Help! Hyper Active Lab!!

Question:

Hi.  I just came across your blog this afternoon and I absolutely love it!!  I  have a 7 month old Yellow lab named Remington aka Remi.  And she is so hyper!  She loves to jump on people and I tend to wonder if she doesn’t think she is part rabbit!  She jumps off the ground with all fours and jumps so high!!  What do you recommend to help calm her down and to help the jumping behavior.  She will take off on a mad dash around the house so fast, and jump on the couch with so much power, she has nearly tipped the couch over!!!  Any advice is appreciated!!!  Thank you.

Answer:

Wow! Sounds like Remi is a normal Labrador Retriever. At about this age, Labs go through a Labrador Retriever stage of development that I like to call the “terrible twos”. It is the stage when they forget everything you have ever told/trained them and they test you to the end of the Earth. However, don’t give up hope as this stage ends around the 1-year mark and then they begin to slowly calm down.

In the meantime, you must demand respect and stay consistent/persistent in your training. Do not let Remi get away with anything in your house or even outside. Nothing in life should be free to Remi at this moment.

If she is jumping on people, don’t get her any attention. Tell people to turn their backs on her until she gets the idea that they are not there for her. Sure, your friends may look like tops spinning but make sure not to give her any attention at all until she is calm. They shouldn’t even make eye contact with her.

My Chey loved to jump on people. I have trained her “off” when she tried to jump and she is so cute now… She will stand on her hind legs in front of the person but never lay a paw on them. Yep! Stands on just too legs… Because she wants to give them kisses but knows she better not put her paws on people. On the opposite side is Dakota who never takes a paw off the ground. Both were trained the same way and both respect people… Just they both interpret it differently.

As for the the running around the house – she is not nearly tired enough. My breeder taught me that a tired Lab is a good Lab. If you expect to have company, take her for a very long and fast-paced walk (where you are in control – don’t let her stop at every tree) or even take her to the dog park for a couple of hours. Labradors need exercise and mental stimulation. You can even play dog games of “Find It” in the house with bits of her kibble hidden… They love this game!

Lastly, I show my dogs off when I have company. When they are finally settled, I will have the girls do tricks for them. This helps put my friends in a higher pack order which makes them less likely to get disrespected the next time they visit.

I hope that helps! Again, don’t give up – Remi is a normal Labrador Retriever and just needs a lot of exercise and persistent/consistent training.