Journee | Chocolate Lab | Mission Viejo, CA | In-Training
- Scott Hansen
- 3 days ago
- 9 min read
Updated: 4 hours ago
Meet Journiee! Journiee is a three-year-old Chocolate Lab here for our Two-Week Community Board and Train Program. Journiee is a nice pup; however, he does display several unwanted behaviors. Journiee has terrible leash manners, will not recall, and has no obedience. Journiee can perform a command or two with proper motivation; however, he lacks structure and will perform the tasks inconsistently. Journiee was recently adopted by his pup parents and is in desperate need of structure and obedience! Over the next fourteen days, Journiee is going to learn to be an obedient pup through consistent, clear communication and balanced training at home and by discovering new people and places. Journiee will learn to perform all these things on and off leash through a positive and balanced training environment. Through structure and consistency, Journiee will demonstrate how great a pup he can be! Stay tuned for Journiee’s two-week transformation!
Journee | Chocolate Lab | Pupdate 02/14/26
Today, Mr. Journee joined me for his Two-Week Community Board and Train Program. On the way home, we stopped at a local park to see what commands Mr. Journee could perform. He did not do very well! But I think you know that, and that's why he's here. After I tested his skills, we had a mini photoshoot for his profile picture for his blog. I don't know if you know this, but as soon as dogs see a phone or camera in front of their face, you are now invisible to them, and they must ignore you at all costs. I was also able to give Mr.Journee a better look over once we got to a calmer area. I noticed the two little scabs on his right ear. Once we got what we needed, we loaded up and headed to Mr. Journiee's temporary residence for the next two weeks.
Once we got home, I let Mr. Journiee smell Ms. Toji, Mr. Ace, Mr Grizzly through the front gate. Ms. Toji and the gang were excited to see Mr. Journee. Mr. Journee was willing to sniff her without issue. Mr. Journee had no problems coming to the house. I let him explore each room and meet everyone. Throughout the introductions, Mr. Journiee showed no adverse reactions. I took Mr. Journiee outside to meet Ms. Toji, Mr. Atlas, and Mr. Ace through the fence. Mr. Journee was excited to meet them. I think Mr. Journiee and the other pups will be fine hanging out with each other.
We then went on a long walk around the block so that he could get used to the sights, sounds, and scents of his temporary new neighborhood. He had a lot of issues walking around the block. This was probably one of the worst dogs I have ever walked around the block on the first day. He was super interested in and very stubborn when sniffing things he enjoyed. He tried pulling ahead of me the entire time. He mostly ignored all the other dogs in the houses that barked at us as we went around. He was not good at holding the brakes and slowing himself down. He never checked in with me and couldn't care less about the pressure on the flat collar. I can see that he is going to need some different tools to get his attention.
I don't know whether Mr. Journee is actually three years old or not. I do know that Mr. Journee does not like being told what to do, held accountable, and has zero respect for human input. With clear, persistent communication and expectations, he will learn to be a well-mannered pup!
I gave him dinner and will observe how much he eats. I keep track of his weight and will ensure that he maintains his weight while he is with me.
I've attached the e-collar familiarization video. Please review the video a few times before Mr. Journee's turnover. We'll practice together to make sure you are comfortable with the system before using it with Mr. Journee. I will introduce the e-collar for tomorrow’s training. Mr. Journee is going to benefit from the e-collar, prong collar, the gentle leader, or a combination of the tools until we are only left with the e-collar.
Journee | Chocolate Lab | Pupdate 2/15/26
Today, I introduced the e-collar system to Mr. Journee. I had my pup, Ms. Toji, help out since I don't have any other dogs at the moment. Ms. Toji and Mr. Journee have been spending the day together and are getting along well.
I like to start by playing with the pups. I like to get the dog in a high-stimulation mindset. This was accomplished by playing fetch with the pups. Once we are playing, I put the e-collar on loosely. Then we go back to playing. Then I secure the e-collar more firmly. Back to playing. Then I start at 0 and work my way up the e-collar remote, 5 levels at a time, until I see a twitch, tail wag, paw, or something that disrupts the pup from doing what they were doing. Mr. Journee gave me the first hint at level 10. Then we worked up to level 20, where he gave me a significant, pronounced response to the e-collar. This would be his limit, where we don't really want to go over level 20 unless necessary. We will work around level 10. This is a great number. I can only feel the first stimulation at level 10, and it goes all the way up to level 100. I gave him some treats while practicing the "sit", "place", and tried to give him a treat in the "heel", but he kept dropping them. He seemed to be much calmer once the e-collar stimulation had been introduced to him. He has been a happy-go-lucky guy at the house. You already knew that. We need to teach him his basic obedience in little to no distraction environments prior to taking him out to where his triggers are.
He didn't eat much of his dinner yesterday or breakfast. Maybe it was because he had to eat with the other pups around that he didn't know. They went home today, and there won't be anyone else around while he eats. I'll continue to monitor his food intake daily. I do weigh him frequently as well to ensure that he is consuming enough calories to maintain a healthy weight.
He did get upgraded to the big crate and will have my dog room, aka my office, to himself and me going forward. This will build a good rapport between him and me as we progress in his training. Unfortunately, there is some rain coming our way, but we will adapt and ensure that we get his training completed!
Journee | Chocolate Lab | Pupdate 02/16/26
Today, Mr. Journee and I headed over to our local Home Depot. The rain can't stop us! Mr. Journee did pretty well. I did use the prong collar to gain more control of Mr. Journee after our initial walk two days ago. We definitely need more control over Mr. Journee in all situations, known and unknown, until we get him dialed in with his obedience. He was reactive, barking at a man pushing a cart while holding an umbrella. I gave him an "off" and used leash pressure and a stimulation to disrupt that behavior. Mr. Journee gave up and got back to his "heel".
We focused on his "heel", extended "sit", found a low pallet to practice "place", and even had one of the Home Depot employees say "hi" to Mr. Journee on our way out. His "heel" felt much nicer today than the last two days. We just have to work on it through repetition, which will be slightly hampered by this rainstorm, but do not fret, as we will be conducting a lot of repetitions indoors. Whatever we might not get to fully reinforce indoors, once the rain stops, it will be double time!
Make no mistake, we have been working on Mr. Journee since he arrived. A few things that you may not see every day in his training are the small things that build up to a well-behaved and well-structured pup. The first thing is behaving in the crate. No more pawing and scratching at the crate, whether in my car or indoors, to be let out. He is required to sit politely before being let out. Failure to do so, I close the door, and we wait until he calms down. This also applies to jumping and scratching the door(s) to the house. That kind of behavior will not give you what you want. Secondly, are his door manners. He is learning to sit and wait politely for the door to be opened before he can be allowed to go through it. Third, he must sit and wait politely for his food. All of these things are adding up to him learning how to exhibit more desired behaviors, such as walking politely, recalling, and sitting politely, than unwanted behaviors, i.e., pulling on the leash, barking, and reacting to other dogs. He is a good little pup, and we just need to build the structure and reinforce those good, wanted behaviors.
Lastly, he is eating all his food. Seems like he only wants to eat it when a human is around. This is leading to good, healthy poops. He's adjusting well and making good progress!
Journee | Chocolate Lab | Pupdate 02/17/26
Today, Mr. Journee took advantage of the break in the rain to head to Rynerson Park in Lakewood, CA. Luckily, there was a significant break in the rain, and I wanted to get out of the house while we could. Rynerson Park is an extremely dog-friendly park. There is a dog park nearby (we won't be going in there), but as a result of its proximity, many people walk their pups through the park. At first, there was no one in sight except a few runners. Then the dog wave came! We'll get to that.
We started by working on the things that I have already introduced to Mr. Journee, such as the "heel" and "sit". We start on a good, positive note to get Mr. Journee into the right mindset. I worked on getting him to extend his "sit" to one minute. It took a few tries, but we made it! Then I introduced the "come-to-sit" command or simply the verbal "Come!" for Mr. Journee. He did pretty well with this one.
Then, right as I was about to introduce and work on his final command "down", they crested over the hill. A menagerie of tiny dogs. They approached with their furious intent of dominating the park! Well, not really. They were simply heading back to their cars, but were in direct line of sight and within a triggering range for Mr. Journee. I switched gears and we encountered them head-on! In dog training, we do not avoid our problems, rather we head right into them. I was able to get Mr. Journee under a little control while performing the "heel". I did have to move up quite a bit on the e-collar. Around 60 or 70 to disrupt the behavior. Walking straight towards them while he was fixated on them was quite the ask of Mr. Journee. He handled it well, considering how bad it was a few days ago when I first brought him there to conduct his photo shoot. I was able to use my long line; it didn't burn my hands, and he didn't try to rip my arm off trying to go after them. When we turned and walked in the opposite direction, I was able to get him to calm down rapidly and get back on task. I immediately lowered the e-collar back to around 20 while I let go of all pressure on the leash to allow him to recover without the stress of the prong collar and e-collar.
We rolled into the "place", then I introduced the "down". He didn't resist too much, and on the final try of the day, he did it with little leash pressure. We cleaned up the cot and the tripod. As I was about to go for a small walk around the park, the enemy presented themselves again! A squad of huskies and shepherds rolled into the park with their good leash walking and better-than-everyone-else attitudes. Mr. Journee wasn't having that! He spotted them and fell into a state of hyperfocus.
Alas, we applied more stimulation and stronger pressure on the prong collar. We crossed each other's paths. Then I swung around and had Mr. Journee walk behind the pack. About 40-50' away from them, but well within Mr. Journee's vision and scent. I was able to get him under control once again by moving up to about 60 on the e-collar and significant prong collar pressure. Once he was calm, all pressure was released, and we walked under control while trailing the perpetrators of good leash walking. I then turned back around and gave him a "Break!" to go potty or do whatever he wanted. I did not want to give him a treat or reward him with physical touch. He was in a heightened state of mind. Highly aroused and triggered. Any reinforcement in this mental state could perpetuate that mindset. I simply let him sniff around, go potty, and gave no pressure after pushing him through those encounters and training. We loaded up and headed back home.
Lastly, his food intake and weight are doing well. I have even been letting him and Ms. Toji hang out around the house. I normally don't let the board and train pups hang out with Ms. Toji, but they are getting along well, and Mr. Journee enjoys having either a person or another pup around.
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