greeting other dogs nicely

Question
QUESTION: My 6 month old cairn terrier has a problem right now of jumping up on other dogs when greeting them. The other dog gets annoyed sometimes and sometimes lunges at him. I know it's my fault. So, what can i do to stop this? Should I tell him to sit for greeting..? Or will this still cause the problem of jumping up on other dogs? Thanks!

ANSWER: Asking him to sit would solve the problem of jumping on humans. For jumping on dogs, I would find a really appropriate dog or two who can teach him proper greeting behavior. An appropriate dog would be an adult who will not actually hurt him, but will tell him off when he is being too pushy. Sandy Case MEd CPDT www.positivelycanine.com

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QUESTION: is this normal behavior? And so there's no other way besides interacting with other dogs to solve the dog - dog problem?>

Answer
It's probably normal behavior. You can solve the problem by not letting him interact with other dogs, or you can allow a dog who won't hurt him to teach him proper greeting behavior. When it comes to interacting with other dogs, it's really hard for humans to teach, proper greeting, since we don't speak dog very well ourselves or understand canine greeting rituals very well. Also on-leash greetings tend to be a bit difficult, because we are limiting their natural interactions and sometimes causing them to approach inappropriately. If your dog meets another dog on leash, don't linger. A quick sniff is all that's necessary. The longer you let it go on, the more chance of the other dog becoming irritated. Sandy