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Author Karianne Corwin, August 2018

A guide to keep your dog calm when people enter your home

Doorbell : *Ding dong*

Your Dog : WOOF ARF ARF BARK! WOOOOF Woof woof! ARF!

You : (cracking the door) Oh! Hi! Yes, uhm - come in! (pushing your dog back)

Your Guest : (Accepts your warm invitation and squeezes sideways through the crack in your door, holding their hands up defensively while your dog assaults them with enthusiasm)

You : (Addressing your dog) Down! GET DOWN! Down!

(Pulling fruitlessly on your dogs collar while you're senselessly yanked and jerked around)

You : He's fine he's friendly. He's just really excited. He loves people.

Your Guest : (smiling awkwardly while trying to protect their face and clothes) Oh. That's fine. I love dogs!

(...awkward silence fills the room...)

Does this sound familiar? Yes? Oh man! Poor you!

Well if you're "that guy" or "that girl" that's too embarrassed to have company over because a certain someone can't keep their paws off your house guests, I think I might be able to help!

Let's start with some of the other things you might have tried, and why they probably didn't work for you.

A list of all the ways you tried to stop your dog from jumping, and why they didn't work :

• You tried : Telling your dog to sit and stay. Telling your dog to be quiet. Taking up to five minutes to attempt to silence your dog. You may have even had some success...before you opened the door.
• It failed : Well, you gave your dog two choices. Sit, and be quiet, and let things be boring - or - not listen to you, jump all over your guest, and get noticed, pet, and told "I love dogs". Your dog knows you're not going to follow through once that person crosses the threshold, so lets face it, what would you do if you were them?
• You tried : Telling your guests to not make eye contact with your dog, show them affection or attention, or address them in any way if they're jumping on them.
• It failed : Let's face it - most people aren't going to do that. It feels really rude to cold shoulder someone who is greeting you with such enthusiasm! Plus, your guest has to already be aware of "the rules", so this tactic doesn't work for first-time visitors. Also, you probably feel just as awkward asking your guest to do this, as your guest feels doing it! You're basically asking them to be a human wall for your dog to paw all over. Meanwhile, you get to watch - feeling guilty about it, and your dog gets to bark and jump, wondering "why all the long faces?"
• You tried : You tried locking your dog in different room when company comes.
• It failed : Lets face it, you didn't succeed - you surrendered.

What you really want is a well-behaved, proper dog, that greets guests with gentle, passive joy.

So, how do you get such a mythical canine?

First, understand what your dog is thinking!

It's important to get to the root of the matter when it comes to dogs. Dogs always make sense, and they have rules that they follow. The difference is that your rules, and their rules, often don't align!

Here's what your dog is thinking :

Someone is on the other side of that door, about to cross my threshold!

Oh my gosh! It's so exciting! WOW! I can't wait!

They're coming, they're coming! I can see the door cracking!

Here they come! Wow - cool, look at that smell!

Hey! Greet me! Can't you see me? I'm greeting you! HI! WELCOME TO OUR HOUSE!

Here's what we want your dog to think :

There's a knock on the door! Someone's going to come in soon!

I had better not crowd the door - our guests need their space!

If I sit here and wait my turn, I know I'll get a chance to say hi!

Sound impossible?

Well it's not, but you're going to need some people who aren't going to look at you like you're crazy when you use them as guinea pigs! Or else, you're going to have to admit that you actually are crazy - in which case, no worries!

The Process :

1. Practice getting your dog to back up. You don't need to give them a verbal command - just get between your dog, and somewhere that they want to be (like their food, or a toy, or an open door to the yard). Next, walk towards your dog, using your legs as a barrier to herd them backwards. If your dog's a really tough case, try using a snow shovel to block their view, and then walk towards them with the snow shovel facing acting as a barricade between them, and what they want. Without touching them with the snow shovel, you should be able to force them to back up. Once he gets the message, he'll sit down and look at you. Practice this until your gets used to moving away from your space, when you claim it.
2. Practice claiming the space in front of the door by moving your dog away from the door. It's best to do this when your dog is excited about the door. A friend our roommate can ring the doorbell outside, or you can practice every time you get the leash to go for a walk.
3. Practice keeping your space claimed when the door is opened. You can try opening it when there's no one there, but eventually it will be useful to have someone help you. First, back your dog up from the door and get them sitting a ways back from it. Next, open the door.
4. If your dog tries to bolt towards the door, use your legs (or your snow shovel) to move him backwards again. There's no need to scold, or say anything at all. When it comes to doors, your dog probably doesn't get what you mean by "no". Practice opening the door, and have friends, family, or other people you've explained your training regime to, enter the premises.
5. When your dog is able to wait patiently for guests to enter for a few minutes, you can then tell them "okay". You should wait until they seem calm, though.

That's it!

Here's some tips that can help if you're having a hard time getting your dog to stop jumping :

• It helps to establish a "thing" for your dog to sit on that's a "safe zone". A towel, or a dog bed generally work. If you're backing them up and they go to their "safe zone", stop backing them up right away. That way they always know that there's somewhere they can be that is "the right place" to be.
• If your dog is having a hard time going to their "safe zone", give the spot a name. You might say "Go to your spot"! When they do, give them a treat. Practice having them stay in their spot for increasing amounts of time.
• If your dog tries to dart around you, and they're too quick for you to block them with your legs, practice with them on a leash first.