Teaching Your Dog To Jump Into Your Arms
by Steffi Trott
This is a fun and very easy trick to teach to your dog. Of course, this trick is only suitable for small and medium sized dogs. When you are training , make sure to train on a non-slip surface, such as a carpet or grass. If you have a slippery floor at home (such as tile or hardwood floor), put down a towel to make sure your dog won’t get hurt when he jumps out of your arms.
Step 1: Getting comfortable
In this first step you will make your dog comfortable with stepping on your legs and being held.
Some dogs find it a bit “sketchy” to step on our lap. Use a small towel to drape over your legs to make your dog more comfortable and help him feel that this is a safe place.
You can start by just luring his front feet up on your lap and feeding him some treats:
Then progress to having him step on with all four feet:
My hand that’s not delivering the treats is wrapped around his legs just like it will be later on when I am catching him.
Step 2: Making it higher
If your dog had no problems with step 1, you can sit up a little bit. Now he has to actually hop up into your lap!
You can now also stop using the towel if your dog feels safe jumping up.
Make sure to deliver multiple treats in the position to him. We don’t want him to just hop up and immediately back down. Instead, your dog should learn that your arms are a great place to be!
Step 3: Standing Up
It’s time to stand all the way up. You can make the transition from sitting to standing more gradual by leaning against a wall or furniture, so that your legs are still slightly bent and your dog doesn’t have to jump up quite as high in the beginning:
Catch your dog and give him many, many treats! He has to be quite brave to jump up so high, so you really want to show him your appreciation.
