.Phan. wrote:Hey so I have a question and maybe you guys can help me.
So my uncle adopted Bruce (I put images of him like way back) and he is a fairly big dog. I have a physical disability and I loose my balance. Now Bruce likes to jump and play. He has pushed me quite a few times and every time I go on the ground he starts to like lick me or even lay on me.
Sometimes when I'm standing he goes on his two back legs and he has scratched me badly down my neck and even down my eye (got a good scar from it..) arms ect. Now I can't exsactly push him off on my own. And if I fall I can't get up on my own without help or support of a chair ect.
Basically what I'm asking is how can I stop him from jumping on me? He is a guard dog for my uncles farm and nan and I go there to feed the animals ect and let him off for whatever he likes.. but I just can't manage a big dog like him. Can anyone help?
Honestly the best thing you can do is to tell your Aunt & Uncle your problem. Suggest that they train the dog not to jump up on people. Or if they won't train it then ask if they can keep it away from you so it can't jump on you.
If that won't work for your situation you could try training him yourself. I would recommend carrying some dog treats. You could throw some on the floor/ground in front of the dog before he pounces on you. Hopefully he'll be so distracted by the food he won't pounce on you. After he finishes and comes looking for more take another treat and try to lure him into a sit. If he sits he gets the treat, if he doesn't no treat. It may take awhile but eventually he should realize sitting gets him food and jumping gets him nothing. Once he gets the idea and starts offering the behavior start fading out the food replacing it with praise.
The downside to that is that he can still knock you over in an attempt to get to the food. It would really be best to have some help. I would try explaining to your Aunt & Uncle that you can be injured (you already have) and that this behavior is not only rude but dangerous. If he knocks over someone else they could be sued. Not everyone will understand that the dog is trying to be friendly and not attacking.
On the other hand you could also try using some dog repellent but your Aunt & Uncle may not like that and I wouldn't want the dog to associate you with something unpleasant. Right now he's just trying to be friendly but doesn't know he's being rude.
Above all do not reward his jumping. If he jumps ignore him. If you're petting him, stop; if you're playing with him, stop. Of course if everyone follows this rule he'll 'get it' a lot faster.
