Meet Indy! He's a seven month old Husky Pitbull mix from North Hollywood, California. He's with us for the Two Week Board and Train Program. Indy is a sweet pup but only wants to listen if there's something in it for him. Indy had a rough start in life and is struggling with his house rules with the four-legged members. For example he feels all the food should be for him and needs to learn manners. He has little to no respect for the other pups forcing them to correct Indy. He likes to help himself in the kitchen when someone is making a meal and the cats are his own moving play toys. When Indy is in a new environment with people and animals, he experiences anxiety and fear. Over the next fourteen days we will be working on teaching Indy basic obedience skills and to help give him confidence, understanding of boundaries, and manners to help co-exist with his family. Stay tuned for his transformation.
Pupdate 12/03/2023
Indy's afternoon has been a little tense as expected. He isn't happy with his housemates and has told them several times. For the most part they have left him alone. At meal time Indy stuck himself in a corner of the kitchen. I sat down on the floor to work with him. He was happy to come out of the corner to take the food from me. Once Indy realized the other dogs might be eating, they had already finished their food.
Indy and I have been outside several times, walked a little, but he is pacing and trying to go the opposite direction.
The video is the evaluation of his obedience knowledge or willingness to follow direction. We also noticed a few scabs on Indy's face that we originally thought were moles.
Pupdate 12/04/2023
Indy’s breakfast time is working on sit and down. He realized, again, that the other two dogs were eating in the other room. He tried to go to the baby gate to check it out, but returned to me when I called him. He wants all of his kibble coated with Merrick topper and avoids the pieces that are not.
We’ve gone on several walks, working on the heeling and sit position. When he does sit, he’s not at the point of staying in a sit. As we pass houses with barking dogs, Indy gets nervous and slows down, even tries to turn around. I’m working on off command so that he can focus on working and continue the walk. During picture time we did see one cat, all he did was watch. No whining or lunging to get to the cat. Future exercises with cats will be using the off command.
Funny comment on the reindeers. Last night we walked by them, and they were all lit up, Indy ignored them. This morning we walked by them and he panicked. Once I got him to walk by them, we returned to them so he could sniff them. As you can see in the photo, he has mastered that fear.
Pupdate 12/05/2023
The photo attached is added per Jesse’s request to know where Indy is sleeping. The kennel is next to the front door in case any emergency potty breaks are needed.
Monday night Indy feel asleep about 9:30pm and then woke up about 11:30, started whining and digging at the crate. I figured it was an emergency potty break and was up immediately to take him out. Nothing, Indy even took me back inside.
Got everyone tucked back into bed, started drifting off and Indy was not having it. He continued to whine and attempt to dig out of the crate. I tried waiting him out, but after an hour, he won. Back outside to try for a potty break but with the same result. Long story short, I sat in the chair where Indy could see me until he fell asleep.
I’m using mealtimes to reinforce sit and introducing down commands. We went to a couple of parks and I had a chance to see how Indy is nervous when he sees other dogs. While working next to a dog park, we had a nosy French Bulldog try to entice Indy to play chase. We were working and Indy did well in ignoring the dog.
While videoing, Indy started to sit upon request and while on a water break, Indy was willing to lay down on my first request. I tried during the video to get another down with no luck. However, I do anticipate that we’ll be getting down placements upon request soon.
Indy is still not willing to have any nice conversations with the house dogs.
Pupdate 12/06/2023
At the end of the day, I try to take Indy out for a long walk. The idea is to unload all the excess energy he might have left. Last night I was gifted with the lights on in the school tennis court, no one was playing on the court, and the gate was unlocked. I like to use the tennis courts to gauge how training is going and what needs focus for off leash work. Indy was so focused on the shadows, who or what was on the outside of the court, that it was difficult to get him to refocus on the job at hand. I will be doing additional work at the tennis courts or other locations as the opportunities arise.
Today was an early start for the household, with no usual mealtime game playing happening. Indy seems to be tired of that anyway. As I was getting ready to go through the list of commands before giving Indy his bowl, he offered me a come to sit. That's when you ask for a come, they walk to your right side, go behind you and sit on the left. It was perfect! How could I not give him his breakfast!!
And my reward for that was Indy purposely pushing the babygate over after he was told OFF. I get it, it's just like telling the toddler no to everything and then it turns into a game. How far can you push it before you get in trouble. Silly boy.
But once we arrived at Pathfinder Community Regional Park in Rowland Heights, the work began. Overall this was a quiet, relaxing park up along a hillside. Indy seemed anxious on one side where there were a few people walking along the path and / or working the outdoor exercise equipment and a few dogs working with their trainers. There is a children's jungle gym but there weren't any children present until later during the training. The other side of the park had pillars and was more secluded without very much action. Indy was definitely calmer in that area.
Indy did lots of heeling and sits, we used the pillars to weave between. That helped Indy work on when to speed up or slow down depending on the direction we were weaving. Indy has started backing into a sit which places him behind me on a heel. I'm using leash pressure to place him correctly. Sometimes he also tries to face me when he sits. For that I found some cement benches to have him sit next to which help align his body correctly.
The first picture is his first Place. This command can be used to send him to a crate or to his bed at home. A Place command includes an extended down - to be released with a new command, come, or break. He did very well with it once he understood what was being asked of him.
We also practiced the down command as well as extended sits and downs. This is the first time I've been able to have Indy go down when asked in an outside environment. Overall, Indy had a lot of fun in today's training. The other two pictures were on some of the flat surfaces on the slides. A happy boy, and a great day of work.
Pupdate 12/07/2023
Today's Pupdate begins with Indy deciding that the big bed - my bed - is his and he helps himself to it. This is one of those rules that dogs are not allowed on couches, chairs, beds, etc, unless invited. Indy quickly got an OFF and time out. The next habit to work on is paws on the counter top, also a big no no. That one got a big sound to get his attention and reminder that's an off.
Thought we had a cat opportunity this morning; one of the neighbor cats was down the street hunting a gopher. He was about five feet from the sidewalk, surely Indy would want to visit a cat that close. I went in to get Indy and as we walked out the door, I saw the cat give up on the gopher and walk away. So close.
Today we traveled to Santa Monica Pier. Very different environment than the park from yesterday and Indy was in high alert mode. It took us three times walking the boardwalk before Indy was comfortable to do some video. We tried several different leads with him and ended on the lead that goes over the snout. I needed to help him tune out all the environmental chaos so he could focus on working. For example, sounds like people walking, talking, barking dogs, kids running and chattering, birds walking around and then flying at a moment's notice, and music. One was playing guitar to a low background of light jazz and as soon as Indy and I were about ten feet away, the music was cranked up. It even made me jump. Indy and I worked through it and passed by.
From my own dog's experience - Diego doesn't like deep sounding drums, and live music scares him. I have taken him to places with live music and each time his reaction is better - he realizes it's not going to hurt him.
At the very end of the pier there is a gentleman who's playing guitar to background rock music. The first time we walked up he was ending a song with a vibrato note. I wish I had gotten a picture of Indy, he stopped, looked at the musician, and cocked his head, moving it as the note was moving higher and lower. It was so cute that I didn't have the heart to interrupt and refocus him until the moment was done.
Why is all this important? Indy needs set rules that he knows what the consequences are going to be, and can count on those consequences every time. He also needs experiences that are new that can replace some of the scary ones that he grew up with. This way he can grow with more rounded experiences and confidence and learn the proper way to act versus the reaction he's doing now when he doesn't get his way.
This afternoon Indy tried to engage Diego in some play through the baby gate at the kitchen door. He did a freeze watch which I have seen dogs do, but Diego wasn't ready for that and moved away. Have some relationship building to do there.
Pupdate 12/08/2023
Indy’s morning didn’t start off so well. After a couple of bites of kibble he anxiously communicated he needed to go potty. We already went once, but that was pee. We went outside and he immediately started going, at first it was formed and firm, but near the end it had turned to diarrhea. A couple more times out and he seemed to have cleared it out of his system. Strange, no other symptoms and other dogs are fine. He hasn’t been outside without me so no chance of getting something he wasn’t suppose to.
Change in food, boiled chicken and rice for a few meals. First bowl was at 11am.
What to do on a day with an upset stomach? Extended downs and places. Didn’t seem to like the idea of getting his picture taken, kept getting up from his down to follow me. Great opportunities to work him to stay in a down.
Pupdate 12/09/2023
Last night Indy seemed hungry so I gave him another cup of white rice with chicken. Although he seemed to feel better this morning, I gave him another helping of the rice and chicken. His stools are not completely back to normal yet.
Indy and I spent about 90 minutes at Lowes in Ventura. We started on the contractor side and heeled up and down the aisles, getting comfortable with all the sounds and smells. Ran into several dogs but Indy was comfortable and kept heeling. The good news, he is gaining confidence in working.
Indy received several compliments about how well he was doing and how impressed they were. We had one individual who stopped and spoke to us for awhile, he was hoping to say hi to Indy. Indy on the other hand was a perfect pup and sat there the whole time, but he was not interested in visiting.
While walking around there were several children around, shopping with their parents. As seen in the video, we would walk by and continue working.
Pupdate 12/10/2023
Last night while Indy was playing with Diego, Indy forgot himself and jumped into a chair. All playing was stopped and Indy was reminded that furniture is off base.
Today during his afternoon walk, he noticed a cat crossing the street and alerted. Not something I would react on normally but because we’re looking to leave cats at home alone, I corrected on that.
Part of going to the various new environments is to get different sounds, experiences, things that might facilitate a reaction from Indy. It could be things that startle him, something he wants to chase, it could even be something that distracts him enough that he’s focusing on it to figure out what’s going on instead of focusing on his job. I’m looking for anything that helps Indy understand that his main focus is the person he’s connected to.
Indy’s heeling has improved drastically with practice. Today's training was focusing on sitting at the end of the heel, and extended sits. Indy tends to forget, due to distractions, that he is supposed to be sitting and will get up after about 20 seconds to go and investigate something. Indy knows this by now, so we are doing multiple extended sits to help reinforce it and stay consistent.
Pupdate 12/11/2023
Today Indy and I were out at Central Park in Pasadena. Indy is working well with loose leads - no leash tension - and improving his extended sits after working on it last night. His recalls are doing better although he is slow to go behind into a sit.
The new noises of the day were fire truck sirens and large trucks going down the road. Indy was uncomfortable at the first fire truck siren, he was looking for somewhere to hide. It helped that it was leaving the area and when the second one happened he wasn't so worried about it. When the loud trucks were going down the street, Indy didn't even care about them because the sirens were so much louder.
In the video another trainer and I are working together to help add extra distractions around the dogs. Indy did very well with the cart going right through our working area. I stepped in when the white Maremmano - that's a guardian dog that looks similar to a Great Pyrenees - was walking by to give Indy extra support while he was on the cot.
I was working by several large squirrels to help with distractions for Indy. He was fixated at first and then ignored them as we continued training.
Indy has not shown any resource guarding with my dogs. I feed my female in front of his crate, then release him and he goes right into the kitchen for his meal. Also Indy has taken Diego's toys. When Diego comes to him, the two of them start to play tug - with no growling or aggression.
At the house Indy continues to push boundaries, looking to see how long he can do something before he knows I'm serious. For example, when a dog is told to sit, and they don't, and told again, and multiple times. I've heard people say that's "teaching the dog to count". They know that they'll be told five times (for example) before they actually have to sit. My goal is we say it once, and Indy will do what we ask the first time. This is what is needed with Indy, structure and to understand when given an instruction.
Pupdate 12/12/2023
Can you tell? Today was an extended sit day.
This morning we started out with breakfast. I had Indy walk by the Akita who was eating. Indy didn’t look her way or show any interest in her food. As a side note, the Akita would not react if he would have gone for her food. That’s my job to protect her.
He went into the kitchen on his own to wait for his food. He successfully waited 1 minute in a sit before I released him to eat. The only issue, he wants me - or someone - to be in the room while he eats.
Later in the morning we went on a mile walk to practice heeling with extended sits and come to sit recalls. We came by a house with three large dogs, only one was out. Indy and I walked in front of the house before the large white dog inside the fence line reached us. Indy was anxious but went into a down when asked, as did the other dog. Indy’s demeanor relaxed once he realized the dog also went into a down and was not after him. Indy was calmly looking around the environment and the dog for a few minutes before we continued on our walk and training.
We also practiced door manners. He handled that easily until I introduced distractions - Diego. With dogs at home I knew that could be an issue. This is going to be a command you use often while dealing with Indy and the other dogs. Not necessarily going out the door but to help control Indy’s excitement and demand of attention We will continue practicing.
At the end of the day Indy and I walked old town, Ventura. Indy received several compliments today about his obedience skills and ability to pose for photos in front of the Christmas tree.
There were a lot of people walking with their dogs, as well as people on motorized bicycles. Indy walked with confidence, sat when asked, and did several nice come to sits without any guidance.
As we were returning to the car, we walked by several dancers dressed as Pacific Islanders getting ready for a performance. They had beaded cones as part of their costume that made noise as they walked. There was no reaction from Indy.
The only place Indy really had a problem in his extended sit was in the gazebo. I believe because it was an open area with people spread out, some in groups sitting or laying on the grass. I would say Indy was more on alert than being anxious.
Pupdate 12/13/2023
Today Indy and I were focusing on in-house manners. We started with breakfast again, and this time he walked by the Akita off leash and went straight into the kitchen for his food.
During the playtime between Indy and Diego, Indy went towards the Akita to play. I interceded, told Indy Off, then redirected him to Diego. We are also practicing OFF during playtime, to help teach Indy to stop whatever he's doing, including play! It's improving, he just can't help himself to stop for 15 seconds and then fall back into playing.
As we've been practicing door manners, Indy's extended sits at the door to go out or come in have improved. The video is day two of practicing door manners. I was very proud of Indy for not trying to interact with Diego as Diego walks around him or runs past him. I did find it interesting that Indy decided to lay down in a place to try and block the whole walkway. Note to self to be more aware of that while we continue to practice.
I have realized that these extended sits and downs take all of Indy's concentration. As you practice these exercises in and out of the house, be sure to try and give him play time in between the sits and / or downs. He gets overwhelmed and is unable to follow any command when he hits that point.
I also tried to duplicate the 'coffee table incidents' at dinner time. I placed all three dogs in an extended down. Indy was in the middle of my two dogs. I threw a chunk of chicken to Kiki, the Akita. Indy got up and took two steps towards her, I jumped up and gave him a strong off. He stopped in his tracks and faced me, I had him return to where he was laying and replaced him in an extended down. From there I handed Diego a small piece of chicken, and then to Indy. Indy never moved again but waited his turn. Each dog received four pieces of chicken.
Indy is still pushing boundaries. A couple of times while we were practicing inside, Indy would make choices of not coming when called and going in the other direction.
Pupdate 12/14/2023
Today we practiced Indy's extended downs / place and sits at Santa Monica Pier, a busy environment. Indy had a hard time going into downs with all the people around. We moved to the back of the pier where there were fewer people and less background noise. The areas I picked him to place were off the ground and up the stairs a few feet, hoping he would feel a little more secure. Once I found the perfect place, Indy had enough and said maybe another day.
He received lots of compliments while we were working on heeling, getting place to place. As long as he was on the move, Indy was pretty happy. I chose to use a shorter leash to work him today. He was able to hold his extended sits better because I was close by.
The last picture is Indy at the house, blowing off a little steam.
Pupdate 12/15/23
In the evening yesterday we played with downs in the crate. I left the door open, I just wanted him to lay down. He chose to stay in the crate even though I released him on a BREAK command. He would whine until I reminded him he could leave, the only thing I said the boys couldn't do was play. It was late in the evening.
Today was a regrouping with my pack - dogs included - to see how we could help Indy with his extended downs.. I had some leftover kibble from breakfast so that's where I started. Indy is getting frustrated because he feels like it's not any fun. It seemed to help if I presented a down fast and he could follow me with his paws.
It was looking pretty good until I reminded myself that he needs to get it out into the environment. The video is at Pacific View Mall in Ventura. Indy did pretty well, I moved in to support him when I heard excited children who wanted to see the puppy. Indy started getting overwhelmed and I pulled out some more of the kibble to try and help him relax so we could keep working. Near the end of the video Indy couldn't get his job right so I stopped the video to give him a break.
We had a young lady come up who wanted to say hi and pet Indy. We gave it a try and Indy was willing to approach her but wasn't willing to be pet. Continuing to work on that as well.
Pupdate 12/16/2023
Today, Indy and Diego decided to pal around together. It started with Diego‘s Nosework class, which is on a ranch in Agoura Hills. Indy decided the horses look like big dogs but they made funny noises. Bottom line, he was not a fan.
Diego was hoping to introduce Indy to the really nice owner, but Indy wasn’t having anything to do with it.
The next stop was Balboa lake, Indy wanted to show Diego around. Indy was a bit shy around all the kids, and was having a difficult time listening to what was being said due to anxiety. Diego told Indy he had this, and they both laid down and took a pause in the grass. Chilled out, Indy was much more relaxed on the way back to the car.
The final stop was the Santa Monica pier, Indy had some unfinished business and the idea was that Diego could give some support to Indy. That idea backfired, it was actually Indy being Diego's support dog.
It started on the stairs from the parking down to the street and Indy was actually barking/yelling in Diego‘s ear. I recognize Diego‘s anxiety and corrected Indy. I can only assume that Indy was trying to distract Diego from his fear. Diego could feel the metal stairs shaking.
Indy acted like an old pro while he led Diego through the crowds of people, the sideshows, and loud, pounding music. Indy’s heels were spot on.
Indy’s unfinished business included extended downs and sits. Unfortunately, Diego could not be present to help support his buddy.
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