To jump or not to jump?

If you don’t want your dog to jump on people, and have been doing things like teaching them to “do something else” like sit quietly on a mat when guests arrive, good for you! But what about that uncle who loves it when the dog does jump up and even encourages it? Does this throw all of your careful training out the window? No!  You can teach the dog to only jump up when it gets the cue you choose – like “up” or patting your shoulders.  This can be used with other behaviors like barking as well. Since it’s not an all or nothing proposition for your dog, and as is true for all training, it’s good to reinforce the desired behavior on a regular basis.