Hazel | Golden Retriever/Spaniel Mix | Los Angeles, CA | In Training

Meet Hazel! She is a 1.5 year old Golden Retriever/Spaniel mix from Los Angeles, California here for our Two Week Board and Train program! Hazel is a friendly and loving pup who has a tendency to excessively whine in new environments, struggles with pulling on the leash and eats everything off the ground. Over the next two weeks Hazel will learn how to behave on leash and off leash, how to properly greet people and other dogs, and how to be the best pup he can be! Stay tuned for Hazel's two week transformation!

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 02/26/23

After pickup, Hazel and I headed off to a local park to spend some time bonding and see what she knows. She did fantastic getting into a sit or down whenever asked but did struggle coming when called at times. She also pulled like a sled dog and was on a mission to find the next smell. Anytime hazel and I came to a stop after about 20-30 seconds she would start to let out a low whine. We then headed home to let her get adjusted and settled into her new environment. She is a sweetheart who loves to play and I am looking forward to working with her!

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 02/27/23

Hazel and I headed off to a local park to introduce the remote collar and work on her come to sit command. When I ask her to come to me, the expectation is that she comes all the way to my left side and pops into a sit. She picked up on things quickly but was very distracted with all the birds flying by and new smells. She still pulled a lot today and that will be our main focus tomorrow is working on that heel command with her. She has settled in well and is a blast to work with but does show some anxiety in the form of panting, whining, jumping up, and spinning in a circle at times. She is very food motivated, but I am going to limit the treats as I saw with her she will follow through with most commands quickly if there is a reward but once that reward is removed she does not want to do it. 

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 02/28/23

Hazel and I headed off to a local park to continue working on her come to sit and her heel command. She did fantastic with her come command and only needed a little bit of leash pressure at times to help tighten things up. She did much better remaining on my left side when walking but I did notice anytime we left the area we were training in she would go right back to wanting to pull and smell. It can take a few days at times for the pups to understand that these command continue to transfer to every new place we go to, but we will continue getting her out to new environments and pushing her to be the best she can be! 

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 03/01/23

Hazel and I headed off to Home Depot today to explore some of that excessive whining that her owners see out in public. Today we worked on her heel command along with adding some duration and distance to her down and sit command. She did fantastic today and only needed a few reminders when we first started to stay in position while walking. I saw her have a tendency to whine when I would not give her something to do. For example, if we just stop and she is not in a sit, down , or place command she gets bored and begins to whine. Giving her a task during this time will help eliminate that boredom behavior from her. She also made a new friend while working on her place command today! 

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 03/02/22

Hazel and I headed off to Santa Monica this morning to work around some higher distractions. Today we worked on introducing her place command and worked on all other commands. She picked up on thingsu quickly but did have a tendency to whine excessively when we first started working on place. She has mastered her come to sit command and did fantastic holding her sits and downs. She did struggle remaining in a loose leash when we first arrived but after about 15 minutes she did fantastic staying on my left side. Over the next few days Hazel and I are going to focus on teaching her to do nothing. She is doing well with all her commands but her brain is always racing and she struggles turning it off still. 

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 03/03/23

Hazel and I headed off to Home Depot & Lowes today to work on all of her commands. She did much better remaining in her heel position but did struggle when people would make a noise passing by or try to get her attention. She wanted to pull off and say hello but with a reminder or two she would get back into position and continue moving. We also worked on adding some more distance and duration with her sit and down command. I heard no whining from her at both stores today and she seemed a bit more relaxed overall. Hazel is a blast to work with and a favorite everywhere we go! 

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 03/04/23

Hazel and I headed off to a couple local parks to work on all of her commands dragging the leash. The transition was easy for her and she picked up on things quickly. She does still struggle at times when she sees a bird or something moves quickly, but does not go chasing and stops in her tracks. With a couple taps I am able to get her moving with me again. Apart of that is her breed and that prey drive we are seeing but we will continue pushing her through that and asking for that focus and attention from her. She has mastered holding her downs and sits for an extended period and her recall has improved immensely. Over the next few days we will start phasing out the leash and working towards her off leash freedom! 

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 03/05/23

Hazel and I headed off to a local park first thing this morning to work around some birds and new distractions. When we first arrived she had a tendency to want to chase the birds, after a good 5 minute warm up I had her dragging the leash paying little to no mind. She still struggled if a bird flew right next to her but had major improvement around them. We then headed off to work at Home Depot and Lowes again and focused on dragging the leash there along with adding some more duration to her down and sit command. I heard no whining from her and she seemed much more relaxed today. 

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 03/06/23

Hazel and I headed off to Glendale to meet up with some other trainers and work around some dog distractions. Today we worked on all of Hazel’s commands while dragging the leash. She did better around the birds we saw today but struggled with wanting to smell when we first arrived. She did get overexcited when we first got there and started pulling towards the other dogs and whining, but within a few minutes she had great focus and attention. We worked on finding some new place objects to get her on and hold for extended periods along with working on her come to sit command around some heavier/closer distractions.

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 03/07/23

Hazel and I headed off to a local busy outlet this morning to work on all of her commands dragging the leash. She did well overall but did need some added reminders and accountability around the distractions. We are headed back out tomorrow to find some higher distractions to push her through that. We then headed back home to work on her food manners which she has become a master at! We then ended the day with a little bit of play with her and the other dog boarding with me. 

_______________________________________________ Pupdate 03/08/23

Hazel and I headed off to a local parks and outdoor mall to work on all of her commands dragging the leash. She did well today but did get spooked and tried to bolt when a car with a loud exhaust shifter. With a couple taps on the remote she got right back into her heel position. She seemed nervous for about 20 seconds and than got right back to working. We than headed home to work on her door manners. This is vital for any pup to understand that even if the front door is open, she cannot bolt out. Tomorrow we are headed off to another outdoor mall to work on some more distractions.