on everyone else!! As usual, no one listens to me around here. Most people don't seem to mind but if company comes we hold him until the "greetings" are over. If they go and sit on the couch though he goes and curls up with them!

[Nugget's Family]

I completely agree with Natasha. We have worked on the same system. We use a small rug as Nugget's "go to" place. We did the same exact system as Natasha and were relentless with it for about a week. We invited friends over for coffee/dinner just so we could practice it. Funny....they didn't seem to mind practicing! :-)

She is doing well with this now. Well, unless it's my dad coming over...she goes absolutely crazy when he comes over. He loves every minute of it though, so we just look the other way!