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This is a great topic, @zaneb and such a common issue. Those gregarious big dogs can actually hurt people, when all they really want is to “say hi!” It is going to be really challenging for sure, to make lasting behavior change when the behavior has been reinforced for so long. Is the owner able/willing to ensure that this behavior NEVER PAYS OFF AGAIN? That’s a key starting point. They must commit to the change, if they want to actually change the behavior. If they can start by preventing the behavior from being practiced, that’s where we start. So, they have to plan ahead for EVERY GREETING.
A cable tether, bolted to a stud in the wall, is a good managment tool if they have a lot of visitors. With the dog on the tether (in a harness so he doesn’t wrench his neck!) the visitor/guest can stand several feet away until the dog calms. When the dog is on all four feet, sitting or lying down, the person takes one step forward. (Tossing a treat is optional – the reward is the person approaching.) If the dog leaps, lunges or does any other unwanted behavior, the person remains in place or takes a step back (I’ve used both, depending on the situation.) The goal is to get to the dog as quickly as possible. A key to this technique is that in the beginning, the consequences (person walking forward or backward) must happen REALLY FAST, so the dog learns the rules quickly. It may be best for you to demo this, as you are likely to be able to shape the dog toward calmer behavior within a few reps, more quickly than the owner will. Once the dog learns the game, the owner can play it with him, even adding distractions like a toy being twirled around, to increase arousal but helping the dog learn to inhibit the jumping regardless.
If they don’t want to put a bolt in the wall, you can do this outdoors, but it’s going to be much more difficult to transition to indoor greetings. Possible, but difficult. The reason for the bolt/tether is that the owner doesn’t have to try to stay in one place with a 70+lb dog dragging him around.
What do you think?