Meet Lucy! She is a four year old Shepherd mix who has joined us for our Two Week Board and Train Program. Lucy is here for basic obedience, leash pulling, and jumping to greet. Lucy loves people, and will pull towards them when wanting to interact. She will also jump on them for attention when she is overly excited, which is a behavior she needs to work on as she does not know her own strength. Lucy also needs help with socialization skills, as she can be reactive towards other dogs when on leash. Over the next fourteen days, Lucy will be working on her behaviors and be set up for success, with the hopes of becoming a well mannered pup. Check in to see her progress!
Lucy and I spent the day getting to know each other. We drove out to a local park and went for a walk to establish a bond. During our walk, Lucy was pulling heavily on her leash and was distracted by the grass smells around her. To keep her from doing so, I introduced Lucy to heel, which consists of having her walk with me on my left side. To teach Lucy, I used leash tension to guide her back towards me anytime she pulled away from me, as I turned in the opposite direction. When she would try to move towards my right, I made u-turns to keep her on my left. Lucy is understanding the concept, but still needs more practice, so heel will now be applied on every walk that we go on from here on out.
Lucy and I worked on place today. Place consists of having Lucy getting onto an elevated object and remaining there in a sit or a down. Place can also mean her crate, her bed, or any specific spot around the house of your choosing. It can be of great use when guests are over, and it can also build confidence in a dog. To teach Lucy, I introduce her to the object I want her to place on, use leash tension and her kibble to guide her up. She did very well, and jumped onto the object with little to no hesitation. What she did have trouble with, were objects of different texture, such as the park benches that we practiced on. She was a bit unsure and did not want to do it, so I used her kibble to lure her. When her kibble did not work, I got onto the benches myself and with slight leash tension, I was able to help Lucy follow through. We practiced it a few more times, and once she remained consistent, I was able to have Lucy place on her own. Lucy and I will keep working on it by having her place on different objects with different surfaces, so that she may continue building her confidence.
Lucy and I met with other trainers and their pups today who assisted us by serving as a distraction. She did very well with the pups all around her, and showed no signs of reactivity. Lucy and I also worked on her recall which is known as come to sit. Come to sit consists of having Lucy come towards my right, going around behind me, and sitting on my left. To teach her, I used leash tension to have her come towards my right as I am moving backwards to motivate her into coming my way. Once she’s at my right, I take a few steps forward, use leash guidance to assist her in going behind me, and then ask her to sit when she is at my left. It is taking Lucy some time to learn, but with more practice, I will continue to work her through it.
Lucy and I worked on down today. Down can be one of the most difficult commands to teach considering it being a submissive position which can make a dog feel vulnerable being down on all fours. Lucy has an understanding of what down means, but has a little trouble maintaining it. Since she is food motivated, I used her kibble as a reward anytime she went into a down and remained in position. During the initial phase of our session, as soon as she went into a down, I immediately released her with a “break,” and rewarded her with kibble. Once Lucy began to show consistency, I had her hold it a little longer before releasing her. With more time and more practice, I will begin to fade out her kibble and only reward her with praise as we prepare to begin working on distance and duration with a longer leash.
Lucy and I drove out to a local park today. She has learned all of her commands, so today’s session consisted of working on them in a public setting. We began with a heel around the park to have Lucy adjust to her surroundings. Throughout our walk, we encountered a few squirrels and a few dogs, in which Lucy did well with by not reacting or trying to engage. When Lucy is walking in front of you, she sees herself as the pack leader, which makes her feel like she is in control, thus leading to pulling, barking, and reacting. By giving her structure, and establishing yourself as the pack leader, Lucy will be able to learn self control, begin to build positive associations while on walks, and reduce her reactivity over time. With proper guidance, along with the training I am giving her, Lucy is on the right track to becoming the best pup that she can be.
Lucy and I have been enjoying ourselves after our training sessions. We take a break, and after she rests for a bit, we engage in playtime. Having playtime with your dog is beneficial for several reasons. It can strengthen the bond between you and your pup, and creates a positive association with her training, making Lucy more eager to engage and learn. Playtime also provides physical exercise, which burns off excess energy, and it can reduce behavior problems due to pent up energy boredom. Playtime can help both you and your dog relax after a training session. It provides a break from the structured environment of training, and allows for some lighthearted fun. By incorporating playtime into Lucy’s training, you not only make the learning process more enjoyable for her, but also create a balanced approach to her physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Lucy and I have been working on distance and duration with a long line. I have been practicing with her in increments of five seconds. This means that for every foot I take back, I wait five seconds before releasing her with a “break.” One foot back is five seconds, two feet back is ten seconds, three feet is fifteen, and so on. She has been doing very well, and I can get back about eight feet without Lucy coming out of position. If she does sit up and I am about six feet back, I reset her, and go five feet back until she follows through. Once I see consistency from Lucy, I then proceed to another foot back, and continue with repetition. There will be times in which Lucy will challenge you and come out of position, but it is up to us as owners to work her through it. In the next few days, I will give Lucy more of a challenge with her distance and duration, as we will be working in areas with more distractions.
Lucy and I continued practicing her distance and duration, but with added distractions that included people and other dogs. She did very well maintaining her positions for a good minute and a half, which is close to our two minute goal. She still needs a little more conditioning as she tends to get up passing the ninety second mark, but with repetition and consistency, I am going to help Lucy work through it. She also needed help with her recall as she would only come towards my right and stop, or she would come towards my front and stop, which is due to using less leash tension to no leash tension at all. I will keep working on it with Lucy to have it cleaned up, as she is preparing to work on her commands with her leash dragging.
Lucy and I worked on some leash dragging exercises today. We began practicing in an enclosed area like my backyard, and once I was comfortable with Lucy, we took our session outside. When working on heel, Lucy did try to veer off and head towards the grass, but with a verbal “heel,” and e-collar stim, I was able to get Lucy back on track on our walk. Her come to sit is improving, as she is following through and not stopping like she was before. Lucy and I will continue to work on her commands with her leash dragging, as she prepares for her off leash experience.
Lucy and I went for a walk around the neighborhood today as we began her off leash conditioning. She has done well responding to her commands when practicing off leash at home, so we went for a walk and challenged her a little with a few distractions. Throughout our heel conditioning, there were dogs barking at a distance, a few neighbors standing outside watering their lawn, and a few dogs barking behind their fence in their yard. Lucy did very well maintaining her heel, and did not make any intent to interact. However, if there is a time when walking with Lucy and she does make an intent, remind her to heel verbally, and use her e-collar to keep her on track. If you have treats, reward her with a few when following through, and give her lots of praise throughout the walk by saying, “Good girl Lucy,” or “Good heel.” By keeping her motivated, it will only encourage Lucy to perform her behavior more.
Lucy and I have been working on her food manners. She had an understanding of the concept, but was initially a little impatient in wanting to wait to be released. Anytime Lucy sat up on her own and made her way towards her food, I picked her bowl up, reset her, and repeated the exercise. With our distance and duration exercises, I was able to gradually increase duration with Lucy, and she began to understand what was being asked of her. With time, she grew to be more patient, and is now capable of waiting in a calm relaxed state to eat her food.
Lucy and I have been working on her greeting manners. Anytime someone approached Lucy to say hello, she would almost immediately jump on them. Throughout her program, we have been working on correcting her behavior, and establishing a better approach. I have been practicing by asking Lucy to sit, and remain in position when someone wants to greet her. If she gets up, I kindly ask that person to step back while I reset Lucy, and repeat the exercise as needed. With consistency and repetition, Lucy has made good progress, and can now be greeted in a calm relaxed state.
Lucy and I worked on her final. Everything that she has learned was pieced together and she did really well in a very distracting environment. She has learned so much in such a short amount of time, and is capable of learning so much more as long as her training remains consistent. I am really proud of how far she has come along, and I love the results of the work she has put in. She is a very bright pup and I enjoyed every minute of our time together. She received many compliments on her good looks and her good behavior. Enjoy this clip of Lucy showing what she has learned.
Lucy has completed her Two Week Board and Train Program. I want to thank you for giving me the opportunity in being Lucy’s trainer, and for trusting me while she was under my care. She was a great co-pilot, and I will truly miss her companionship. We bonded so much these past two weeks, and became great friends. I look forward to meeting with you and show you what she can do. Her final video will be up soon, but in the meantime, here is a little sneak peek of her working on her door manners. Thank you Lucy!
