Luca | Silver Labrador Retriever | Studio City, CA | In- Training
- Sheena Chavez
- Jul 17, 2022
- 9 min read
Updated: Jul 30, 2022
Meet Luca! Luca is a one-year-old Silver Labrador Retriever from Studio City, CA who is joining us for our famous Two-Week Board and Train Program. Luca comes to us with typically puppy behavior such as mouthing when playing, jumping to greet, chewing rugs, and getting into things he is not supposed to. Luca is very food motivated but will choose not to follow through with the ask unless there is food involved. He excessively pulls on leash making it nearly impossible to take him for a nice stroll through the neighborhood. Throughout the next two weeks Luca will be working on proper greeting manners, learning basic commands on and off leash, and learning to be an overall well-rounded pup! Stay tuned for his two-week transformation!
Pupdate 7/17/2022
Luca did well on the drive home and did not fuss in the crate. Weighing him was a challenge as he could not sit still. We logged him in at 77.6lbs.
When we arrived home, he did bark in the crate initially but still settle down after a few minutes. He has not given us any issues going into the crate yet. However, he did try to push his way out. So, we will also be working on him waiting to come out instead of pushing his way through. He spent the rest of the day adjusting to his new environment and getting comfortable. His training will officially begin tomorrow!
Pupdate 7/18/2022
Luca worked on learning a proper Heel today. To help with his pulling we place a pinch collar on him. You can see that after a few minutes Luca quickly understood that he is no longer allowed to pull. We also work on making turns with Luca during his Heel. This way he also learns to turn when we turn, constantly following our direction. He still has his moments where he doesn’t want to keep walking, trails behind us and plants himself. We provide him with some verbal encouragement and directional leash pressure when this happens. Luca did bark in his crate throughout most of the night last night. Luca was placed in the crate around 10pm for bedtime. He was let out after 4 hours to go potty around 2am, he was barking from inside the crate. Luca still proceeded to bark afterwards throughout the remainder of the night until 6:30am.
Luca also had some bloody discharge coming from his penis today. We have not seen him lick or bug at this area. It does not seem to be bothering him as he continues to be his happy go luck self. We took him to the emergency veterinarian to get a professional opinion. Luca was prescribed antibiotics that we will give to him morning and evening with food. Luca also will be wearing a cone while he is not being supervised.
Pupdate 7/19/2022
Today Luca worked on heel without the pinch collar and did very good. When we took off the prong collar and used the flat collar, he had a few hiccups here and there. We also worked on Place by having him sit/down on things like park benches and picnic tables which he did easily. We also did some Come to Sits which after a while he performed well. After any break, we start off with heel. Each time he starts off pulling and not listening. It takes him some time to get back into the grove of training again. Luca also hits barriers during training when he feels he is over listening. If this happens during a Come to Sit Luca would either not come all the way around to my left or he will go too far and sit at my feet. Luca is supposed to be on my left-hand side lined up with my knee facing forward.
Lucas' urine sample was dropped off at our veterinary office early morning to be tested. The urinalysis came back, and everything was normal. Our veterinarian suspected that it was attributed to an over arousal as he is still considered to be a juvenile pup. Sometimes when over arousal occurs in a canine the blood will get mixed in with the semen. Luca no longer needs to wear a cone so now he can be more comfortable.
Luca does still have his moments when he tries to bite and put his mouth on us. He does this in attempt to get us to stop doing whatever is happening at the moment. When this happens, you don’t want to give in to him as that teaches him it’s okay to continue doing that to us. It is similar to when he has his moments where he doesn’t want to walk and plants himself on the ground. We don’t give into these habits; we push through barriers to get him to follow though. The idea is always having you end with the upper hand. Appropriate structure, boundaries and consistency is key!
Pupdate 7/20/2022
Luca once again didn't sleep through the night. The original bedtime was 2145. Luca woke up barking at 0145 and again at 0400. He was taken out at 0145 for a potty break and returned to the crate. At 0400 we put on the E-Collar as it tends to prevent the outbursts that Luca is susceptible to. It worked. Luca and Oso went out at 0715 for the AM potty break and to stretch their legs.
We continued to improve Lucas Heel. We were able to have him the leash dragging after some practice. Such a great improvement from his pickup day! Lucas heel still has room for lots of improvement as he still veers off and walks ahead/behind. When this happens, we give the opportunity for Luca to do some problem solving in fixing his position on his own. If he still is confused, then we utilize the leash to help him out.
Pupdate 7/21/2022
This morning's walk was about 3.2 miles through the neighborhood with relative flat conditions. We worked on a proper heel position, place, and auto-sit when coming to a complete stop. Luca does better as he tires, and Place has really started to develop well. Mid-morning, we worked on dragging the leash again with low distractions. Luca became excited when someone wanted to discuss another board and train and Luca immediately broke command. Today’s camera view hopefully provides you with a better visual of where we would like Luca to be during his Heel. Keeping in mind we are on the fourth day; I'd say the progress that we are having is positive and I have no reason to be concerned with the trajectory that Luca is on.
Pupdate 7/22/2022
This afternoon we visited Lowe's for some air-conditioned work with very low distractions. Luca did better with the cooler temperatures heeling throughout the entire store. There is an employee that greets ALL of our board and train pups (it is a bit like paying a toll to use the store) who also greeted Luca. Luca started off in a Sit, but nearly immediately tried jumping on the employee. Fortunately, she is a very good sport and totally understands what we are trying to do. She stopped petting Luca and wished him well. Whenever Luca is greeted by someone new, he must stay in a seated position. Once he breaks out of that position the greeting/affection stops to help teach Luca we do not reward such behaviors. We, of course, will be back soon for the distractions.
Luca naps in his crate for about 4 hours after working hard. With all his outings being structured it provides him with mental stimulation which contributes to working out that excess energy.
Pupdate 7/24/2022
Today was fit for another trip to Lowes. Luca has become much better for his automatic Sits. (Luca stops & sits when we stop walking) We do still provide him with a heads up before we come to a stop. Typically saying “and Luca sit” as we come to that stop. Once we say sit, we stop walking and Luca sits right away. When any distraction is present Luca is provided with many reminders of the ask/command. This helps keep his focus on us and not on the environment around him. Luca is crated unless he is being actively watched which eliminated any/all of the potty accidents! When ever Luca is taken out of the crate, no matter time of day, he immediately needs to be taken outside to potty.
Pupdate 7/24/2022
We took a trip to the Block of Orange to practice his commands in some more distractions. He needs some more work with his duration commands (holding in position) in more public areas while we create distance between him, and I. Luca can’t hold them very long without wanting to get up and walk closer to us. He of course was a bit distracted by the people and noises around. You can see he messed up quite a few times. As I’ve mentioned before we would like Luca to problem solved and fix the positioning himself. All I do is provide Luca with a few reminders of the command paired up with a low-level e-collar stimulation. Once Luca fixes himself, I always praise with “good boy!”, “good job!” or something similar. Luca is a smart boy who knows all his commands, he just has to work those external distractions.
Pupdate 7/25/2022
We have been working on Luca making eye contact with us when we call his name and tell him “Focus”. This helps keep Luca in tune with us and of course makes for a good boy! He hasn’t mastered this one quite yet but is a great bonus command.
I have also attached a photo what we have Luca drink water out of at home. This design has eliminated Luca’s ability to play in his water. I would recommend purchasing something similar for your home. If Luca tries to paw the water while we are present, we tell him “Off” with an e-collar stimulation. “Off” is our general do not do command. If nobody is around, he will do as he pleases. There isn’t much we can do to control behaviors when no one is there to catch him in the act. In public we use a small compact water bowl.
Our scale was having some issues yesterday. Luca’s weight is closer to 76lbs, not 78lbs. Luca also got very excited to go out today, so he did throw up some of his food this morning. Today was his last day on his antibiotics as well!
Pupdate: 7/26/2022
Am I seeing double?! There has been another Silver Labrador Retriever, Blu that has joined us for training. Luca of course has become best buds with our chocolate Labrador Oso. Luca sometimes become pushy with Oso constantly bugging him to play. Oso is a well-balanced pup who provides Luca with warning and corrections letting him know what is and isn’t okay during playtime. Each canine has their own boundaries. Not all pups will appreciate pushy puppy energy. It took Luca some time to understand but has improved on learning his boundaries with Oso. If Luca was not responding to Osos’ cues, then that is where we step in to correct and help set those boundaries. Luca and his new friend Blu instantly got along as well.
This is the same for playtime with humans. As soon as Luca jumps or puts his mouth on us playtime immediately stops. If Luca becomes too rambunctious then playtime will stop. If he keeps doing anything we don’t appreciate, then playtime stops. Boundaries need to be set for everything in his life. You have to be the one to decide what is and isn’t okay then stick with it.
We have practiced feeding Luca from a normal bowl, and he does very well! He does not inhale his food and eats at a normal pace.
Pupdate 7/27/2022
Luca met with other trainers and their dogs to practice around new dog distractions. After some warmup he was able to Heel in between them and follow through with his command! Luca always needs a warmup when arriving somewhere new or after taking some time to relax. He will make some small mistakes here and there but as long as we do our part, he starts to get into the grove of everything again.
Pupdate 7/28/2022
We started off the day taking Luca on an off leash walk around the neighborhood! He did very good and only had a few mistakes. When Luca starts a Heel from a Sit or Down, he tends to get a little bit out in front but no big deal, that will be fixed with consistency and repetition! After breakfast and a short break, we went out to an outdoor mall and off-leash heeled and practiced duration down him with some distractions. There was a smaller dog that came in the crossing of Luca, but Luca didn’t see it.
When Luca works in public locations such as today, he does tire out quickly from stress. He does not worry about the distractions around him. But when he has to continuously focus on the commands and soak in the environment around him, he does become quite burnt out from his mind constantly working. When we go on an outing, we provide him with lots of breaks and water. We suspect Luca may have an inner ear infection. He often shakes his head randomly.
Pupdate 7/29/2022
We’ve been working on a new command with Luca, Send Away to Place. This is a nice bonus command to keep up with Luca if you would like. Send Away to Place is still the same basic command as Place, just slightly more advanced. It consists of having Luca go to a Place object at a further distance. Rather than walking Luca directly up to that place object. It also helps build more consistency with his place command overall. There were times where he was confused, going to the place object then walking right off. With some practice he was able to pick it up! Good job Luca!
Pupdate 7/30/2022
Luca got a bath today and enjoyed some more playtime with his buddies before he goes home. In the video you can see some of his manners. Including Door Manners, Food Manners and Car Manners. For all of these Luca must sit/down and wait patiently before going in/out of the car and door. As well as wait to be released to get his food. Luca initially struggled with his Door Manners, but he has greatly improved! We can’t wait to show you everything he has learned!
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