Darling | Pitbull | Los Angeles, CA. | In Training.
- heatheroffleashsoc
- Mar 15
- 16 min read
Updated: Mar 28
Darling is a one-year-old Pitbull from Los Angeles, CA who has just joined us for our Two Week Community Board and Train Program. Like many young pitties, Darling is full of personality and enthusiasm. Her owner describes her as a sweet and spirited girl who loves to do things her way—especially when it comes to walks. With lots of leash pulling and a habit of only listening when she feels like it, outings together have become a bit of a challenge. Darling has also developed a mischievous side at home, occasionally turning to nibbling when she’s left to entertain herself.
Over the next two weeks, we’ll be working closely with Darling to build a strong foundation in off leash basic obedience while also improving her house manners. Our goal is to help her learn how to make better choices, become a more reliable listener, and transform into a calm and enjoyable walking companion for her owner.
Darling is a very sweet girl with a lot of potential, and we’re excited to guide her through this training journey. Stay tuned as we share her progress and watch her transformation unfold!
3/15/2026
Today was Darling’s first day with me, so we kept things nice and easy with a stroll through the park to get better acquainted and to assess what she already knows. During our walk, I also took the opportunity to introduce the heel command. At first, Darling was much more interested in everything else going on around the park, so she paid very little attention to me. She also wasn’t too fond of the corrections and tried putting on the brakes a few times. Despite that, we were still able to make some good progress and get Darling walking much more nicely on the leash with far less pulling by the end of our walk.
By the time we wrapped up at the park, Darling seemed just a little more comfortable with me, so we loaded up in the car and headed off to check out her home away from home for the next two weeks. When we arrived, she was eager to explore and check everything out. She was especially excited when she met my pup, Quinn! It’s safe to say Darling definitely approved of her new temporary home.
She is still showing a few signs of missing her mama, which is completely normal on the first day, but I’m confident that with a little time she’ll settle in just fine. Overall, Darling did very well today considering all the new experiences she had. She’s already working on adjusting to her new environment, and I’m looking forward to helping this sweet little lady grow over the next couple of weeks! 🐾
3/16/2026
Today Darling and I stuck close to home and worked around my neighborhood as we began introducing two important new things: the E-collar and her come to sit command. The goal for today was to keep things calm and low pressure so Darling could learn in a comfortable environment without too many distractions.
We started with a simple walk around the neighborhood while practicing her heel command. During the walk, anytime I needed to give a leash correction, I paired it with a very low-level E-collar stimulation. This helps Darling start to associate the feeling from the E-collar with the leash guidance she already understands. She actually handled the process very well! I think what Miss Darling finds the most bothersome right now isn’t the correction itself, but simply wearing the collar around her neck. That’s perfectly normal, and with a little time she’ll get used to it.
We also spent some time working on her sit command. I’ve learned that Darling definitely knows how to sit—she just tends to do it when she feels like it. So now we’re focusing on making it more of a consistent, on-command behavior. She has already started to show improvement in this area, which is great to see!
After that we introduced the come to sit command. This command has Darling come toward me, walk around my right side, and finish by sitting nicely on my left. Darling is a very smart girl and she’s already starting to pick up on the motion of the command. That doesn’t necessarily mean she’s completely enthusiastic about it yet, but she’s definitely figuring it out. Each time she came around and sat nicely at my side, she received plenty of pets and praise so she could clearly understand that she did a great job. As expected, she responded very well to the affection.
Overall, Darling is doing well. She definitely misses home, but with a few cuddles she becomes a happy little land hippo again. She’s still doing a bit of whining and found me leaving the house for some quick errands absolutely distasteful. When I returned, we waited for her to quiet down before letting her come out and roam the house. With a little time, she’ll start to understand that no one is leaving her forever—someone will always come back.
She truly is such a sweetheart, and I’m looking forward to seeing her confidence continue to grow. 🐶 💕
3/17/2026
Today Darling and I headed out to the park bright and early to practice her commands before the heat really started to set in. Getting out early gave us a nice, calm environment to focus and build on everything we worked on yesterday. Darling practiced all of her commands again, and today we also introduced the down command.
At first Darling wasn’t a huge fan of this new request. She definitely let me know she had other ideas about how she’d rather spend her time! But after a few tries and a little patience, she started to figure it out and began laying down with much less effort. At one point she even rolled over and offered me her belly—which wasn’t exactly the command I was asking for—but I certainly didn’t mind taking a quick belly rub break!
To help keep things positive and fun for her, we mixed in some treats and plenty of praise along with affection. This helped encourage some enthusiasm so the training didn’t feel like a punishment. Darling would much rather be doing her own thing than having someone tell her what to do, so we’re working on showing her that listening can be rewarding too. Typical pittie shenanigans!
Overall, she did a great job today and is learning quickly. I’m also happy to see that she’s becoming more comfortable around the house. Darling is proving to be quite the cuddle bug—she’s perfectly content lounging nearby and keeping me company.
She’s also doing very well with the cats. Darling respects their boundaries and backs off when they let her know she’s getting a little too close for comfort. Luckily those warnings don’t happen too often because she’s generally very calm and polite around them.
After our park outing, Darling also got to spend some time playing with my pup Quinn. The two of them had a great time together and burned off some extra energy. Once everyone was nice and tuckered out, it was time for a well-earned nap—and Darling had absolutely no objections to that plan!
All in all, despite still getting used to the e-collar, Darling is doing very well and making great progress. I’m proud of her and excited to keep building on everything she’s learning! 🐾
3/18/2026
Today Darling and I headed out to a park in Rosemead to meet up with some fellow trainers and their pups for a nice training session with some added distractions. While we were there, Darling and I practiced all of the commands she has learned so far and also introduced a new one — Place. This command consists of having Darling hop up onto any flat surface she can safely fit on, then asking her to sit or down and remain there until she’s released.
Darling had absolutely no issue with this command! She hopped right up and seemed very comfortable holding her position.
Her heel is coming along nicely as well. Occasionally she would prefer to move at her own pace, but that’s okay. A quick pat on my leg is usually enough to remind her to pick up the pace and catch back up with me.
Her extended sit and down are also progressing well. Darling seems to enjoy these commands—probably because they don’t require her to do too much movement, which she doesn’t seem to mind at all!
Her come to sit is improving nicely too. Right now we’re focusing on building her momentum so she comes straight in with less leash guidance. Once she becomes more consistent with that, we’ll move on to the next step toward off-leash work: leash dragging.
At one point, Oso, the boss man’s dog, joined Darling on her place platform. Darling had no problem sharing her space. In fact, she seemed a little excited about it at first, which was very cute to see.
Overall, it looked like Darling really enjoyed her outing today and getting the chance to meet some new pups. She did a great job working through her commands in a more social environment and continues to make great progress. I’m very proud of this little lady! 🐾
3/19/2026
Today Darling and I headed out to the park bright and early to work on her commands with some added distractions. We ran through everything she’s learned over the past few days, and she did a really nice job overall!
Her heel is coming along well. She still has a tendency to pull a bit on the leash at times, but with a quick reminder, she’s able to settle back in and walk nicely by my side. That’s great progress! Her come to sit is still a work in progress, which is completely normal since it’s a more technical command. She tends to come straight toward me instead of wrapping around to my right, or she’ll try to go behind me and sit instead of finishing properly on my left side. With more repetition and guidance, she’ll have it down in no time.
Her extended commands are looking solid, and she’s had no issues hopping up onto objects for her place command—she’s very confident there! Darling is also becoming more comfortable wearing the e-collar. She isn’t scratching at it nearly as much, and we’re continuing to show her that both the collar and her commands are tools to guide her, not punishments. She’s slowly but surely gaining more understanding and confidence each day.
Overall, Darling is making great progress, and I’m so proud of the effort she’s putting in—even if she’d much rather be curled up on the couch in the air conditioning! Which, to be fair, she absolutely earned after our session. Once we got home, she happily settled in and soaked up some well-deserved relaxation.
3/20/2026
Today Darling and I headed out to the park bright and early to continue practicing her commands with real-world distractions. And those distractions definitely did their job! When we first arrived, Darling was very eager to take everything in and immediately wanted to pull me around to investigate all the sights and smells.
We stayed consistent with her training, applying clear and fair corrections, and she quickly began to understand that she can explore—as long as she’s walking nicely in a heel. Once she settled back into that mindset, her heel improved and we were able to move on to the rest of her commands.
Her extended commands continue to be a strong point! Darling had no hesitation hopping up onto benches and laying down comfortably. Honestly, just like at home on the couch, she probably would have stayed there all day if I let her!
The main areas we’re still polishing are her heel and come-to-sit, especially with distractions involved. Miss Darling is definitely on “Pittie time” and would much rather wander at her own pace—but that’s all part of the learning process. With consistent work, she’s steadily beginning to understand what’s expected of her.
Overall, Darling did a great job today and showed solid progress. And of course, after a successful outing, she thoroughly enjoyed heading back home to relax and be the couch potato we all know and love! 🐶💤
3/21/2026
Today Darling and I headed back out to continue practicing her commands, with a strong focus on her heel and come to sit. As I’ve mentioned before, once Darling can perform these with less leash guidance, we can confidently move into the next phase—off-leash work with a dragging leash.
With her heel, Darling is really starting to understand what’s being asked of her. That said, she’s still a curious girl, and every now and then something catches her attention and she’ll try to pull toward it or wander off. We stayed consistent, reinforcing the expectations, and she began settling into a much nicer heel with more slack in the leash and fewer corrections needed.
Her come to sit also showed great improvement today. She knows the command, but without guidance she has a tendency to pause and stare or try to shortcut the movement by coming straight to my left side. While that effort is appreciated, it’s not quite what we’re looking for. So we really honed in on that full motion—and it paid off! By the end of our session, Darling was able to come around my right side and finish in a proper sit on my left using only hand gestures. What a smart lady!
Of course, she wasn’t thrilled with me at times since I wasn’t letting her do whatever she pleased, but after celebrating her wins and showing her exactly what earns praise, she bounced right back. Sometimes there’s a little turbulence before a breakthrough, but it always passes.
After all her hard work, Darling enjoyed some tasty treats and a well-deserved snuggle, and just like that—all was right in her world again. I’m so proud of this girl for sticking with it, pushing through, and continuing to make such great progress!
3/22/2026
Today Darling and I headed back out to the park to continue sharpening her commands, and we officially introduced leash dragging! This is an exciting and important step toward off-leash work. It allows Darling a bit more freedom while still giving me a safety net in case she decides to make her own plans.
As expected for her first taste of extra freedom, things didn’t go perfectly smooth—and that’s completely okay! This stage is all about learning, and with more freedom comes a natural urge to test boundaries. And yes… Miss Darling definitely took that opportunity to see what she could get away with.
Darling is a very smart girl and clearly understands her commands, but she can be a bit dramatic when asked to do something she’s not in the mood for. Today included a few of her signature “tantrums,” complete with whining and attempts to scurry off. She’d love for you to believe she’s in total distress, but in reality, she’s just hoping that her performance will get her out of working. It’s important in those moments to gently push through and follow through with the command—otherwise, it can quickly turn into a habit where she thinks a fit equals freedom from listening.
The good news is that aside from those moments, Darling did really well! She’s showing strong understanding of what’s being asked of her, and that’s a huge win. As we continue practicing with leash dragging and eventually transition fully into off-leash work, her confidence will grow and those boundary-testing moments will become less frequent.
Overall, today was a very productive training session, and I’m excited to see how Darling progresses tomorrow! 🐕✨
3/23/2026
Today Darling and I headed out to The Home Depot to continue practicing her commands around real-world distractions—and she rose to the occasion!
We incorporated some leash dragging into our session, and overall she did really well. There was a moment where she tried to scurry out of her heel, but I was able to quickly guide her back into position.
These little tests are completely normal, especially as she gains more freedom, and she responded nicely to the correction.
Darling handled the busy store environment like a champ. With carts rolling by, people moving around, and all the new sights and sounds, it can be a lot for any pup—but she stayed fairly focused and worked through it all.
The biggest challenge today was her extended sit and down. Whenever I started to create distance, she wanted to follow along instead of holding position. That’s okay! With a few consistent corrections and repetitions, she began to understand that staying put was the goal, and we saw improvement as we went.
We also had some great opportunities to practice greeting manners since Darling caught the attention of a few admirers. At first, she was eager to approach everyone with a happy wagging tail, but after a reminder or two, she settled into polite sits and allowed people to come to her instead. Big win!
All in all, today was a great training day, and I’m so proud of the steady progress Darling continues to make. She’s building confidence, learning boundaries, and taking important steps toward reliable off-leash behavior!
3/24/2026
Today Darling and I headed back out to the park to continue practicing her commands—only this time, we took everything off leash!
As expected, losing the leash threw Darling for a bit of a loop at first, but for her very first day working with that level of freedom, she did a great job adjusting. She stayed engaged during our heel work and didn’t try to scurry off, which is a big win and shows she’s starting to understand that staying with me is the best place to be.
The main area we saw some struggles in was her extended sit and down commands, which is completely normal at this stage. With the added freedom, it can be harder for her to stay put, especially when she’s anticipating what’s coming next. While she did break position a few times, it’s actually a good sign that she’s thinking ahead and eager to work—we just want to fine-tune that patience so she waits for the cue instead of guessing.
We spent some extra time reinforcing those extended commands, helping her understand that staying in position is safe and expected. With consistency, this will continue to improve.
On a really positive note, Darling is showing a great understanding of her come-to-sit command, which has been so nice to see come together. She’s also made solid progress with her crate training—she’ll now walk into her crate with little to no fuss, and the resistance we used to see has significantly decreased. These days, the only time she really makes a peep is if she hears something exciting happening nearby (especially if my pup is involved), but even then, she’s usually included in the fun.
Overall, Darling is making wonderful progress, and it’s been such a joy watching her confidence grow and her silly, lovable personality shine through more each day! 🐶💛
3/25/2026
Her heel was a bit more on her terms—while I was able to encourage her to stay next to me, she had moments where she preferred to lag behind. While that can be acceptable at times, having her right beside me is ideal and safer, as it allows me to better monitor her and maintain clear communication.
Darling also had a bit of confusion between her commands today and kept offering a “down” when asked for a “sit.” We took some time to work through that with a few repetitions and redirections, and she eventually caught on to what was being asked of her. Once she got back on track, everything became much smoother and more consistent.
One highlight of the day was her place command—Darling really seemed to enjoy it! She took full advantage of the opportunity to relax, sunbathe, and observe everything going on around her.
Overall, despite her lack of enthusiasm, Darling still did a solid job and pushed through her work. Just like us, dogs have off days too, and it’s important that she learns to stay consistent even when she’s not feeling 100%.
3/26/2026
Today Darling and I headed out to the park to continue practicing all of her commands off leash—and what a difference in energy! As you can see, Darling showed up feeling much more engaged and ready to work. She did a great job following through on her commands and stayed right by my side as we explored the park together.
The one area she’s still working through is her extended sit and down. She prefers to stay close to her person (which is very sweet!), so holding those positions at a distance can be a bit challenging. That said, we’re continuing to practice consistently, and she’s improving more and more each day.
After we wrapped up our training session and I gave her the “break” command, she soaked up lots of love and then enjoyed some well-earned freedom. I allowed her to explore a bit, and the best part was that she didn’t feel the need to wander far at all. She really embraced the moment—sniffing around and enjoying herself while still choosing to stay close.
Once she had her fill of exploring, Darling hopped up onto a park bench by the water and took a little break. I joined her, and she scooted right into my side, tucking in close as we just relaxed together. It was one of those quiet, wholesome moments you wish you could freeze. As we sat there, a few passersby couldn’t help but comment on how cute and well-behaved she is—and they were absolutely right!
Overall, Darling had a lovely day at the park and continues to make beautiful progress. I’m so proud of this sweet girl and all the effort she puts into her training each day. 💛
3/27/2026
Today Darling and I kept things a bit closer to home and worked right in my neighborhood. We started with a nice walk while practicing all of her commands off leash, and overall she did a great job! Darling clearly understands what’s being asked of her, but every now and then she likes to remind me just how strong-willed she can be. This is totally normal—especially for pitties! She may try to act like she doesn’t know a command, but in reality, she just doesn’t feel like doing it in that moment.
When those moments come up (and we had a few today), it’s important to hold her accountable. I make sure she follows through on what’s being asked, and once she does it correctly a few times, we take a break and celebrate with lots of praise and affection. Giving in during those moments would only teach her that she can avoid commands, and we don’t want that. She’s a very smart girl, and after working through those little tests, we were able to continue on with a really solid session.
After our walk, we focused on her everyday manners—car manners, door manners, and food manners—all of which are becoming part of her daily routine.
Car manners: Darling sat politely next to the car and waited patiently for her cue before loading up. Once released, she hopped in and went right into her crate so I could close the door.
Door manners: She held a nice sit at the door without trying to bolt out, even as I moved past her and briefly out of sight.
Food manners: Darling waited calmly while I placed her bowl down and didn’t go for it until given permission, regardless of my movement.
These are all things she struggled with in the beginning, but she’s been improving more and more each day.
Overall, I’m incredibly proud of this little lady and the effort she continues to put in. Even with her occasional sass (which definitely keeps things interesting 😄), she’s making wonderful progress and showing just how capable she is!
3/28/2026
Today Darling and I headed back out to the park to continue working on her commands while off leash—and she did a wonderful job! She performed each command like a little pro. As we practiced her heel command, Darling stuck right by my side, and no matter what distractions came our way, she remained focused and held her extended commands with impressive patience.
We also had a couple of great opportunities to practice her greeting manners—because who wouldn’t want to love on this sweet girl?! Darling handled it beautifully, sitting politely and waiting for affection to come to her instead of jumping up to claim it herself. Everyone who met her today commented on how well-behaved she was, and they were absolutely right!
I’m so proud of the progress she’s made—not just today, but over the past two weeks as a whole. She’s gone from that classic pittie “blank stare” to being a much more attentive listener, and she’s truly become a joy to walk with.
My hope is that I’ve given you both the tools to continue building on this success and enjoy many calm, fun adventures together. Thank you so much for trusting me with your sweet girl and allowing me to be part of her obedience journey—it has truly been a pleasure. I will definitely miss her couch potato vibes and those post-breakfast snuggles! 🐾💛
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