Meet Desi, a three year old Multipoo from Northridge, CA, who has joined OffLeashSoCal for our Two Week Board and Train Program. Desi is a happy, loveable pup who loves belly scratches! Desi is a great companion, yet he can be hard to control at home sometimes. He barks and jumps to greet when guests come over and he won't listen to his owners when they ask him to stop. He stuggles with basic manners and obedience, and is easily distracted in public. He can be very timid and get anxiety when his brother Teddi is not around. Over the next two weeks, Desi and I will be working on his off leash obedience and manners. Stay tuned to see Desi's progress!
Pupdate 12/8/2023
Desi had an easy time warming up to my home. He was timid to meet my pups, but they got to sniff eachother and walk around the yard together. He was a little more nervous to walk around alone, so he followed wherever Teddi went. Desi was very quick to warm up to me because he ran up to me and turned on his back so I can give him belly scratches. Desi got to explore the yard and familiarize himself with his new surrounds. Since everything was new to Desi today, we did not introduce the E-collar just so he can get comfortable in my home. Desi had a great first day and we can't wait to jump into training!
Pupdate 12/9/2023
Today Dessi and I worked on the command place at Parnell Park. He was a bit nervous to first step on the place cot, but after I guided him on, he calm down and was excited to learn a new command. After a few reps, Dessi was jumping on the place cot with excitement. He broke command a few times, but to help him learn, I held him accountable and put him back into the place and sit. He is also doing great with adding distance and duration. I also introduced the e-collar to Dessie. He was not as nervous as Teddi was. When I noticed he felt the stimulation, I told him good boy and pet him. He was not interested in any of the treats, which was okay, so I gave him more affection as his reward. I attached a video tutorial of the e-collar explaining all its features. As training goes on, I will explain how I implement the e-collar into Teddi and Desi’s training.
Pupdate 12/10/2023
Today Desi and I worked on heel at Creek park. We also worked on the other commands Desi learned yesterday. In the video I explain how I implement the e-collar into training and in Teddi's video I explain how we worked on Heel. He is doing great with his place, sit, and even down. I can see Desi is becoming more confident and less worried about his surroundings. We were able to add more distance and duration, although Desi did break command a few times. I made sure to hold him accountable to following through with each command. With heel, Desi started off with a little hesitation. He would try to pull away from me, but I worked on getting him excited to heel by picking up my pace, tapping my leg, and using an excited tone of voice. With practice, his heel got better, and we were able to bring in Teddi along for the walk. It seems Desi does better heeling on the inside, while Teddi heels on the outside, so we will continue to practice their heel together with that structure.
Pupdate 12/11/2023
Today Desi and I worked on a new command, come to sit. Desi was excited to start training today and he couldn't contain his excitement. He had trouble holding his sit and his place, but by holding him accountable he started following through with the commands. Desi did great learning come to sit but we need to work on the structure of his sit. He tends to sit at facing the wrong way, but we will practice more on his stucture. We only worked on place on the cot to keep Desi from jumping because of his hip problems. After individually working with Desi, we brought out Teddi to practice their heel together. Desi is a little more stubborn going into a down when he is with Teddi so we did lots of reps for practice.
Pupdate 12/12/2023
Today Desi and I trained at Whittwood wall around lots of distractions. Desi was not nervous to be out but he was throwing tantrums during training. He had a hard time following through with down, but I gave a correction with the e-collar then he followed through. After some practice, Desi started going into the down after the first time asking. He also is having trouble with the structure of come to sit . He does great coming to my left side, but he will sit facing the wrong way. We practiced next to a wall so we can fix his structure. He also was interested in the people walking by, but I would tell Desi off and correct him with the e-collar when he would lose focus. After the correction he would turn and look at me and I would reward him for bringing back his focus. Desi's heel is also getting better and he no longer tries to pull away from me. Without Teddi, Desi was a more focused and not worried about where his brother was.
Pupdate 12/13/2023
Today Desi and I met up with another pup in training at Lowe's. Desi did great not being nervous and we even got to work on leash dragging! I was able to heel with Desi without holding the leash. I noticed Desi was worried about the weight of the leash so next time we practice leash dragging I will use a light leash that he won't notice. Desi was being very stubborn with following through with commands. I corrected him with the e-collar and he would end up following through. He struggled a little with come to sit, but when I guided him with the leash he would do a lot better. This may be because the weight of the leash bothered him when it was dragging. He also struggled a little with holding his down when I walk away but we did lots of practice and Desi improved!
Pupdate 12/14/2023
Today Desi took a trip to Santa Monica Pier to meet up with all the pups in training. He did so great being around lots of distractions while following through with commands! He even was greeted by two kids who wanted to pet him. Desi sat in a place and waited patiently while the kids came up to meet him. I brought along my light leash so we can work on Desi's leash dragging skills. At first he did not want to follow through with come to sit, but after some repetitions, and praising Desi each time he did a great job, he started to do the command perfectly! A few times Desi went into a down when I asked him to sit, but I held him accountable and he went right back into the sit. It's great to see Desi confident in crowded areas and new environments! He is on his way to being off leash!
Pupdate 12/15/2023
Desi trained at the brea mall today with lots of holiday shoppers as distractions. At first we tried to work with Desi and Teddi together, but they were too excited and nervous and it caused tem to break command. When Teddi is around, Desi tends to have trouble staying in a down or place which will cause Teddi to break command after. After we took a long walk, Desi calmed down and was able to hold the commands even with Teddi next to him. Desi and I worked one on one which he did a lot better listening to commands. I had him work on more leash dragging as we walked around the mall. I am happy to see that Desi does not get easily distracted by people or other pets walking by. He did great with his heel, come to sit, and duration sit, but he is struggling with holding his down. He likes to get up when I walk away so we are still working on perfecting this command. We will continue to work Desi and Teddi training together.
Pupdate 12/16/2023
Today Desi and I worked at Hacienda Park. I wanted to work at a place with less distractions to be able to clean up Desi's commands while leash dragging. He knows all his commands, but he still can be stubborn when it comes to following through. He has been doing great with his heel without me holding the leash, but at times he starts to lead the walk. To slow him down and bring his focus back on me, I do sharp left turns which cause him to bump into my leg. After a few times of doing the turns, Desi started to have a more structured heel. Desi did great following through with commands today. The only time he broke command, which was not his fault, was when his friend Pip dragged the leash around him while he was in a down. I went to put him back into a down where then he layed on a leaf which made him get up again. Other than those two accidents, Desi did a great job!
Pupdate 12/17/2023
Today Desi had fun meeting new people at my family's Christmas party. He did not jump to greet and he let everyone pet him. We also practiced on Desi's commands around the neighborhood and today he showed big improvements! He was not as stubborn following through with commands today. Normally it takes a few times of me asking Desi to do a command before he follows through but today he would follow through right away. We worked more on leash dragging which Desi is still doing great with!
Pupdate 12/18/2023
Today Desi and I headed back to Brea Mall to train around all the holiday shoppers. Desi has mastered leash dragging and today he was ready to be off leash! He did great following through with commands, although he did break his sit and went into a down. With a correction, Desi fixed his mistake. When we walked around the mall, there were two dogs who were excited and pulling on the leash towards Desi. He did get distracted and started to walk towards them, but I corrected Desi and told him off and he continued on heeling with me. We also have been working on Desi's food manners and car load up. He gets really excited when it's time to eat so at times he would rush to the bowl before I told him break. Today he did great patiently waiting to eat and even loading up in the car! Desi and Teddi have also made a new friend who has joined the boys in training. Although, I'm not sure the boys want to be friends, because every time she wants to play they walk away.
Pupdate 12/19/2023
Today Desi and I headed to Citadel Outlets to train. Desi had a rough start just because he was constantly looking for Teddi, so he had a hard time following through with commands. I tried to work with him off leash, but when I would ask him to come he would try running to Teddi instead. I kept the leash on him at first but I had the other trainers take Teddi to a different area so Desi can be more focused. Desi started to become anxious seeing Teddi walk away, but as we walked around, he started to become more focused. I was able to get Desi to be off leash! He did great holding his commands as I walked away and even when crowds passing by. He did good with his heel, although he did try to lead the walk but I gave him a correction and he fixed his mistake. I was proud of Desi and all the hard work he has done!
Desi's biggest obstacle now is just being away from his brother. When I take him out individually, I noticed he is not worried to see if Teddi is around. Yet, when Teddi does come along, Desi becomes more anxious. Since the boys were normally never apart, they have become very dependent on eachother. Desi is a little more confident than Teddi, but when Teddi is around, he is constantly looking to find him. At home they can enjoy playtime and relax together, but when it is time to train, working with them individually is best to grow their confidence.
Pupdate 12/20/2023
Desi and I had a busy day of training today. We headed to Home Depot in the morning to practice with Teddi and Desi working together. They did great following through with commands, but they struggled with their structure because one would bump into the other or they would push each other out of the way. Other than their structure, I'm happy to see them following through with commands together. Desi and I also worked on his door manners. He does great staying in either a down or sit while I walk in and out of the door. Door manners is great for when you have guests coming over and you don't want Desi to jump on anyone or if you need to run outside and you don't want Desi running out the door with you. After a long day at work, Desi had some free time to play with his friends, and by friends I mean only Teddi. When the puppy is around, she tends to be pushy and constantly wants to play, but Desi does not like that. He does great with my pups just because they are not the pushy type of dogs. A few times Desi snapped at the puppy because she came on too strong. Just like us as humans would not like if another person came on to us too strongly, so it is understandable for Desi to react this way. Yet, I still gave him a correction and told him off. Desi will become more snappy especially if he is next to me or when being held because he is being protective. I walked away from him and did not pick him up because coddling, petting, or picking up would be rewarding him for the behavior. I would not expect Desi to like all dogs just how we may not like every human we meet, especially if there is a new dog coming into his home, so understanding this we can see what dogs Desi does great with and which dogs we should not bring around him.
Pupdate 12/21/2023
Desi and Teddi got to work together again and I am so proud to see them improving. The boys were greeted by lots of people at the mall. Teddi was especially excited to get the attention. The mall was very busy and we were told our pups could not be off leash, so we just worked on leash dragging with Desi. Either way, they did great heeling through the crowds of people and passing little kids and other dogs. On day one, the boys barked at little kids running by in public and pulled on the leash to go play, now Teddi is loose leash heeling and Desi off leash heeling past any distraction that comes their way! Desi can't wait to come home and show off his new skills to you!
