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Health and Behavioral Problem Discussions |
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In this section, Dr. Dare Miller answers our customers' letters.
LETTER# 5:
DOG IS A JUMPING JACK
Dear Dr. Dare:
Our dog jumps on guests. He's a Shepherd eight months old and getting too big for that sort of thing. I've got to do something. He knocked a little girl down the other day. He's friendly and only wanted to lick her face. He didn't hurt her but it scared her to death. Well, that did it. My husband and I went out and got a book and tried to do as it said. The book said to "bring our knees up" sharply "kneeing" the dog in the chest when he jumped on us. Well, you should have seen it. Bruno thought this was the best game yet. Now he not only jumps on us but he takes a running start. It just doesn't work. He even gets us from behind. Don't tell me to step on his paws either even if I was a contortionist or had feet pointed that way. We tried that and now he dances too!
Outmaneuvered in Vancouver
Dear Outmaneuvered:
You should have started sooner. Puppies start sooner by standing on their hind legs and jumping on us because that is just the way we appear to them. They know that the action is up there where our faces are and they jump or stand up like us in order to get there. But don't give up, all's not lost. When first getting the puppy one should kneel down on the puppy's level once in a while then he won't have to jump so much. But now that your Shepherd is older, you should discourage all of your dog's jumping. You are right of course; trying to knee such a scrimmager as you describe Bruno only makes him worse. We should always remember that the psychology of the dog is to copy us and our actions. He simply does as you do, not as you say.
To get him back to normal you must counter his thought to jump a moment before he jumps up. How will you know this? Look for him to "haunch" his hind legs under him as he starts to jump up. This is the ideal time to distract him. Use your DOG-MASTER® instrument and drop it at your dog's feet just as he starts to jump up. It works!
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