Whether you are a dog lover or not, the experience of an excitable ball of fur, claws, teeth and slobber jumping on you can be an intimidating experience. For the dog, it’s just a way to get attention and say hello. For some humans, it can be traumatizing.

Some of us don’t mind coming home to an exuberant dog and allow our furry friend to greet us with a jump occasionally. Even if this is the case, never let your dog “be the boss” of when jumping is allowed. If you enjoy this type of greeting from your buddy, you still must teach him or her to settle and relax. After your dog has calmed down a little, teach the command “come on up” or “give me a big hug” and use body language to indicate you’re ready for a jump and a kiss. But never assume that this behavior is acceptable for others.

Fortunately, preventing a dog from leaping on you or other people is easier than you might think. As with most other dog-training techniques, the two most important keys to success are patience and consistency.

As soon as you welcome your dog into your home, you should slowly begin to train him or her the right way to greet someone. Here are four tips to keep your dog on all fours:

Puppies love to receive affection almost as much as they love to give it. They get excitable and are eager to show you how much they care for you. So, the key is to teach your dog to sit and stay or lie down. Before you can train them to do anything, your dog needs to be in a settled state and attentive to your commands and body language. Throughout the day, practice the sit/stay/lie down command whenever your dog is seeking attention or food or playful activity. If your dog is struggling with these lessons, it may help to use a collar and leash.

As your buddy gets accustomed to the sit/stay/lie down routine, practice it in various places around the house. This helps train him or her that there are no “good” places to jump on people. And then focus primarily in the doorway area or front porch, where strangers are most likely to interact with your dog. If you have others living in your household, recruit them to help you practice this step. Make the sit and stay. When your dog successfully remains settled, give him or her a treat and praise. But do not let the puppy get to riled about again.

If you aretraining to teach your buddy to refrain from jumping on people but someone elsein the household encourages this behavior, you will not be successful. Period.Your puppy may be intelligent, but it is extremely difficult to explain to himor her why the behavior is acceptable sometimes and not others. Your entirefamily needs to buy into this training and help your dog learn what is expectedof him or her. Otherwise you will have a confused dog that jumps on people.

The American Kennel Club offers this seven-step routine for training your dog to remain on all fours:

Just remember: If you remain patient and consistent, your dog will soon be on his or her best behavior!