Success Stations

Finding it hard to ignore your pup’s mouthing or jumping? A Success Station might be the answer!

What’s It For?

For behaviors like mouthing and jumping, we often want to withdraw our attention. It can be hard to do this if our puppy is free to chase us down!
These stations give us a way to remove ourselves from our dog’s reach without having to leave the room.
You’ll use your Success Station when your pup needs help with jumping, mouthing, or even barking!
Remember, it’s normal for young puppies to mouth, jump, and bark. This is one tool to help us help them!

Set up a leash tether in a secure location where you will be able to supervise your dog. (Always use very sturdy furniture or install a hardware hook in your wall.)
Give your dog a mat or a bed that he can reach when he’s tethered. Your dog should also have a few toys. (Especially if you’re working on mouthing!)
Interact with your pup while he’s behaving well. Reward the good stuff 🙂
Move out of his space when he mouths/jumps/barks.
After he mouths/jumps/barks, try and wait for 5 seconds of good behavior before you move back into his space to give him attention. (Including eye contact, touch, talk, or a cue to do something else.) This helps reduce the likelihood that he’ll learn to mouth/bark/jump for attention. Alternatively, you can toss him treats or a toy without moving into the space.
Move into the space to reward your puppy and out of the space to say “Please don’t do that”!
Once your dog is doing well at his Success Station, you can start to leave him off-leash and free at the times he’d normally need it.

Consider having a Success Station leash tucked away where you need it. When your puppy starts getting frisky, you can lead them over and hook them up.
Success Stations are for outdoors, too!
Always supervise your dog when he’s tethered.
If your dog is having a hard time and is getting frustrated, ask yourself if he has everything that he needs. Is he overtired? (Put him in his crate or pen for a nap.) Does he need playtime? (Put this on pause and go play!) Does he need to go to the bathroom? (Take him out.)