Dogs engage in lots of behaviors that people can find annoying. One behavior that often ranks as most obnoxious of all is “jumping up”— something many canines do when “greeting” a human. If the dog is a 6-pound Maltese, the annoyance is usually mild and fleeting. But if a 175-pound Newfoundland is fond of throwing his gargantuan front end up on guests in greeting, well...you have another level of obnoxiousness altogether! (And potential injury too.)

So why do dogs jump up anyway? Why can’t folks seem to successfully address this behavior? Can this habit really be stopped? Let’s talk about it today on the Canine Lowe-Down.