In reply to Leslie MacRae.

Hi Leslie, I adopted a red-nose from a girl who got him as a puppy but her sister was allergic to dogs and she had to re-home him. We got him at 9 months and he is currently 2 years old. He is very obedient but still gets over-excited when company comes. We put him in his crate (door open) until he calms down a bit, to curb the jumping, but when he is allowed out, he is still very excited and it will take a bit for him to settle down. Also, we will not enter the house until he is sitting a few feet back from the door (like if we are coming home & he is there without us). When I walk him, he must sit and we enter first and he must also sit before he goes out/comes in. This teaches him self-control as well as pecking order – very important. I think the bred itself tends to the jumping quality somewhat as every dog we looked at, before we fell in love with him, did the same thing. He totally jumps at the door like a mad dog if there is a stranger, but he didn’t start that until he was around 1 1/2 . He used to do the same thing with his pillow & blankets too and I would not give him a new one right away if he chewed his last one – natural consequences, but he has since grown out of that. He will occasionally still do it if we leave him with a sitter on vacation as opposed to boarding him. He is an awesome, super obedient dog, full of love and highly intelligent. I have considered talking to a behaviorist familiar with PBs to see if I can further curb the excitement when company comes, but I want to stress that he has gotten a lot better with work and consistency. I just wonder if they may know a quicker and easier way to get results. Good luck with your pup. You’re not alone, lol. 😉

I had 2 previously – father (American Red Nose) & daughter (Staffordshire). They were the best ever. Unfortunately they passed. The last was a few years ago. Very hard cuz they’re family. We miss them dearly and didn’t want to go thru the loss again. A few months ago a friend was bringing a year and half old to humane society cuz moving and not able to bring dog with them so we took him. He’s very friendly and a loving dog. My problem is not having from a puppy I am struggling with few issues. He gets so excited when have company that he won’t listen and jumps on them-although getting better. The other issue is he grabs a pillow or blanket and sucks on it? Is this done normally because of moving to new surroundings? I’ve got beef shin bones to change mind frame but he doesn’t really bother too much it till later after company leaves. Any suggestions?