No Hugging?

[Allyson Kendrick]

Whenever my husband and I hug each other, Jake starts barking and jumping up on us. What is his deal? Is it because he is jealous and wants attention? How do we get him to understand that it's ok for my husband and I to hug? Just ignore him when he does it? Does anyone else have this problem?

[Peggy Jensen]

My minin-schnauzer Mickey does the same thing, doesn't matter if it is my boyfriend, my Dad or my kids, but he doesn't like anybody else touching me or getting too close. The best thing I have found to correct this is ignoring him completely, sometimes he will bark for quite awhile, but you just have to keep hugging till he stops. He doesn't even like my bf to sit by me on the couch, I think it is a jealous - hey, I'm supposed to be the center of attention thing.
By the way, what kind of dog do you have the picture looks like my Mickey.

[Krispie]

Our American Eskimo does the same thing, but with her it is almost as if she thinks someone is hurting me. If my husband smacks me on the butt as he walks by, she will bark too. We just correct her with a "quiet" and she stops.I guess it is good to know that if anyone ever broke in and grabbed me, she would let him have it :)

[Eric Vecc]

When my wife and I are play wrestling, my cat attacks me! The cat favors me and will only lay on my lap and comes to more than my wife. But if we are hugging or wresting, he latches onto my leg like a freakishly strong cat. The dog on the other hand loves to join in on hugs and will stand up (he is almost as tall as us when standing on his back feet) and want to join the fun. I enjoy this more than I enjoy the cat teeth sinking into my leg while his back feet and claws rip my skin apart.

[Allyson Kendrick]

Glad to know my pup is just a normal "attention-hog"! BTW Peggy, Jake is a mini schnauzer too! Aren't they just the greatest? I just love my little dog so much! Thanks for the advice, everyone!

[Luciann]

well i have to say that neither of my chis worry about that they just to be touched first or at the same time.

[Andre Mendizabal]

Molly, my mini-schnauzer does the same thing, she starts barking at us whenever we are hugging or kissing, even when other people greet me and touch me, I think she thinks I'm hers and nobody else can touch me :-P Nala does the same thing but instead of barking and pulling us apart she just jumps in between us!!! she just wants to be part of all the lovin' too!!!!
:p

[Grace Erick]

Capri will come over and sit next to me for protection or to protect me if my husband tells a story very loudly usually about a bad event at work that day, because otherwise, we speak quietly.

Bye, Grace

[Renee Premaza]

Hi Allyson!

I see this once in awhile with clients' dogs. I attribute the dog's reaction to possibly his not understanding your *human* behavior. Dogs don't normally hug each other. When one dog puts a paw over another dog's shoulders, this can be a threatening gesture.

I would recommend that you do some desensitization and counterconditioning. Both you and your husband should take one step toward each other, and then quickly give your dog a treat *before* he jumps up on you. Take another step toward each other and treat the dog quickly. Little by little get closer and begin to make small movements that look like you're about to hug, and treat the dog for each step. When you finally get to the hugging stage of your behavior, and your dog has not jumped up on you, jackpot him with 2-3 treats given separately so the dog sees his calm behavior as being really good! This might take a day or two or three to accomplish. Try not to go past the dog's level of comfort. Keep getting him used to your hugging everyday, and begin to offer less treats per behavior only after he gets really good at accepting your hugging behavior.

Hope this helped!

Whenever my husband and I hug each other, Jake starts barking and jumping up on us. What is his deal? Is it because he is jealous and wants attention? How do we get him to understand that it's ok for my husband and I to hug? Just ignore him when he does it? Does anyone else have this problem?

[Jill Ramsey]

Sorry to hijack this thread, but I'm at home and can't start a new thread (AOL).
Fischer has never gone to sleep anywhere but in his crate or x-pen. I would like, sometimes at night, to have him curl up beside me while watching tv and go to sleep. Also, the only sleep pictures I can get of him is in the crate. :( He gets plenty of play time and exercise, plus he is constantly chewing/playing with :tup: Finnegan. If I take away the toys, he will chew on things he's not suppose to. He will be playing and full of energy, but if he's put in his crate, will go right to sleep. I've tried putting him in down and wait, but this only lasts a minute and he's up and running again. Which is pretty good for a 14 wk old puppy.
Any suggestions?