Hi i know from one problem to another!! anyway i as you already know have a staffy bitch  2yrs now and from a pup she has jumped at people to say hello. I/we tried all the training methods i.e turn your back etc and yes it works with us only::rolleyes: try asking a stranger to do it outside and all i get as a reply is oh she ok some people will listen to me others wont now when she off lead in the park full of mud its emarrasing to say the least, as she runs up all happy to say hello to someone taking a cut through to work in their best suit she just thinks everyoneis her friend and as you all know not everyone loves dogs so i am stuck with this jumpy hyper friendly staffy who when some see a staffy especially, running toward them they panic and i am going to get shouted at one day by someone who is very angry at me and my dog any help would be fantastic

Hi, my Staffie bitch is now 4 years old and although she can still be very hyper (as alot of Staffies can be!) she has calmed down alot.  I also had the same problem when she was younger with jumping up at people.  Out on walks she would aim and jump and hit them really hard, then jump around licking them!!  People that know her would say 'oh don't worry, she's lovely' but it didn't help me training her.  I would ask them to keep turning their back to her and if I saw anyone coming I would put her on her lead and walk her to them and she would only get stroked if she sat still.  Over time she really improved and now knows the word 'off' extremely well!  At 4 years old she still needs reminding not to jump up but with 5 other big breeds at home I think she tries to make herself as big as them!!  And where the 4 years went i'll never know!!!

My daughter walks a six month old staffy bitch and she is the most friendliest dog I have ever come across. She also wants to greet everyone she sees! I will pass on the advice about turning your back on her to stop this jumping up at people.

A jif lemon (emptied of lemon juice) and filled with water is good to have to hand on walks and when people are visiting, just a spray makes my very bouncy dog stop what he is doing and makes him wonder where that water came from :D   I know it can't always be used off lead but it may help on lead and in the home!

I will try the jif lemon idea thanks all

happygirlie - are you sure you don't have my dog?  Everything you describe I can relate to.  my staffy doesn't even show signs that she is going to jump.  one second she is standing still next she is eye level with adults - like tigger.  My way of coping with it is to put her on the lead if she has been playing and we spot people as she is more likely to do it when hyper.

At last someone to relate to i definately have my own dog at least thats when i want her to be (lol) when she is a good girl (not very often) always up to no good lovable with it of course

The water spray is a good idea, however you can end up spraying the person she is juming up at too.

Another way is to take her back legs away with your foot.  You are not grabbing at her that way, just slide your foot infront of her back legs and take them back, her front feet have to go to the floor then.

Remember she's doing this because she thinks it's the right thing to do - she needs guidance and training from you.The training can be reward based which IMO works best, as you are training her what TO do, not what not to do :)

Make yourself very interesting on walks, use toys, food, do training with her on walks and after a while she will be tuned in to you more. If she does run and jump at strangers, you are in danger of her scaring them as you already know and this is against the law (DDA).

I'd teach her some useful commands such as Sit or Down at a distance - you will need good rewards for this and help to show you how (see www.apdt.co.uk ).

Basically it's not so much a matter of teaching her not to jump up, as a matter of gainng more control generally :)

If you are concerned use a harness and long line on her - you need to be so careful esp. these days.

Lindsayi
x

It will have to be a long lineim afraid as i have done all the training i.e down a a distance treats and everything you learn at classes but if there is someone or a dog over the way i have no chance nothing and i mean nothing interests her more than what or who is over there i could throw myself on thefloor yellng ina happy voice shaking treats squeaking toys but no she doesnt care what i am doing this is the biggest problem i have with her i cannot find anything to keep her interested in me and get her to ignoredogs especially  but hey thanks though

SNAP
Exactly like my (1 next week) golden retriever - used to be great at recall but not anymore :rolleyes:

Personally, I wouldn't squirt water at her.

She's jumping up because she likes people, thinks they are good news and wants to be their friend. If you start making it unpleasant for her, she might not learn that jumping up is bad news, but that other people are bad news.

A friendly dog is much easier to deal with than one who is frightened or wants to keep people away.

With other people, the trick I pass on in my classes is to tell strangers the dog has a back problem and jumping up will make it worse in the long run. Works a treat :D

Good idea :)

The nice thing about staffies is that they are actually great dogs to train - just look at little Cookie on The Underdogs!

My advice (again, sorry! :P ) is to invest in learning how to train her well and have fun with her.

There's quite  a good book out by Haynes the car people, written by Carolyn Menteith about how to train your dog and also have fun. It's got good piccies in and
loads of good info. Might be just what you're after to help?

Lindsay
x