[rocker98]

Hi everyone,

I'm new to the forum and thought maybe getting some input from other people might help me find a solution for a problem I'm having.

With everything going on in the world a senior neighbor of mine was looking for help walking her German Shepard x Rottweiler rescue, and since we live in the same building I figured I could help (of course practicing social distancing, PPE and sanitary procedure). The dog is a rescue, been with her new owner for just about 2 months, is 1-2 years old but the history of her is unknown. I've been teaching the dog to heel, do basic commands (sit, stay, wait, lie down, leave it) all with positive reinforcement and treats, but the biggest issue I'm having is her jumping.

When on a walk there have been times when I have stopped to look at my phone or fix my hair and out of nowhere she'll jump up at me. I've tried to play with her outside with tug of war (gently), and if I throw the toy away she'll run for it, leave it and come charging back at me and jump. I've done "ah ah" as a vocal for "I don't like this", turned my back with my arms crossed and waited for her to calm down, but the behavior repeats itself no matter how I try to correct it. She's left a bruise from her teeth from jumping at me, and strained my arm from the force of her jump. Once she jumped at me and I actually squealed in an attempt for her to hear she was hurting me, but she jumped on me right after with no hesitation. This was during training and not playing.

I own a Boxer x Mastiff who's 5 years old now, energetic, and I figured I could help my neighbor with a young energetic dog since I have experience. I've never had experiences like this training my own dog, my dog has never injured me, and I wonder if perhaps the previous owners tried training this rescue to be an attack dog, but I'm not sure if that theory is too far-fetched. Has anyone else had issues like this when trying to teach a dog not to jump up?

As of now I am just walking with the dog and no longer trying to incorporate play since it just results with me getting some kind of injury or stress. I'm not a dog trainer, just someone trying to help another person out, but I feel like this dog may need a professional and experienced trainer/walker. Any thoughts or feedback is greatly appreciated!

 

[JoanneF]

One of the things that is really hard in dog training is to ”not do” something. Like, if I said to you, do NOT think of a green and candy pink striped elephant - what comes to mind?

So instead, can you ask for a different but incompatible behaviour. Like a sit, or a spin, or a nose bop - anything really that she cannot do while also jumping. It does mean she will need you to focus though - you may need to pocket your phone or forget your hair ...

 

[rocker98]

One of the things that is really hard in dog training is to ”not do” something. Like, if I said to you, do NOT think of a green and candy pink striped elephant - what comes to mind?

So instead, can you ask for a different but incompatible behaviour. Like a sit, or a spin, or a nose bop - anything really that she cannot do while also jumping. It does mean she will need you to focus though - you may need to pocket your phone or forget your hair ...

That's very true, and a good analogy. But when the dog is jumping up unprovoked, is there anything else I can do to teach her it's an unacceptable behaviour? Fixing a ponytail or skipping a song playing on my phone is losing focus from the dog, for a very brief moment or a few seconds, but I believe there has to be a way to teach this dog in a positive manner that jumping in general is unacceptable, and the methods I've used don't seem to be working with this pooch.

 

[JoanneF]

Yes. As soon as she starts to approach with that ”I'm going to jump” look, you immediately ask for the sit. For a few weeks it means you have to be focused on her, not on something else. But it's her walk, her session outside. And what you put into it now will be well worth it in the long run.

 

[rocker98]

Yes. As soon as she starts to approach with that ”I'm going to jump” look, you immediately ask for the sit. For a few weeks it means you have to be focused on her, not on something else. But it's her walk, her session outside. And what you put into it now will be well worth it in the long run.

Ah! This makes more sense; thank you for the clarification! I will give this type of training a try. I'm not familiar with this method, so I have another question. Since I'll be watching for that look and commanding a sit instead, is this designed to "distract" her with a command rather than her act on impulse of a jump, or is designed that over time she won't have the urge/impulse to jump?