Hazel | Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Mix | Temple City
- Tanner Strong
- Mar 24
- 7 min read
Updated: Apr 6
Hazel is back with me for boarding and some more training! She needs some more work on her leash pulling and her manners, as well as a refresher for her basic commands. Hazel is still as friendly as ever and I'm glad to have her back!
Pupdate: 3/24/2025
Hazel was happy to see me today and jumped right into the car when I opened the door to her crate. She was eager to go but showed a strong desire to pull on the leash. Once we arrived at the park, we met up with some other trainers and their dogs and got to work refreshing her on her basic commands.
It didn’t take long for Hazel to remember what to do—after just a few minutes of practice, she was moving through her commands well. The biggest challenge was Place, as she much preferred lying on the cool ground rather than staying on the cot. Still, she put in a solid effort for her first day back.
When we got home, I gave her some time to settle in, which she did quickly. She enjoyed a well-earned nap and has been polite in the house so far. That said, she got a good amount of exercise today, so I’ll be curious to see how her manners hold up tomorrow morning when she’s full of energy!
Pupdate: 3/25/2025
Hazel and I had a productive session at the park today, focusing heavily on her Heel command. She’s doing well, but maintaining proper position over longer distances is still a challenge for her—she gets excited and wants to pull ahead to reach our destination faster. We’ll continue reinforcing patience and consistency in her Heel to help her understand that staying by my side is the fastest way to get where we’re going.
She’s also starting to bond with the other dog I currently have, which has been great. We took some walks together and worked on our commands as a group, which provided extra distractions and practice.
For her morning manners, Hazel was much more enthusiastic about heading out today. While she didn’t jump on me, she had a hard time staying still at the door. We took the time to work on this, waiting until she fully relaxed before stepping outside. This kind of impulse control will help her stay calmer in all aspects of daily life.
Pupdate: 3/26/2025
Hazel and I went to the park today to continue working on her commands, and she’s still doing well! One thing I noticed was that she sometimes gets a little too excited when asked to Down—she loves rolling over for belly rubs. While that’s totally fine during break time, I want to make sure she can also hold a more polite Down when needed.
She also has a habit of crawling toward me and hugging my legs if I ask for a Down from a distance. To work on this, we focused on reinforcing a solid, stationary Down. After lots of repetition, Hazel really started to understand and became much more polite with it! She’s making great progress, and I love seeing her enthusiasm for training.
Pupdate: 3/27/2025
Hazel had a bit of a surprise today when she jumped out of the car expecting the park—only to find herself at Home Depot instead! She wasn’t a huge fan of the store and seemed a bit nervous at first, but she handled it well.
Despite her initial hesitation, Hazel did a great job with her commands and manners throughout the visit. We even practiced her greeting manners with a couple of different people, and she remained polite while getting attention.
To reward her hard work, we made a stop at the park afterward so she could have some fun and unwind. All in all, a solid day for Hazel!
Pupdate: 3/28/2025
Hazel had a great time at the park today! She was happy to be out, walked nicely, and overall behaved very well. She’s also been a huge help in boosting Charlie’s confidence, which has been great to watch. Having a calm and steady companion like Hazel seems to make a big difference for him, and she’s been handling that role wonderfully.
I also tried out a different camera for today’s video. I’m still getting used to it, but it does a nice job of showing the perspective I want—Hazel walking right next to me for most of our time, with some breaks in between where she gets to sniff around and explore. She’s really settled into a great rhythm on our walks, and today was another enjoyable and productive outing for her!
Pupdate: 3/29/2025
Hazel had a great day at the park today, but for this Pupdate, I want to highlight a key exercise we've been practicing—her door manners and managing her morning excitement.
Each morning, as soon as we wake up, Hazel’s E-collar goes on, along with a leash or slip lead. Before we even step outside for her walk and potty break, she needs to show me her calmer side. If she’s overly excited, I simply stop moving and remain completely calm. Most of the time, Hazel will match my energy and Sit automatically. Only then do we begin moving toward the door.
If she gets excited again, we reset—walking back to the other side of the room and trying again. This process applies to every step: reaching for the door handle, unlocking the door, opening it, and stepping outside. Once the door is open, I still wait a few seconds before moving through. We also use this for practicing her door manners. Hazel needs to stay put, even when I step out without her, only coming through when given permission. I also open and close the door multiple times, reinforcing that the door opening is nothing to get excited about, whether she’s right in front of it or across the room.
We integrate these exercises into every exit and entry, and Hazel has made great progress over the past few mornings! She’s getting better at controlling her excitement and respecting the doorway, setting the tone for a calmer, more controlled start to her day.
Great job, Hazel!
Pupdate: 3/30/2025
Hazel had a great day at Santa Anita Mall! I expected her to be nervous, given how she seemed a bit nervous at Home Depot, but she surprised me by staying calm and collected throughout the trip. She was also a huge help to Charlie, who was very nervous—having her around seemed to give him some reassurance.
Hazel did well with all of her commands, showing solid obedience in a busy environment. The main thing I want to continue working on is her ability to ignore distractions. Several times, I noticed her staring at people, especially when kids were screaming, and I had to remind her to bring her focus back to me.
Overall, she handled the outing really well, and I’m happy with her progress!
Pupdate: 3/31/2025
Hazel returned to the mall today and did well overall. She had no issues walking around or maintaining polite behavior, handling the environment with ease. Her biggest challenge remained her focus—her attention drifted often, but the good news is that she usually brought it back to me on her own and much quicker than yesterday.
This small but noticeable improvement shows progress, and with continued practice, her ability to stay engaged should keep getting better!
Pupdate: 4/1/2025
After a couple of busy days at the mall, Hazel had a more relaxed day today, and she enjoyed it! She walked politely with me, showing good manners throughout our session.
Lately, I’ve been focusing on relying solely on her E-collar and eliminating any leash tension. So far, it's going well, though it will take plenty of practice to fine-tune my timing and consistency. Around distractions, I still find myself using it frequently, but Hazel is responding well. A great example was her interest in the geese at the pond—one quick "Off" command paired with the E-collar, and she shifted her focus right back to me. This is great progress, and I’m excited to keep refining her off-leash skills!
Pupdate: 4/2/2025
Hazel had a fun trip to the park today! She enjoyed the outing, but for today’s video, I wanted to highlight her food manners training.
In the first clip, I placed a tempting plate of burritos and cheese on the floor in front of her. The goal was for Hazel to ignore it as much as possible, reinforcing that she shouldn’t eat just anything she finds—an important skill for her safety. In the second clip, I placed her own food in front of her, still expecting her to be polite and patient before eating. She did a great job and got to enjoy her well-earned meal at the end!
Pupdate: 4/3/2025
Hazel took on Santa Monica Pier today, and she handled it like a pro! This location can be a real challenge, but she nailed her commands for the most part. She spent about half of our time there off-leash, staying fairly focused and responsive despite all the distractions.
The only unexpected moment came when she spotted the roller coaster for the first time. As it appeared over the buildings, she let out a single loud bark—something I don’t think I’ve ever heard from her before! She then nuzzled next to me for comfort, clearly unsure about what she had just seen. However, when the coaster came back around, she had already decided it wasn’t worth worrying about and didn’t react at all.
Overall, Hazel impressed me today. She stayed engaged, handled the environment well, and showed great confidence after that brief moment of surprise. Good job, Hazel!
Pupdate: 4/4/2025
For today’s video, I wanted to share more from our trip to Santa Monica yesterday—you can really see how well she’s doing out in a busy environment. You can also see us practicing her greeting manners!
Today, we headed to the park to continue working on her commands and manners. She was engaged and eager to work, and it’s clear she’s making solid progress. Proud of her!
Pupdate: 4/5/2025
Hazel had another great day continuing to work on her commands and manners, both off-leash at home and during our time at the park! She’s been showing really nice progress with her obedience, and we’ve also been focusing on strengthening some important everyday manners.
For food manners, I want Hazel to practice patience by waiting calmly before mealtime, instead of rushing in right away. This helps build impulse control and sets a calm tone for mealtime.
We’ve also been working more on her door manners — I want Hazel to wait patiently at the door until I give her the cue to walk out, rather than trying to push ahead of me. Practicing this daily is a great way to reinforce calmness and respect at thresholds.
And for car manners, I want Hazel to sit calmly while I open the car door, wait for her cue, then hop in and walk straight into her crate when asked. These little routines help build structure and make every part of our outings feel more smooth and controlled.
Hazel has been doing a wonderful job working on all these skills, and I’m proud of the work she's done!
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