Laika | King Shepherd | Whittier, CA | In - Training
- cristianoffleash
- Oct 20, 2024
- 28 min read
Updated: Nov 9, 2024
Meet Laika! A one year old King Shepherd from Whittier, CA who has joined us for our 3 Week Board & Train Program. Laika comes to us with issues such as feeling nervous around other people and dogs, jumping when excited, and barking towards people. Laika does socialize with people at home but to everyone and everything outside, she feels uneasy. Laika has moments she does well and knows some obedience when she isn't distracted but she needs more help. Over the next three week, I will help Laika learn more about obedience training, giving her the ability to expand her mindset and learn how to become a well mannered dog for her owners. Check out her progress with me as her personal dog trainer!
Pupdate 10/20/2024
Today was the first day meeting Laika and she was somewhat timid, even barking at me at face value but I kept myself calm and was able to have her settle with me after she barked at me. Once her owners left her personality changed right away giving me her attention and that need for guidance. I would let her walk around and be herself and ask for her to come to me which would be considered recall. We started to make this a game and she would come directly to me for praise and affection. She seemed uneasy even while being petted but after thirty minutes of staying at the park she settled and acted as if we knew each other. I asked for some obedience commands in the open field of the park we were at and I was surprised to see how well she did her sit and down at times holding her position but eventually getting up.
Once we returned home I put her belongings away and we practiced more obedience training in the front of the house. We focused on our place introduction and getting her used to being praised for doing something positive when training. I slowly walked her inside and had my family avoid eye contact with her so she can feel more confident being around them. Laika never barked at my family members so we made our way into my room to see my personal dog Hunter in his crate to see their reactions. Laika was quiet and easily walked in as if she had interest, upon walking near the crate I would only motivate her to keep walking as we began to turn and have both dogs be at face value. I gave them a short period of time to smell each other at a distance and continued to walk so I can reward her for using her nose to smell and not barking. Afterwards we headed to the backyard to let her free and roam around as she wishes. She spent most of the time smelling her surroundings and coming back to me for praise and continuing her investigation of the backyard. Once we headed back inside I introduced her to her crate which took about 5 minutes to get her in. She backed up every time when asking her to go in so I waited patiently for her to put just a paw in to praise her and as soon as she did she walked in. I began to work on conditioning her to go in and out and she did this with ease eventually closing the door with her falling asleep inside her crate.
So far she seems to be doing well and we will continue to document her journey to become more obedient and educated!
Pupdate 10/21/2024
Today we woke up early to start our morning, but Laika took about fifteen minutes before coming out. I had opened the crate door and she wouldn't move and even if I left her sight, she remained in her crate. To get Laika out of her crate I laid on the floor for her to be at her head level and this is where she started to smell outside the crate door and eventually took steps towards me, happy but confused. We went for a walk and she didn't go potty so I monitored throughout the day and periodically took her outside to help her pee.
We headed over to Whittier Narrows Park in El Monte, CA to work around the Offleash team. Once we arrived we started focusing on "off" also known as leave it. This was to keep Laika engaged with me and to prevent her from barking at the other dogs. She surprised me and let most of the dogs pass her without reacting towards them. We focused on conditioning her heel to better her walk, pairing up her commands with the e-collar. She was doing well but when trying to create distance she would continue to try and follow me. She also would lean into me at times so I would need to raise my leg and help straighten her positioning so she didn't need to cling on me.
In the video above we focused on heel, place and recall for our main practices. Laika tried to get off her place mat and would hesitate to get on but after being redirected she slowly starts to contribute herself more. When placing her and creating distance after the truck passes by she does well momentarily and around the two minute mark she wanted to not contribute and started to jump on me. I ignore this behavior and continue to ask for place and once Laika follows through we practice our obedience as if nothing happened.
Before leaving the park we all hung out under a gazebo at the park while all the dogs rested. Laika did well just staying on her place pad near me, even hanging out with another trainer resting by their side on a place pad.
Pupdate 10/22/2024
Last night Laika was able to be around my younger brother, being greeted by him and also walking together and practicing a few commands together.
This morning I was able to take Hunter and Laika for a walk. Before heading out they took some small moments smelling each other showing their interest but not being social which is ok for now. Once we headed outside Laika seemed confused on seeing Hunter on her left hand side when walking. My personal dog Hunter is very educated about giving space and boundaries, even for our walks. They did well throughout the thirty five minute walk with no problems towards each other and once we headed back home it was time for breakfast.
In the video above we focused on our door manners for about one hour taking my time and patience making this objective fun and easy for Laika. In the beginning of our practice before the video started she didn't want to train nor try anything for the moment. After walking her around and practicing our sit we started to slowly work with our place pad and micro manage the door opening. Each time a door opens in my house Laika takes the initiative to go through without being asked to go inside or out. After ten minutes or so we were able to work with the door, giving me the opportunity to walk towards the front while Laika waited.
Later on we practiced in the front again going over all obedience commands but focusing on anything that makes Laika's training imperfect, such as her impulses to get up or to come towards me.
Pupdate 10/23/2024
This morning Laika came out of her crate with ease, showing a lot of confidence and happiness towards me rather than being timid the past few days. I was able to let my dog out and have them roam around and smell each other before getting their gear on before going on a walk. Once we returned home from our walk we did minimal training in front practicing our recall before having breakfast.
Later on we headed over to Anaheim Feed & Pet Supply to expose Laika and see her reaction being in a store. Upon arriving she was only self conscious when seeing the sliding door open but after walking around and seeing the door open a few times we made our way in. To my surprise Laika seemed unfazed by noises or people passing by her so we made progress with her confidence and now it's just about practicing our obedience in public. We mainly focused on heel, sit, down, and recall which went really well with Laika performing her obedience commands first try and rarely needing assistance from her e-collar. We worked up to two minutes when asking Laika to sit or down but due to the floor being slippery at certain sections, Laika would slip into her down. This was easy to redirect but I would only ask her to sit in areas with a more stable ground. By the end of our visit I was able to let go of her leash and create more distance with Laika before breaking her to come to me for praise. She did very well today showing a whole new personality today and being adamant about trying her obedience.
Pupdate 10/24/2024
Today we headed over to Santa Monica Pier to meet up with the Offleash Team and focus on conditioning Laika's obedience in an environment such as the beach. When walking towards the Pier Laika seemed excited and actually started to pull as if she wanted to be there sooner or just having excitement in her personality in general. We made our way to the middle of the Pier to set up our camera and to record Laika's temperament in the beginning of practicing.
When the video above starts, this is our first initial practice asking Laika to heel with me in the middle of the walkway while people pass by us. We focused on impulse control making sure Laika can keep her obedience intact while people pass by and all noises in this environment are happening in the moment. I keep myself at a distance when there's not so many people passing by but once there's crowds of people about to pass her I get closer to her to make her feel confident just as a precaution. Some people will always make noises or gestures towards animals so I wanted to be close by in case those things were to happen. Before the video ends I walk around her in a circle and ask for her recall before giving her a break to praise her.
After we had much time to relax and desensitize her to the environment just watching people pass by and be themselves so she can become familiar with this the more we go out. Once we headed home she slept for hours until waking up again to go for her walk with Hunter and a potty break. Since Laika seems comfortable with Hunter on our walks I took the both of them to the backyard to interact and Laika seems to be distant still not wanting to interact but totally ok with Hunter roaming around as he pleases. She did however have a moment where he smelled her from behind and yelped and moved away from us. I had Laika stay by my side while Hunter kept his distance, understanding Laika needs space to adjust. I will continue to monitor her behavior to see how she socializes and the things she's going through or feels.
Pupdate 10/25/2024
This morning consisted of an early morning walk with both of the dogs doing some minimal training before having breakfast. After the dogs ate I had Laika lounge in my room while Hunter spent some time inside his crate giving Laika the opportunity to roam, smell, or lay next to me. Most of the time she stayed next to my side and would only go get water if she wanted some.
Later on we headed to the Outlets of Orange to practice more obedience training with our friends from Offleash. When we first arrived we met up with our friends who had already been here for some time. We walked around practicing our obedience and keeping the dogs in a heel as we passed by many shoppers. I introduced Laika to her under obedience command which she did very well at performing this outside with the little practice we have done with this obedience command so far. After we took the dogs to practice their sit, down and place commands near an area of the outlet that has open space and multiple platforms to place on. After spending some time on our obedience I introduced Laika to a new way of performing her place from a distance, also known as send away to place. We didn't make much progress but she was able to place herself at a decent distance so we will continue to work on these new objectives and tasks I have in mind for Laika to improve her overall obedience training.
Pupdate 10/26/2024
Today I woke up around 5:30 AM so instead of walking the dogs together, I walked Laika first for about 45 minutes before heading home. Throughout the neighborhood went well with her being adamant staying next to my side until returning home. Once her walk was done I took Hunter out for his walk and she remained neutral in her crate until we came back with no barking or any issues with us leaving the house without her.
Around Noon we worked on some obedience training in the front with some of our basic obedience commands. I'm able to ask for her to place from a distance and when asking for her recall she still leans into me so I have to use the pressure from my leg to keep her positioned straight instead of leaning into me. When asking her to down I'm able to walk towards the sidewalk with her waiting patiently but I wanted to condition her with how far I could go. With more practice I will take time to create more distance to see how far I can walk away from her in front of the house.
After we did some creative training walking Laika with a wheelchair, ideally for her owner. We started off walking around using my brother to hold onto the leash while I walked around going into left hand turns keeping Laika close but able to create space for the wheelchair. She did well with this practice trying to lead at times but Nick was able to redirect her when trying to lead. Our last practice I worked on her recall, micro managing her steps around the wheelchair without trying to confuse her. I was able to make some momentary progress getting her around but I kept this practice short to make what we had successful fun and memorable.
Pupdate 10/27/2024
This morning the dogs got to go for a walk together early in the morning. I spent time training the dogs together making sure they both can perform obedience together which went well.
When working towards offleash obedience inside the house Laika has a habit of running to her crate if she feels uneasy for any apparent reason. I have been working on keeping her in her place inside the house for a long duration of time to desensitize herself from the habit of going into her crate if something seems wrong to her. In the video above we showcase the progress so far with our place mat keeping Laika in a designated area. Any time Laika gets up I immediately redirect her since this moment is key to help with her habit to take off right away towards the crate. I walked around the house and she did well today compared to every other day when we practiced. When my Mother walked around this was something that would make Laika impulsively get up but now we made success giving her the opportunity to roam around but also giving Laika the ability to realize this is normal.
Later on we practiced more training with my younger brother walking around the neighborhood with the wheelchair which went well. I had my brother train Laika in the backyard to be familiar with training with someone else.
Pupdate 10/28/2024
Today we headed over to Whittier Narrows Park again to hang with the Offleash Team to work on more obedience training around each other and with the new dogs that started their training journey with some of the other trainers.
When arriving at the park we waited a few minutes for our friends to arrive. Once everyone showed up we started our filming and recorded what is seen above. I asked Laika to sit and walk away from her while our friends practice their obedience around her. Laika remains in her down for a decent amount of time before performing her recall and heeling around. For a short moment when our friend JV says break, Laika thinks this is for her and goes to him. This happens at the 1:56 mark so I grab her leash immediately and continue our heeling as if nothing happened. If someone was to direct this moment negatively for Laika, I can see why she could fail but I keep myself calm and collective after this small confusion that Laika acted on. When asking her to heel after she does very well and avoids JV and his dog while they focus on their obedience.
After our video ended we focused on walking around the park with a loose leash and Laika did very well with this, staying at a pace with me. Laika took some time to work with JV as well and she performed fairly well with him needing to be redirected only if she seemed to want to come towards me. By the end of our visit I had Laika lay next to multiple dogs while I walked around and she did ok for most of our practices but got up a few times to come towards me. Laika did take the time to smell Oso the Chocolate Labrador. Each time she reached out to smell him I would praise her and say "good job" for doing this to a dog she's rarely interacted with.
With Laika being in her training for a week so far these are some of the things I've noticed. Laika can easily eat her food in the morning with long periods of exercise and training. Her last meal she will eat half at first then throughout the night while I'm asleep or won't finish. I will see if I can provide chicken or some type of topper to motivate her to eat her last meal in one sitting. While inside the house she tries to find moments to blast through a door but if redirected she can come to her senses but the consistent habit of this happening is ongoing so we will continue to work on this threshold. She has been able to take many moments to smell Hunter and follow him but she shows no interest in playing.
Pupdate 10/29/2024
This morning the dogs went for a walk together for about one hour today which went well, even Laika performing her heeling better than my own dog. I had the dogs in the backyard again for some time but they only smell each other and haven't decided to play yet.
We focused on our under command today, making it a priority for better conditioning since most of Laika's other commands seems to be going well. We have practiced a few times which Laika has picked up but today she seemed to confidently try it without my help as much. I created a few distractions to see if any of these attempts would cause Laika to get up but she remained under the table until she's asked to break. After we took the time to work on door manners keeping Laika inside while I roamed around the house with every entrance or exit closed. Ideally even if I was to step to the backyard Laika should remain inside if asked. When practicing Laika remains in the living room giving me the opportunity to walk in and out. When finishing our practice I say break for Laika to come to me to be rewarded with praise.
Throughout the day we practiced minor objectives like keeping Laika placed on a place mat while I spent some time on the computer. She typically can do this but can quickly close her eyes and fall asleep if she wants. I had her follow me around the house without asking for commands and she did well at times with her trying to randomly decide to walk herself into her crate. When this happens I will focus on keeping her from wanting to go there and redirect her to stay close to me so we can continue to have fun with what we are doing at the moment.
Pupdate 10/30/2024
This morning we had our usual routine of a walk with Hunter in the morning with time in the backyard for them to bond. Laika doesn't show any play behaviors unfortunately as each day has gone by but she has taken the moments to smell Hunter and as this continues I keep rewarding her with praise to see if she can be motivated enough to initiate play behavior.
Later on we headed over to Home Depot to work on more offleash obedience conditioning and for the exposure inside this retail store. Laika did very well entering the building showing no signs of intimidation. Walking around went well with no issues so at one point I dropped the leash to let it drag and we made our second way around the building. We found many objects to place on and some tables where Laika could place herself under. Introducing Laika to a dolly took some time because this one was unbalanced but made a perfect distraction for Laika since the noises alone seemed to intimidate her. After some time of micro-managing the movement of the dolly Laika stayed and let me move her down the aisle before giving her a break. Being able to stay on the dolly I rewarded her heavily with much love and praise helping boost more of her confidence. We finished the end of our visit focusing on all obedience commands in the lumbar section of the store giving some space for Laika to be away from people so she can be engaged with me while the noises of the store go on. She did very well keeping herself engaged with me and if anyone was to pass us in the moment when she looks at them I say "off", also known as leave it, and when she gives me eye contact back during this moment I can reward her and mark this behavior for her confidence to build around strangers. This is key when any person passes by since most people don't think to reward their dog for allowing someone to pass them.
We spent the remainder of the day focusing on our send away to place, come to heel, and under obedience commands at home for more conditioning for when we go out for a visit tomorrow to practice these specific commands.
Pupdate 10/31/2024
Happy Halloween! This morning I brought Laika to Hillcrest Park in Downtown Fullerton for some exercise and to practice her offleash obedience. When we first arrived she didn't seem overly excited nor did she try adventuring away from me from being let out of the car. We first walked the walkway leading inside the park going uphill and downhill the way the park is designed. We focused on our send away to place and having Laika hold her sit and down for duration.
Later on we focused on our send away to place in the front of the house, keeping as much distance as I could to signal Laika to place herself on the mat. She has been doing really well at not needing as much assistance from me once I get her on a platform once. We practice consistently as any other day and today she seems more confident and having fun practicing each time we come outside. After a few practices of the command I ask Laika to down and I freely roam around my street as she is watching me. Once I return I ask her to heel with me and finish off with one more send away to place and asking Laika to break for her praise. After we went inside to practice our under obedience command. Laika was doing this effortlessly so I started to incorporate her recall with it. We practiced this momentarily before working on her impulse control with passing doors that she somewhat does still. I used only the front door and the kitchen door for this, walking in and out of the house making sure Laika has a better understanding to not run inside. She does well but even with our practice today she had one moment trying to run through the front but using her e-collar to redirect her she immediately comes back to me and makes training easy again.
Later on at night I took Laika and Hunter out to roam around with people trick or treating. She did very well letting nothing scare her or seeing many people with their kids trick or treating. When passing houses with giant puppets or mannequins of Halloween characters she would glance and simply look away.
Pupdate 11/1/2024
This morning consisted of our morning walk with time to socialize after. Today was the first day Laika took time trying to play, showing a lot of mixed signals but enough for Hunter to communicate back with play bows and rolling over but Laika still would seem confused when these moments would happen.
We came back to Anaheim Pet & Feed to buy some items and a few other things for my personal dog. After finishing shopping we came back inside to train as before and Laika showed much confidence today being able to do most of her commands with no issue. The only problem we had today was Laika over extending her recall by coming too far forward in front of me but easily redirected if needed. I took small moments leaving Laika's eye sight momentarily and she would remain in her position for the few seconds I would leave her sight. Once I come back to her and ask for her break she comes to me as always for her praise and we continue to work on our obedience throughout the store.
One last thing that happened before leaving was Laika did greet someone without having issues but for some odd reason decided to bark at her after. Our guest wasn't alarmed and Laika had stayed relaxed and neutral after barking towards her but anyone who has worked with Laika or spends time around her, she is very comfortable to be with. If her introduction with a stranger doesn't come off right within the first few seconds, she might hesitate but we will continue to see how her behavior is with strangers who come to face value with her.
Pupdate 11/2/2024
Today we had our morning routine which consisted of exercise, socializing with Hunter, and breakfast before taking their first nap of the day.
Around 12:00 PM I headed over to La Mirada Regional Park with Laika to focus solely on offleash obedience training. I started off our walk by asking Laika to sit before being released from the car. She did this well and we let our leash drag and headed around the park. To my surprise Laika showed consistent behavior of confidence seeing ducks and geese, people running past us, or anyone who came around us didn't seem to bother her when just roaming around. We stopped by many areas of the park practicing our obedience which went well and Laika showing a willingness to do her obedience. Once we made our way around the park we stopped for a break sitting on a table watching people play frisbee, exercise, or whatever was going on in the park at the moment for her to desensitize herself to the environment.
In the video above after our break we got our place mat and focused on our down obedience command. I had already asked Laika to down before starting and she remains in her down throughout the beginning of the video until she's given her release command. After we headed to another table to display our under obedience command near the open field. Laika seems to get very energetic when doing this now since it's our latest obedience command we have been trying to perfect. She seems to fully understand it now that we have been practicing outside so we will continue to focus on more outside training and other practices we can have Laika follow through with!
Pupdate 11/3/2024
This morning consisted of our typical morning routine with time to socialize with Hunter once we got home. Laika has been trying to figure out how to play with Hunter, showing new play signs everyday but not taking more than one minute to actively try and engage with him. After a few attempts of trying to play they stop and can lay next to each other on the floor in my room.
After our play time finished it was time to train and we had Laika with no leash attached today since I felt like she had truly grasped her obedience. Practicing completely offleash went with ease training inside the house for impulse control. In the video above my Mother is in the backyard cleaning while I roam around the house. Everything goes very well except for when I drop a pillow and Laika decides to get up. I redirect her back into her down and she lets me complete our practice. When practicing our door manner she does very well with letting me roam around the house, even if the front door is open. As I make my way back to Laika I set myself up to walk with her but before walking I ask for her heel and she follows through staying by my side as we walk out. After the video ends we worked on walking through the front door together going in and out repeatedly for conditioning. Our last practice was her obedience training with a wheelchair. With the short clip provided at the end I recorded Laika heeling with my brother in the chair staying at a pace for him. This has been something that seems to have come naturally for Laika so far with our progress so once we returned home we practiced more of her obedience commands such as sit and down while walking away from her to keep her conditioned when working with someone in a wheelchair.
I gave Hunter and Laika plenty of time to socialize which seems to be getting better but there are moments where Laika seems to take things too far from not understanding when Hunter engages himself more in a neutral way. She seems to get intimidated by long durations of confusion when Hunter shows her signs so if there is something she isn't aware of, she might react even though she has spent much time around Hunter. There is plenty of time in her training left so as the days go on I will document her behavior on socializing and how far some dogs can engage with her since she likes to simply lay down and relax.
Pupdate 11/4/2024
Today we headed back to Whittier Narrows Park to hang out with the Off leash Team again and train our dogs around each other. When arriving Laika was consistent with her heel staying by my side until we found an area where we can do our training.
In the video above I have a microphone on to hear and listen on how I or anyone should talk to Laika when working together. I only repeat the command and follow up with a good job or ending with a good sit, down, and heel depending on what's being asked. You can see in the video she has no leash attached and can apply herself when people pass by or if someone passes by with a dog. I go over the simple way to prepare for any moment that arises when a distraction passes by. The biggest thing when working with Laika is her eye contact for clarification. Once I mark the behavior positively she remains calm and focused and we eventually end the video with a break. The second video clip I'm running around with Laika giving her the freedom to roam around as we play chase with each other. Throughout this moment Laika showed no signs to run away or be easily distracted.
After we focused on keeping Laika placed on her mat while the other dogs were working with their trainers. She got up a few times but after each redirect she came to a point of just staying on her place completely for as long as 10 minutes before being given a break. As we made success with longer durations we continued to focus on this, eventually leaving her sight and she just watched her environment until I came back to her. She did very well today for mostly being offleash at a public park showcasing all of her obedience she has learned so far.
Pupdate 11/5/2024
This morning the dogs went on their walk together which was about 45 minutes before heading home to give the dogs more time to socialize in the backyard. The usual routine of smelling each other and doing weird play signs to each other was consistent today but less physical play which would lead into confusion which is normal. At this point if I owned more dogs with different personalities, maybe Laika would have a playmate but she is doing fine since the beginning of her program.
We headed over to Cerritos Mall for exposure and to practice our obedience inside an indoor mall. When we first arrived I noticed Laika seemed somewhat surprised to be here but asking for her obedience and keeping her engaged with me kept her confidence up as we made our way around. I first made a lap around the whole mall just so she can familiarize herself with the surroundings. I took her around the food court and headed over to an open area of the mall to do some training.
When working in the open area I kept her leash on for safety concerns but overall she did well performing her obedience and not needing as much redirection with her e-collar. We were able to take pictures while people passed by us and I heard a few people comment on how well behaved she was with me. We headed over to a bench to condition our under obedience command which went well. Our last visit was to Dick's Sporting Goods keeping Laika in the center of the store letting all the noises and people sink in to desensitize her. This was the only moment she seemed to pant more but she was able to continue to hold her obedience showing her ability to try and build her confidence during this moment. She was given a break in the middle of the store being given all the praise she needed for being brave in the store. We headed out of the store and this last walk I detached the leash and she followed me to the car off leash, entering back into the car to head home.
She spent the remainder of the day working on small things such as being around my family, holding her down command while cooking or cleaning. Laika has started to show her zoomies when getting happy which is new and continue to open up every day training together.
Pupdate 11/6/2024
This morning we had our usual walk in the morning which was followed up with time for them to socialize in the backyard. Laika had zoomies around Hunter but when he would follow her she would stop and go back into walking normally around the backyard. When I make baby noises and both of them come to me for praise sometimes this initiates them to start engaging with each other but never the full extension of playing.
We headed over to Citadel Outlets today to work on our off leash obedience which went well. It was somewhat windy but that didn't stop us from enjoying our day out to train and roam around the outlets to practice. We made our way around the shopping center which went well with Laika seeming curious now when looking around the stores and people coming out of the stores. In the video above we captured Laika walking with me off leash through the shopping center performing a few commands such as heel, under, come to heel, and extended down. Throughout this video clip she does everything first try without breaking her obedience from distractions. After the video ends we continued to spend more time there letting Laika desensitize herself to the environment and settle to these scenarios. We had some people want to greet Laika but it seems she is still intimidated at first when people approach. At times there are moments she doesn't seem bothered by people but the closer they get to her she seems to be very aware and acts more cautious. When Laika works with people who can train her she finds an easier way to be comfortable with people like this, rather than someone who is just saying hi and bye.
We spent the rest of the day playing in the backyard with Hunter, trying to enable more play behavior. As always Laika likes to remain close to my side or when she attempts to signal Hunter when getting close to him, she still seems confused.
Pupdate 11/7/2024
This morning consisted of an hour-long walk going farther in our distance and exercise for both dogs. Once we returned home we headed to the backyard for the dogs to socialize but as always they kept distance or only smelled each other.
We practiced our food manners and recorded our session to showcase how patient Laika is for her food. I'm able to roam around the house freely as if this was door manners. I open the backyard door and head outside and even during this moment Laika shows her ability to wait until her break is given to her.
We focused on more of our wheelchair training but off leash this time. Laika was able to perform with ease today without my brother being there for the practice. Rather than thinking Laika would be playful and trying to mess around in a moment like this, she applies herself to obedience being able to do everything as asked, even if redirected. She shows a lot of potential being versatile with all types of training, even while in a wheelchair.
Our next practice was food manners and we recorded our session to showcase how patient Laika is for her food. The first few days into her boarding she took most of the day to eat or just avoid it in general. She used to cling onto me at first when starting our food practice so after waiting for her food she would come to me first and rather avoid her food. Now as long as I'm close by and signal her long enough to eat she will be consistent. During our practice I'm able to roam around the house freely as if this was door manners. I open the backyard door and head outside and even during this moment Laika shows her ability to wait until her break is given to her. The last video clip is short but showcases Laika's behavior being around Hunter. This is her confidence and rather than avoiding him she just remains still and lets things be as they are. There are a few more days left in her training so hopefully by then there's some type of reaction from both of them to pursue playtime and just be themselves.
Pupdate 11/8/2024
Today we had our morning walk with playtime followed up once we got home. Some gestures and signals were being made between Hunter and Laika but awkwardly most of the time from Laika being confused. Most of the time she kept patting Hunter on the head and running away which was funny to see but shows how confused Laika is to play with Hunter. I followed up with training in the wheelchair for Laika in the front of the house before giving the dogs breakfast.
We headed over to Hillcrest Park to have some exercise and practice our obedience throughout the park. She did well walking throughout the park without me holding onto her short leash. We practiced placing on multiple platforms throughout the park, letting people pass us holding her sit, and jogging at times for fun. We had no issues and enjoyed our visit at the park for the hour we remained there. Later on once we returned home I waited for my Brother and Father to return home. Once they did I recorded the moment they entered inside and Laika remained on her place mat. Laika see's my Father and keeps her attention on him for no apparent reason. My Father is aware to ignore her and keep eye contact away when she's out practicing and as he passes, she begins to smell him which is a sign of curiosity. During a moment like this inside a home it's better to keep avoidance to help educate Laika that the person they see when timid is nothing to worry about. The often this happens this will always boost a dog's confidence. My last objective was to leave the house momentarily after they arrived and she remained inside until I gave her a break.
The rest of the day we spent conditioning her obedience around the house, with my brother one on one, and using the wheelchair. All these practices have been going well with less use of our e-collar and Laika being adamant towards her obedience.
Pupdate 11/9/2024
This morning we took our last walk together with Hunter at Hillcrest Park in Downtown Fullerton. I had both of them off leash and they did well performing, even Laika behaving better than Hunter at times. We practiced our place again but having both of them do it together which went well, however when practicing near the fountain Laika would get up at times from the noise of the water splashing.
Later on, we practiced obedience with my younger brother who wanted to spend some time with Laika. Laika was performing most of her obedience with ease but would get excited when hearing the word "come" and would think to recall herself towards me, seen in the video above. This happens multiple times throughout the video but Nick is able to navigate Laika by use of the e-collar. After we focused on more conditioning of the Wheelchair by going for a walk around the block first before heading back home to train. In the video above our second video clip we came back from our walk and practiced obedience while my brother is in the wheelchair as always. Laika does well performing but there are moments she wants to be ahead or closer to me, being some distance away from my brother. During these moments my brother has to communicate to Laika to keep her positioned closer to his feet rather than to far forward or close the wheels. When Nick asks to send her away to place she slightly hesitates but Nick is able to redirect her to perform her obedience properly while in the wheelchair.
We had a family party going on in my house and Laika was ok with everyone being distant but she did seem uneasy seeing everyone inside the house or in the backyard. This is the first time we had multiple people inside the house besides my family. I spent some time with some of my cousins who are in their twenties to be around Laika so I could see her behavior with people who were more confident to be around her. With them spending some time she eventually let two of my younger male cousins pet her which went well. One of them was able to walk her momentarily with ease and even asked her for a break which she hesitated to do at first but committed and received affection from my relative. After I brought her inside the living room to see everyone who was greeting each other or just to see everyone move inside the house. She seemed to settle after being here for some time and as people passed by she seemed more relaxed rather than willing to close her mouth and keep her attention on them. After walking in and out of the house multiple times she seemed ok with everyone being around her for this occasion. Laika shows the ability to greet strangers but it has to be done appropriately with people of confidence who can engage her without feeling uneasy around her.
Laika's Board & Train has come to an end and it has been a blast spending every day with Laika helping build confidence in herself and with her obedience. When she first came over she seemed uneasy and took her time doing things inside the house. It was clear to see she needed help so I took my time & patience to the next level to help Laika in the time period I had with her. Now she seems to be confident with performing her obedience at any place we visit now, even with Hunter! Laika will be missed in this house but is ready to go back to her family!
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