Jumping when excited
Hello, my Rei is now 9 weeks and LOVES to jump in the air and on people/dogs during play time. It was cute a few weeks ago but now that she's getting bigger she's hurting us and its only going to get worse if I don't stop this behavior now. Any suggestions?
Comments
You mention it being cute a few weeks ago. Hopefully you've only had her a week. The time frame between 6-8 weeks is an important time frame for puppies to be with their siblings. It's during this time they learn a lot from each other during their play and wrestling around. This is considered paramount for early development of their temperament.
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com
Once your puppy is up to date with all her vaccinations I recommend taking her to a few dog parks where she can meet new dogs and interact with them. Her energy level and playfulness may be annoying to some breeds but if you can find some other young energetic dogs it would do her a lot of good.
Her jumping, biting, high energy, and craziness is all normal. You've got about another 12 months of craziness to go because a Bull Terrier has a long puppy stage and they can very trying at times. With each day they learn more and the more time you devote into training the quicker they will mature and get to the point where they can be well behaved and even trusted alone in the home.
I must warn you. A 9 week old Bull Terrier is far easier to control and handle than a 5 month old wild child. Now is the time to be firm and devote a lot of time towards training and letting her know what behavior is acceptable and what behavior is not.
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com
I think it's great that training is being conducted at such an early age but I wouldn't be too concerned with inappropriate behavior at such an early age because right now I'd consider this normal behavior for any 9 week old Bull Terrier. Now is actually the time when beginning efforts are initiated for learning to listen to commands and react appropriately but this is a long process and expectations of having that corrected at the 9 week old mark is unrealistic. If this was a 9 month old puppy I'd be more prone to diving into training techniques and disciple but this little puppy just got off the nipple. Let him jump for little while, he's only getting ankle high.
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com
I absolutely agree that the early separation from the litter is the most important issue here right now.
And my comment was in no way intended to criticize that you did not focus on the original question.
I was actually hoping for you to jump in with the issue of the the early separation of the puppy from the litter.
Because, I myself was hesitant to write something regarding it and honestly still am. Because the only words I’d find for the breeder and the circumstances would be considered inappropriate.
But I think being here in this forum is the best that could happen to the new owner.
Obviously there seem to be some major gaps in the knowledge of the Bull Terrier temperament and of such a VERY specific situation that needs very special attention.
So, who could give better advice than you as another breeder, who (in contradiction to the breeder of that puppy) loves the breed and cares about it to give the new owner helpful advice.
Another major issue, however, still remains also right now which I tried to address - the jumping as it obviously has painful consequences for the owners.
And I am convinced that the owner should at least begin to address this either RIGHT NOW, simply because the owners are getting hurt by a 9 week old dog already. Who knows how things will develop, if NOT corrected early, once the dog matures.
The dog has had a “hard childhood” so far, that’s true. But that should not be an excuse for NOT starting to form good habits from the beginning. Because every lost chance for learning right now will make it twice as hard in the future. And honestly I think that especially THIS puppy right at THIS time needs even MORE guidance than the average puppy that did not get separated from the litter before at least 8 weeks of age.
The dog so far is missing some of the most important weeks of social interaction in the litter and therefore probably has little to none experience with other individuals regarding responses to its own behavior.
I am convinced in general that an early learning process with the owner (basically from day one when the puppy enters the home) benefits ALL. But honestly I think that in the given situation it is even EXTRA important.
Because the owner now has to provide for frequent contact and experience with other very young dogs and in addition partly has to take over this role himself, showing the dog what’s appropriate and what’s not.
You know me and my philosophy with dogs pretty well. I am in general not a supporter of very harsh and restrictive or adverse training methods.
Also in my opinion training with regard to dogs should ideally take place as an ongoing “learning” process. And this is also how owners ideally should look at it in my opinion. Because then it would probably more obvious that training basically is a continuous PROCESS and does take time and repetition for the results to develop and settle, and that training is not done within a few days.
The dog starts to “train” (learn) things from day one it enters this world and our home anyways. Also things that can form into undesired habits.
I personally prefer mainly “learning” methods for training and obedience that focus on positive reinforcement. And if actual correction is necessary I prefer the most passive ways of correction possible, such as ignoring, for example.
This “gentle” way of learning usually takes a lot more time than more adverse training methods. But that only is a disadvantage, if the owner has missed a lot of chances for correction with the young dog already.
If started early, the learning develops with the puppy and incorporating tiny exercises - that feel even more like play than like training - into every day life makes it much easier to be consistent and to keep the training up without feeling like this is some major additional effort.
This way of learning can be performed with dogs of ANY age (8 weeks up). But I agree with you that, of course, schedules and expectations should fit the dog’s age.
With regard to “good habits” I actually even think it is good to start as early as possible in order to prevent bad habits from establishing in the first place.
That does not mean that the puppy is necessarily being robbed of its careless and playful puppy days. The exercises can be incorporated as tiny and playful sessions with successful experience.
This way it doesn’t even have to feel like training, not for the dog and not for the owner.
It also gives the owner more chances to interact with the dog and to get to know each other, watch and study each other and get to a deeper mutual understanding.
Especially with a dog that has been separated early from its social group I actually find this EXTRA important, because this way of training provides for a lot of interaction, too.
If you find the time to take a glance at the post in my blog, you will see that it covers a variety of tips for training and education, but ALSO information about the Bull Terrier character.
This is one additional issue I find especially important to understand in this case, because the owner obviously is not very familiar with some of the typical “natural Bull Terrier habits”.
Especially things like Bully Runs, excessive jumping, hucklebutting etc. are all funny habits that can easily become inadvertently destructive (painful for owners or break objects), which is why I find it important for owners to know about those habits, when they usually happen and how to control and ideally correct them.
They are not typical basic dog behavior, rather pretty specific Bull Terrier behavior (although one or the other may also occur in other dogs).
So, it’s comprehensible that first-time Bull Terrier owners can be caught by surprise when experiencing these behaviors and use some advice on how to handle them and measures to protect themselves.
So far I feel like the owner is a bit inexperienced and can need every help that he/ she can get. That’s why I still think reading across tons of topics in this situation won’t do any damage, but can only help.
I hope that the owner is at least experienced enough to know that harsh training methods are not in order for a dog of that age. But like I said before, if you ask me, in my opinion they are also not necessary for almost ANY dog.
Here's a photo example of 9 week old BT puppies. I had to escape to higher grounds because they too were trying to jump on my leg. However, in reality they pose little danger for hurting anyone and again I feel it's premature to have expectations at this age that a BT puppy should not be jumping.
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com
What I didn't want to do is project to others reading this forum that just because their cute little 9 week old puppy is jumping that there is a serious issue which requires immediate attention because it's unacceptable and not normal behavior. Maybe I'm just not used to hearing people reaching out for help to adjust the normal behaviors of a puppy at this age. EBT puppies are going to be a ball of fire for many months even with training and discipline and it should be expected. It's just about taking it one day at a time and investing each day into training while having the patience and understanding to recognize puppies will be puppies and Bull Terrier puppies often require more time and effort to train during their first year of life. If there's a worry at the 9 week mark it's going to be a long road ahead.
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com
This is why I always try to paint a complete picture, if possible, telling people this dog is NOT unnormal, unruly or evil. Instead people just need to learn how to handle the temperament. Then the dog will develop into the sweetest companion ever and even the puppy days are the sweetest ever.
Oh, Djamila matured so quickly, but I still love her to pieces as an adult dog as well. She has developed into such a sweet girl.
Some people tend to think that Bull Terriers need a lot of force and strength to control them. And this is a myth I constantly try to disprove, either.
Because as you also state so correctly: What they really need is understanding, consistency paired with a firm and confident handler and patience, patience, patience.
Scratches and bruises will accompany you as a Bull Terrier owner as long as they live. These dogs are kind of stiff and clumsy and on the other hand they love cuddling and interaction - bad combination in terms of scratches and bruises.
They run into shins with their hard heads, they love to play wild and they also love to jump and go up. The good news is: You'll get used to it to a certain extend.
And if you are anything like me, you will even LIKE it A LOT sometimes when they go up on you, because they have a habit of crawling up on you now and then, like they try to get to the same eye level when you kneel down in front of them. And then literally hug you like a litlle kid. It is SO cute. I can't imagine NOT loving this.
Trainers often say that a dog going up on you, walking over you on the couch or sitting on your feet is disrespectful or even dominant behavior. But after knowing Bull Terriers I know that cannot be the only reason for this behavior. It really depends on the circumstances.
But that is no reason to go up on people in any given situation, anywhere and anytime. And luckily dogs can learn the difference between an occasional love-drunken hug after being invited and staying off politely in general.
The razor sharp teeth and claws are typical for puppies (not only Bull Terriers) and the claws grow faster than you will be able to groom them. Better get used to having some scratches in addition to the trimming.
But also try to start teaching the bite inhibition and gentle play as early as possible. I like that you use the clicker. Especially with puppies I find this a very positive and playful way to provide for early positive learning.
The older they grow and the more they settle the scratches and bruises will become less.
But even when they have their adult teeth and claws and know how to play gently and not to break skin with their teeth - there will still be occasional scratches and bruises
Their paw pads tend to be callused and often even more scratchy than their well groomed claws. And that alone still causes me some "love scratches" now and then - even though Djamila is three years old now, well trained and her feet well groomed and frequently softened with coconut oil.
But above all, just as Steve advised, it is important now to try and provide your dog with social interaction with dogs of her age as much as possible in order to hopefully make up a little for the early separation.