Meet Kobe, he's a four-month-old Goldendoodle from Los Angeles, California! This sweet and playful pup is here with us for our Three Week Puppy Board and Train Program, where we will work on teaching him basic obedience and manners, as well as provide potty training. He doesn't have much knowledge of basic commands yet, and has a short attention span which causes him to be easily distracted. He comes to us with some undesirable behaviors that are common with puppies, such as barking for attention, pulling on the leash, jumping up on people, play biting, and having potty accidents when excited! Over the next twenty-one days, we will be working on improving his obedience, discipline, and manners to set him on the right path to becoming a well-behaved pup. Stay tuned for his transformation!
Pupdate 11/17/2024
Today Kobe and I spent the day bonding and getting to know each other at the park after he was dropped off with me. He quickly warmed up to me, but was generally more interested in exploring around rather than focusing on me. He was very interested in birds, squirrels, other dogs, people, grass, and soccer balls, and would often try to pull towards, investigate, or bark at various distractions.
While at the park, I tested his current knowledge of commands to get an idea of where his starting point is and what areas may need some extra focus going forward. He would sometimes Come to me when called with enough excitement to motivate him, but it often took several asks before he responded, and once he got to me he was quick to either jump on me or wander back off again. When asked to Heel, he didn't seem to recognize the command at all and was almost always at the end of the leash attempting to walk wherever he wanted to go. He seemed to understand Sit, however he was very inconsistent about following through with it. If he did Sit, he would almost always stand back up and start walking away after a second or two. He wasn't able to perform Down on command, and didn't seem to understand what was being asked of him. He also liked to playfully bite at my hands when trying to use the Down hand signal! I also asked him to Place on some low, easy to reach objects, but he didn't seem to understand what was being asked of him and seemed to lack the confidence to attempt any jumps even with plenty of encouragement. He didn't seem to have any understanding of leash pressure either, and would often ignore or try to pull against the leash when pressure was created.
After our time at the park, it was time to head home and get him settled into my home. He wasn't able to jump into the car on his own, but was comfortable with being picked up and placed into the car. He also didn't have any issue with going into the kennel within the car, and happily went inside with some gentle guidance and settled in for the ride home, which is a great display of Car Manners. Anytime Kobe is to ride in a car with me, he will be secured in a kennel for his utmost safety. He will also be in a kennel at home during nighttime or any other time he is unsupervised. This will be a useful tool in his potty training journey as well, as pups are instinctually discouraged from going potty inside their sleeping area. Upon arriving home, he had some time to explore around and become familiar with his new environment. When I offered him some food he jumped on me a lot and was very impatient for his food, so we will be working on improving his Food Manners! Later, we went out for a walk around my neighborhood to let him go potty and become familiar with the area. When exiting the house to start our walk, Kobe kept trying to run out the door as soon as it was opened, so we will also be working to improve his Door Manners to make sure he can respect the boundary a doorway creates as this will help keep him safe. During the walk, he went potty several times in some grassy areas, for which he was heavily rewarded to encourage the good behavior. Starting tomorrow, will be taking walks around the neighborhood multiple times daily to work on potty and obedience training. Overall he seems to be settling in nicely, and we are so excited to begin this training journey together!
Pupdate 11/18/2024
Kobe and I worked on his training around my neighborhood today. The neighborhood was pretty quiet in the morning hours with not many distractions around, which was a good time to begin introducing Kobe to his training as the calm environment encouraged focus and learning. Closer to the evening hours, the neighborhood got much more lively, with lots of people, dogs, bicycles, and other kinds of distractions out and about. We also took our evening walk with Iggy the Sheepadoodle, who is also staying with me for a board and train program. He loves playing with Iggy, so she was another great distraction to work around. Today we focused on introducing him to the concept of leash pressure, along with the Come to Sit command.
Pressure is a fundamental tool used in teaching basic obedience commands. The idea is that whenever leash pressure is applied, it is paired with a command. The pressure then remains present until Kobe follows the pressure and performs the behavior or command being asked of him. The moment he follows through, the pressure immediately turns off and a reward is given. Yesterday, whenever the leash was used to apply pressure, he would firmly resist it, try to pull in the opposite direction, and made no attempt to turn the pressure off, so it was clear he didn't quite understand the concept of leash pressure just yet. We spent a good amount of time focusing on teaching him what leash pressure means, and how to turn off the pressure once it's applied. We practiced some simple exercises by applying leash pressure, encouraging him to follow it, and rewarding him when he did! He learned that trying to resist it was not successful or rewarding, and that simply following the directional pressure and paying attention to what I was asking of him was very simple and rewarding! After a while of practicing with this, he did much better and began showing a good understanding of leash pressure!
Come to Sit is an important command to begin practicing early on in Kobe's training journey, as having a solid recall is important for any pup's safety and obedience training. The goal for Come to Sit is for Kobe to come when called, approach my right side, circle around my back, and finish with a Sit facing forward on the left side. He is asked to hold this Sit until released with "Break", or given a new command. This ensures he not only comes when called, but also that he remains stationary until told otherwise. The Come to Sit maneuver when completed in its entirety also sets him up to be in the perfect position to begin walking in a Heel, which we will introduce tomorrow. We introduced the Come to Sit command today by combining the verbal command "Come" with guidance from the leash to grab his attention and guide him towards me. Once he came over to me, he was then guided around and to my left side where he was asked to perform a Sit. With each successful repetition, I made sure to give him lots of praise and rewards to build up a positive association with the command and the action of coming to me when called. He'll need some more work with this command before he is consistent with it, though for his first day with this command, he did a good job! We made sure to give Kobe lots of breaks during training, to let him enjoy sniffing and playing around between training, which helps keep training fun while also serving as a reward for good behavior!
Kobe's potty training is going well so far, and he hasn't had any accidents in the kennel or in the house. During the daytime, I've been taking him outside every couple of hours and encouraging him to go with the "go potty" cue, which he seems to be understanding. He goes almost every time we go out for a potty break. We will be working to establish a potty schedule that works for Kobe, and each day we will be very gradually increasing the amount of time in between potty breaks so he can learn to hold it for longer periods throughout the day without having accidents.
Pupdate 11/19/2024
Today Kobe and I continued to work on his training around my neighborhood. We continued to practice his Come to Sit command, and introduced two new commands, Off and Heel! The neighborhood had some common distractions around, such as people, other dogs, squirrels and birds, as well as the occasional bicycle or noisy car passing by.
Kobe is often easily distracted, as he tends to focus on his surroundings even when asked to perform commands. Moments like this are a great opportunity to implement the Off command. The goal for the Off command is for Kobe to stop whatever he is doing, and focus on his handler. This is a very versatile command, similar to "no" or "leave it", and can be used in various situations, such as to interrupt fixation on distractions, barking, jumping on people, eating or sniffing things he's not supposed to, or any other behaviors that are undesirable or inappropriate at that time. He is a young pup who tends to act without thinking more often than not, so this command will be great in improving his overall impulse control! The verbal Off command when paired with leash pressure allows us to interrupt the behavior and help him to refocus so that he is in a better mindset to listen for upcoming instructions. Once the Off command is given, it's beneficial to immediately follow it with another command such as Sit, Come, Heel, etc. Once he stops whatever behavior he was doing, asking him to set his focus on a task will help keep his attention away from what initially distracted him or caused the undesirable behavior. Kobe has shown good progress in understanding the Off command so far, and with each repetition, he seemed to be quicker to respond and refocus when prompted. However, more work will need to be done in various situations before he is fully reliable with the command.
Heel is another important concept for Kobe to begin developing early on in his training as he tends to pull on the leash and veer off in different directions when walking. While he is small now, the older and bigger he gets, the more of an issue this will become as he's already quite strong for his size! The goal for the Heel command is for Kobe to be able to follow directly alongside me on my left side, and maintain that position while walking unless released or given a new command. This precise positioning takes a lot of practice to master, but it will effectively allow his handler to take the lead on walks instead of him trying to pull them around wherever he pleases. To introduce this command, I kept the leash short but loose, and ensured he stayed on my left side in roughly the Heel position as we walked. If he began to veer off, pull ahead, or otherwise create tension on the leash, he was given some guidance with the leash and the verbal command "Heel" command was given until he returned to the desired position. During Heel, his sole focus should be following his handler's lead, and as such he needs to remain neutral to and ignore his environment, which will definitely take some practice to accomplish. He sometimes struggled to ignore distractions around us, but he eventually began to grasp the concept, stopped trying to pull as much, and instead learned to follow my lead. When walking in the correct Heel position, the leash was loose, no pressure was applied, and lots of praise and rewards were given to create value in this position. As he gets better with this command, he will have an easier time staying in the Heel position without as much guidance needed, and will need to be given reminders less frequently. Overall he did a good job today and seemed to catch on pretty quickly, though more work will need to be done before he can Heel reliably, especially around distractions.
On another note, Kobe's potty training is going pretty well overall! He did have one accident inside today however, though it was due to him having a bit of an upset tummy. He didn't seem as interested in his breakfast today, and a short while after eating he began whining and pacing around, then ended up having a soft stool accident before we could make it fully out the door. Once outside he finished going potty, but ended up needing a few more urgent trips throughout the afternoon. During lunch we added a scoop of pumpkin puree to his kibble which seems to have helped settle his stomach, as by evening his stool returned to normal and he didn't have any further accidents. We added some more pumpkin to his dinner meal, and hopefully tomorrow he will continue to have normal bowel movements.
Pupdate 11/20/2024
Today Kobe and I began our training session at home, where we introduced two new commands, Place and Down. Once he made some progress with these commands, we moved outside to train around the neighborhood with more distractions present. Later, we visited an indoor mall, where we put all of his commands to the test around higher distraction levels! The mall was pretty busy with holiday shoppers, so there were many groups of people, other dogs, and of course other distractions found in public places such as food and music. Overall he did a good job with his training today, and the Off command got lots of use which helped keep his focus on target.
The goal for the Place command is for Kobe to jump or climb onto a designated object, such as a bench, a bed, or another object with defined borders, and hold a stationary command while remaining on the Place object until released or given a new command. We introduced this command at home using a familiar object, a dog cot. He is comfortable climbing onto and relaxing on the cot in his own time, so this was a good object to use and help set him up for success. We used some leash pressure to guide him onto the cot while giving the verbal Place cue, which he quickly picked up on. After a few repetitions, he quickly picked up on what was being asked of him and was able to Place with minimal to no leash pressure. Around the neighborhood and at the mall, we practiced Place with various other objects such as benches, rocks, and other items. He did pretty well with this, though he sometimes needed a bit of guidance or extra encouragement to get him to jump up onto higher objects. He was however able to jump into my car on his own for the first time today, which was great to see! We will continue practicing this command with different objects in a variety of environments to improve Kobe's confidence and overall skills with this command!
The other command introduced to Kobe today is the Down command. The goal for the Down command is for Kobe to lay down completely when asked, and remain in that position until released or given a new command. To begin working on this command, we used leash pressure and physical guidance to guide Kobe into the Down position while the verbal command was given. Occasional food motivators were also useful in luring, rewarding, and building a positive association with the position. He caught onto this command quickly, and was able to perform it both indoors and around the neighborhood without much trouble. At the mall he was a bit more hesitant and needed some guidance each time, but that is to be expected in these early stages of training. We kept the duration for this command pretty short at first with lots of breaks and praise, as this helps make the training fun and rewarding. As we continue to practice this we will continue increasing the duration gradually so he can learn to remain in this position for extended periods of time.
Pupdate 11/21/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a local park, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. The park was decently busy, and had many people and other dogs, alongside other distractions such as squirrels, ball games, and scooters.
Kobe was definitely excited to be at the park, but he managed to stay relatively focused overall. He was initially very distracted by a family playing soccer and running around in a nearby field, though after using the Off command and encouraging him to practice obedience commands around the distraction, he gradually became less interested in it, allowing us to train near them without him getting too excited. He often struggled with performing commands properly when people or other dogs were walking past us at a close distance, such as when passing us on the pathway. He tends to impulsively try to approach these distractions, causing him to break commands. With a reminder, he understands to focus back on his obedience, though we will need to spend more time working on this to help improve his self control.
Kobe did well with his Heel overall, and seems to be catching onto the command! He does need regular leash guidance and reminders when working around distractions as he tends to lose focus quickly and begin to drift out of position, though these moments of focus are beginning to be longer and more frequent which is good to see! He did well with the recall aspect of Come to Sit, and he always came bounding over to me happily whenever called. He still needs some work on his positioning however as he tends to Sit either in front of me or facing backwards. His stationary commands of Sit, Down, and Place all were pretty good today, and he seems to understand each one well at this point. We will need to focus on improving his durations for these commands, as he struggled to stay still and hold these positions for longer than about fifteen seconds at a time as he would get impatient and want to move around.
Kobe's potty training is going well, and he has had no further accidents in the house. He seems to be understanding the verbal cue "go potty" and is comfortable with going potty outside when asked to.
Pupdate 11/22/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a Petco, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. The store had a variety of distractions around, including common distractions such as people and other dogs, as well as unique distractions such as shopping carts, small animals in enclosures, and the toy and treat aisles!
Kobe did a pretty good job with his training today despite the distracting environment. He did get distracted pretty easily, though when reminded he was quick to refocus back on his training. He was especially distracted by the toys around the store, and needed frequent reminders to leave them alone and not try to grab any off the shelves while training! At the end of the session when it was time to head home, he was allowed to pick out a tennis ball which we purchased to take home. He happily carried it through the store and handed it to the cashier, and when it was returned to him, he carried it all the way to the car which was super cute! He performed each of his commands pretty well today, and didn't have any major difficulty with any of them. Mistakes were of course made on occasion, but each one was a learning opportunity to help him continue growing on his obedience journey.
Kobe did have a rough start to his morning today, as he woke up in the middle of the night needing an emergency potty break. He's been pretty good about sleeping through the night quietly, so when he began crying it was unusual for him. It turns out he was beginning to have an upset stomach again, and had some diarrhea. He was restless for much of the night, and ended up having an accident in his kennel in the early morning hours sometime after his late night potty break. He needed a bath to get cleaned up, but he was a very good boy for this and let me bathe, dry, and brush him without much fuss. His upset stomach continued throughout the day, and he needed very regular potty breaks, about every hour or two. Sometimes he would whine to communicate his need to go, though often he would impulsively begin squatting while indoors and needed to be interrupted and taken out immediately to avoid an accident. I swapped out his kibble today for plain rice and pumpkin, which will hopefully work to settle his stomach.
Pupdate 11/23/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a Petco again, where we continued working on each of his commands around distractions. The store was a bit quiet when we first arrived, though there ended up being a puppy training class that began during our visit, so all the puppies and people provided a great distraction to have in the near distance while we trained.
Similar to yesterday Kobe was pretty easily distracted by the various smells, sights, and sounds throughout the store, though he was able to maintain enough focus to perform his commands decently well! We spent some extra time focusing on his stationary commands today, working to improve the duration of which he can remain in position.
Kobe's upset stomach unfortunately persisted throughout last night and through all of today. He ended up having another accident in his kennel overnight and needed a bath again, which he was well-behaved for. We were thankfully able to avoid any more indoor accidents throughout the day, though he needed very frequent potty breaks to accomplish this, about every two hours or so.
11/24/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a local shopping strip, where we continued practicing each of his commands around distractions. This location provided a variety of distractions, including people, other dogs, music, food, and loud noises from the busy street nearby. Overall Kobe was a bit excited and a bit overwhelmed at first from all the hustle and bustle around, though he did seem to gradually become more focused and less distracted by everything with time. We focused on improving the areas of training that Kobe has been struggling with most lately, including walking past distractions such as people and dogs, as well as holding his stationary commands until released.
When walking past a person or dog, Kobe has a tendency to veer towards them in an attempt to say hello. While it may be cute that he's so friendly and eager to meet others, we want to encourage neutrality towards distractions like this, so that he can follow obedience commands despite their presence. Once asked to Heel, he should not leave his position by his handler's side for any reason unless released or given a new command. This location was perfect to practice this at, as there were lots of these distractions located along the narrow sidewalks, which created lots of opportunities to have learning moments. Whenever he began to fall out of position to move towards a distraction, the Off command was given and he was reminded to Heel, which was very effective as he was quick to respond. It took many repetitions of this, but by around halfway through our session here he was successfully and consistently able to walk past distractions while maintaining his Heel! He was rewarded heavily for this good behavior, and he seemed to catch on to the expectations set for him in these situations.
We also continued to improve his ability to remain in stationary positions such as Sit, Down, and Place. Kobe's young age lends to a very impulsive and impatient mindset, so when he is asked to stay still, it becomes a tough challenge for him to resist the temptation to wiggle, jump around, or get up and explore as he pleases. The goal is for him to eventually be able to hold his position for around a minute and a half, which will definitely need some time before he can do this reliably! Today he averaged around thirty seconds as a maximum time, which is already much better than it was earlier in the week, when he could hardly hold it for a second or two! Each time he broke a position before asked, it was discouraged by having him return right back to it. Good behavior was encouraged by rewarding him only when he held it until released. It's also especially difficult for him to stay still if I try to move away from him, as he is a bit clingy and wants to always be right beside me at all times. One goal for his training is to improve his confidence and independence as well, which will help improve his obedience and create more practical usage of it. Ideally, we would like for Kobe to be able to hold his position, even as his handler moves around and walks a good distance away from him, which will definitely take some time for him to accomplish. Today, I was able to step away about two or three feet from him, though if I moved too quickly or any further than this, he would almost always break position to scooch closer to me.
Kobe's upset stomach continued today, and he had another couple of fecal accidents in his kennel, once in the very early morning hours, and again in the afternoon while I was out of the house while working with another pup. Both times this occured, it was only about an hour or two from his most recent potty break, and it doesn't seem to be something he can physically control. He managed to keep himself mostly clean this morning and he was able to be cleaned up with just a few wet wipes, though his afternoon accident caused him to need another grooming. He was good for this as usual and calmly allowed me to clean him up.
Pupdate 11/25/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a park, where we met with some other OffLeash SoCal trainers and their pups! This provided a great opportunity to practice Kobe's training within close proximity to other dogs and people. The park also had some other visitors, along with distractions such as birds, squirrels, bicycles, and grassy fields.
Kobe was very excited to explore around the park, and was especially distracted by the other dogs as he very much wanted to interact and play with them. He struggled to reliably follow commands at first, and needed a lot of guidance and reminders to help him stay focused and perform his obedience. However with time, he seemed to understand that he was not going to be playing with the other pups, and caught onto the fact that they were all ignoring him as they were focusing on their own training.
Once his excitement faded, he ended up doing a pretty good job with his training! He was even able to do well with tough areas of his training, such as holding stationary positions while distractions passed by around him. We encouraged every moment of calm, neutral behavior he displayed, and rewarded him heavily whenever he chose to focus on and engage with me rather than our surroundings. He ended up liking this "game" quite a bit, and by the end of the session he was essentially able to ignore distractions around us, as he knew this would lead to rewards in the form of physical and verbal affection and playtime which he loves!
Kobe's stomach seems to be getting a bit better, though he still ended up having one accident this morning in his kennel, even with a late night potty break just a couple of hours earlier. Thankfully it was a minor accident this time, and he didn't need a bath again. He didn't have any diarrhea today, though it was still very soft and loose which indicates the issue may be improving slightly due to the pumpkin and rice diet, though it still persists in some form. Apart from his morning accident, he didn't have any more throughout the day which was good. The duration between urgent potty breaks seems to be slowly increasing, and he was able to go around three hours without needing to go potty which is also an improvement from the one to two hour schedule he's been needing the past few days.
Pupdate 11/26/2024
Today Kobe and I visited an outdoor mall, where we practiced all of his commands. We had some light rain here and there today which did seem to put a damper on the distraction levels overall, but Kobe didn't seem to mind the rain at all! There were still some distractions such as the occasional person or other dog, as well as noises from the busy street nearby. We also had Hiro the Labradoodle tag along and hang out nearby during the training session, which provided a consistent dog distraction in the area.
Kobe did a pretty good job with his commands overall today! The generally calm environment allowed us to focus on cleaning up his positioning for commands such as Heel and Come to Sit, as well as work on his patience levels during stationary commands.
Kobe had no accidents in his kennel last night which was great, and our morning was off to a pretty good start! Unfortunately, by evening his upset stomach was back in full swing and he had another onset of uncontrollable diarrhea. Since he has been struggling with these stomach issues regularly for the past five days, we decided it was time that he take a short break from his program to be seen by a veterinarian. He'll be spending the night back in his home with his family tonight, and we will continue his training once he gets the all clear from the vet and can return to us to complete his program. Feel better soon Kobe!
Pupdate 11/27/2024
Kobe's vet visit went well, and his upset stomach appears to be due to a stress-related condition. He was returned to us this afternoon, with a probiotic prescription to help heal his gut. We will also be taking it easy for the next couple of days in terms of stressful locations visited during training as an additional measure to ensure his stress levels remain low while he heals up.
After he was dropped back off with me, we spent some time at the park before heading home. He had a good time playing and sniffing around in the grass, and was very excited to see me again! We practiced each of his commands, and he was happy to perform them. The park was very quiet, so the main distractions were things such as the grassy fields and leaves blowing around on the ground, which Kobe found quite entertaining!
When we got home Kobe settled right in and made himself at home once more. He had some time to unwind, play with a toy, and take a nice nap. Later, we went out for a walk around some quiet areas of my neighborhood and practiced his commands some more. He was a bit more focused during this session than the one at the park, likely as the excitement of being back with me had worn off. His stool was quite soft still today, though it was not overly watery and uncontrollable like it was yesterday. He had no accidents, and was able to wait a decent amount of time in between potty breaks without issue.
Pupdate 11/28/2024
Happy Thanksgiving from Kobe and us here at OffLeash SoCal! We kept training simple today by focusing on obedience training and manners while at home. House manners are something we have been working on little by little each day since day one. Even seemingly mundane day-to-day tasks can provide excellent opportunities for training. These manners include areas such as Food Manners and Door Manners.
The goal for Food Manners is for Kobe to be able to hold a stationary command while his food is prepared and set in front of him. He is then asked to remain in that position until he is released before he can get up and eat his food. Kobe tends to get very excited about his food, and in the early stages of his training, he was prone to jumping on me or counters when anticipating food, nipping at my hands or clothes, and rushing to the food bowl the moment it was set down. As he progressed in his overall obedience and impulse control, he quickly replaced his bad habits and learned to be polite and patient even when faced with very tempting distractions such as food directly in front of him!
The goal of Door Manners is for Kobe to hold a stationary position while near a door and remain there until released or given a new command, such as Come or Heel. He is asked to hold the position at the location asked of him, and not break the command even if the door is left open, if someone is knocking on it, or if people walk in or out of it. This practice teaches important boundaries, and prevents impolite and possibly dangerous behaviors such as trying to escape through open doors, shoving past people when walking through doors, or rushing over to jump on people who enter through the door. With daily practice, Kobe has made great progress with his manners related to doors, and understands to follow instructions no matter what distractions the door may create. Having proper Door Manners is also a great way to set Kobe up for success with in-home Greeting Manners as well, as he is prompted to hold the position asked of him and is discouraged from jumping on or barking at anyone.
Pupdate 11/29/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a local park, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. The park had some common distractions around, such as people, children, other dogs, and small animals like birds and squirrels. Hiro the Labradoodle also joined us for part of the session, which provided another distraction to layer into the training.
Kobe did a pretty good job staying focused overall, with the biggest distraction often being Hiro, as Kobe often wanted to play and goof off with him. They of course had their time for play, though we also worked to teach Kobe when playtime was appropriate, and when he needed to settle down to focus on his work. Kobe's commands are each coming along nicely, and he did a great job performing all of them today! He was reliable with each of them, and didn't experience any notable issues.
Kobe had no accidents yesterday or this morning, however in the afternoon after he had his lunch, he began experiencing an upset stomach again and was unable to control his bowel movements. He was prone to having accidents over the course of the afternoon and evening, most of which were interrupted to bring him outside for him to complete his business in an appropriate location. He did have one accident in his kennel as well when I stepped out of the house for a few minutes to buy some more pumpkin puree for him, which resulted in him needing another bath.
Pupdate 11/30/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a park, where we practiced all of his commands. The park was pretty quiet overall, though still had some distractions around such as children playing on the nearby playground, some people, and a few other dogs visiting with their families. There were also lots of squirrels at the park, which were another good distraction to work around.
Kobe did a pretty good job staying focused overall, and was able to perform his commands well! He did especially good with his Heel, and was even able to Heel with a loose leash for most of the time, only needing occasional guidance to help correct his positioning if he began to lose focus. He did great about always eagerly coming to me when called as usual, and was generally good about positioning himself for the sit as long as some guidance was used to show him the way. He was able to perform Sit, Down, and Place consistently as well, and we spent some more time working to improve his ability to remain in position for longer durations while I created distance from him.
Kobe had no accidents overnight and had solid stool in the morning and afternoon, however by evening his stomach issues returned and he was back to urgently needing frequent potty breaks to avoid having accidents indoors.
Pupdate 12/1/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a farmer's market, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. This area was pretty busy, with plenty of people, other dogs, food, and other distractions around.
Despite the busy surroundings, Kobe did a great job staying calm, focused, and on task! He was able to perform each of his commands without issues, and even did so with a loose leash much of the time! Before walking around the busy areas of the location, we first spent some time focusing on having him hold his stationary commands nearby to give him some time to observe his surroundings and become familiar with the distractions from a distance. This seemed to help a lot, and he ended up being quite neutral towards most distractions, and whenever he did become distracted he was quick to refocus when prompted.
We also had some great opportunities to practice Kobe's Greeting Manners today, as there were lots of nice people who wanted to say hello to and pet him. The goal for Greeting Manners is for Kobe to be able to meet or greet people calmly and politely, whether in public or at home. Kobe came to us with a major habit of jumping up onto people he was excited to say hello to, which even with his friendly intentions, is a dangerous behavior as he could accidentally injure someone! He also had a tendency to urinate when excited, which combined with the jumping to greet, was not a fun situation for anyone involved. As such, this is an important area of his training and is something we have been working on whenever the opportunity arises, whether it be at home with me or my guests, or out in public with new people. To help Kobe learn the desired manners, we first have him perform and hold Sit or Down, as this gives him a task to focus on and discourages him from breaking the position. If he tries to jump up or gets over-excited, any affection being given abruptly ends, the Off command is given, and he is immediately asked to settle back into position. When having a new person greet Kobe, it's important to inform them of his training and the expectations set for him, that way they can help reinforce the training appropriately. Staying consistent with these manners is key to his success, as he has come to understand that jumping on people is not a rewarding behavior, and only delays or prevents him from getting what he wants, which is to say hello to people and get attention from them! He did a great job with his greetings today and was very sweet and happy to say hello to people while overall maintaining a calm demeanor.
Kobe also had no accidents today, and no stomach issues were observed. He was on a normal potty schedule of every four to five hours during the day, and he slept through last night for eight hours with no troubles.
Pupdate 12/2/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a shopping strip alongside a busy street, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. The sidewalks often had distractions such as groups of people, other dogs, and bicycles, and the busy street nearby provided consistent noise distractions.
Kobe did a good job with his commands overall, and while some mistakes were made here and there, they were easily corrected and served as learning opportunities as always. He was able to Heel nicely for the most part, only needing occasional guidance when he began to drift off slightly. His recall was great as usual, and his positioning was pretty good as well, with some guidance used. He was able to perform Sit, Down, and Place all without much issue, with the only command he sometimes was a bit silly with was Down, as he would sometimes take a moment to understand that I was asking him to lay down, not initiate playtime.
Kobe as usual was a popular little guy, and got lots of attention and compliments from people passing by. His cute looks and impressive obedience for his young age definitely catch people's attention, so we had many opportunities to practice more with his Greeting Manners. Kobe did a good job with this overall, though he did seem to struggle to sit still sometimes, especially if the greeting went for a long time, or if someone was baby-talking to him excitedly. He would sometimes have a lapse in focus and try to jump on people when this happened, though he immediately returned to position once prompted and seemed to catch on that doing this would interrupt the affection he was receiving, making it less common with each greeting we did.
Pupdate 12/3/2024
Today Kobe and I worked around my neighborhood, where we continued working on each of his commands. The residential areas of the neighborhood provided a quiet place to warm up his obedience skills, and the busier urban areas along the main streets provided great distractions such as noisy vehicles, groups of people, and other dogs.
We also had Wrigley, the mixed breed pup who has recently joined us for a board and train program, join us for one of our sessions. Wrigley isn't all too interested in getting to know Kobe, despite all of his adorable efforts to gain her friendship, but he eventually took the hint and was able to train effectively with her nearby without becoming distracted by her or trying to initiate play constantly.
Kobe did well with each of his commands, and was generally quite focused and eager to practice his training. He is beginning to be quicker about following through the first time he is asked without delaying or needing to be asked again, which is great to see! He seems to understand the fact that when he follows through with a command as soon as it's given, good things quickly come his way! He loves verbal and physical praise, as well as playtime, so these rewards have been very helpful in motivating him to work and stay focused.
Potty training for Kobe has been going very well the past couple of days, and his stomach seems to be doing better as well. He has had no accidents, and is on a regular schedule of potty breaks every four to five hours during the day, and eight hours at night.
Pupdate 12/4/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a park, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. The park had distractions such as people, other dogs, children, toys, and squirrels. There was also a busy street nearby that also added to the overall distraction levels.
Kobe did a good job staying focused and performing his commands overall. He was generally quick to follow through with commands, and was able to recover his focus promptly when needed.
We spent some extra time working to improve Kobe's skills surrounding the Place command. While practicing with easy to reach objects, Kobe has no trouble with Place and is always eager to perform it, though when working with more challenging objects that require a bit of a jump to get on or balance to remain on, he sometimes needs a bit of help. We found a group of picnic benches that worked perfectly for this training, as the skinny seating area provided a good challenge for him to hone his skills! By the end of the session, he was confident about jumping and balancing on the skinny seating section of the picnic benches!
Pupdate 12/5/2024
Today, Kobe and I visited a busy shopping strip to practice his commands around various distractions. The area was filled with people walking by, other dogs nearby, the smell of food from restaurants, and the constant noise of street traffic.
His ability to stay focused and perform each command with little to no hesitation shows the progress we’ve made in his training, and it’s exciting to see how much he’s learning in real-world situations!
Kobe's potty training has been going exceptionally, and he has continued to have no accidents in the home. He has been doing well with a potty schedule of every five to six hours during the day, and over eight hours at night. When we go out for potty breaks, Kobe is also much quicker about getting his business done right away without dilly-dallying by sniffing and running around for several minutes beforehand like he used to, and he seems to understand the cue "go potty".
Pupdate 12/6/2024
Today Kobe and I visited a park, where we continued practicing all of his commands around distractions. This park was located next to a busy street which provided lots of noises from passing vehicles, and there was a playground nearby where many children were playing and running around. There were also a few other dogs visiting, which provided another layer of distractions.
During training today, one focus was to improve his ability to remain in stationary positions while I created distance from him. Kobe understands by now that he is supposed to stay put once asked for a stationary command, however when his handler begins moving away from him, he tends to feel clingy and wants to get up or scoot over to position himself closer. We have been practicing this daily with a regular length leash, and today we decided to test his skills while using a long leash, which allows for further distances to be created. Today, we were able to work up to a distance of nearly fifteen feet, which was very impressive!
We also used this long leash to practice with recall from further distances. Kobe is always great about coming when called as he loves being close to his handler, however sometimes the added distance would cause him to come running over full speed and get sidetracked from positioning himself correctly due to his excitement. So today we focused on improving his aspect, and while it definitely took some time, he eventually understood that even if he was called from far away, the Come to Sit rules and structure still applied as usual.
Pupdate 12/7/2024
Today was Kobe's last full day with me, so we put to use all of his learned skills to have a great last day together! He and I visited an outdoor mall, where we practiced all of his commands around lots of distractions. The mall had crowds of holiday shoppers, some other dogs, food at nearby restaurants, and loud holiday music playing throughout the location.
Despite the busy environment, Kobe did an excellent job staying focused and performing his commands. We were able to get some great footage of us training that will be used in putting together his final video, so be sure to watch today's video for a sneak peek!
Kobe has made such an amazing transformation in these past three weeks, and the differences in him are truly night and day! Before the program, he had a tendency to immediately become overexcited and overstimulated by everything around him, causing him to struggle to pay attention or follow instructions for what few commands he did know. He has since learned many new skills, along with the ability to stay calm, focused, and neutral to his surroundings even in busy places. He has also replaced many poor habits with good manners, and by adding structure and consistency into his daily life he has come to understand how to make better choices. We have resolved many issues that once were common with him, such as leash pulling, jumping to greet, excessive barking, chewing on furniture, and having indoor potty accidents. While he may seem like a whole new dog, he is still the same silly, loving, and playful pup he always has been, and with his new obedience skills he is even more of a joy to be around and take with on all sorts of adventures! Kobe has been such a pleasure to train and share my home with, and I am forever grateful to have had the opportunity to help this good boy become the best version of himself! The sky is the limit for this pup, and I know he has a very bright future ahead in his continued training journey with his family as he grows into adulthood!
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