Meet Milo! He's an eleven-month-old Golden Retriever here for our Two-Week Board and Train Program from Pasadena, California! He's extremely sweet and loving, and he loves to play. He likes going on walks, however he loves pulling his leash all over the place and jumping on people! He knows a few commands, but sometimes doesn't listen. He also tries to run out the front door any time it's open! Over the next two weeks, we'll work on Milo's manners in and out of the house, work on his basic commands including his heel, teach him how to properly greet people, and show him how to be the best pup he can possibly be! Stay tuned for Milo's two week transformation!
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Pupdate: 11/4/2023
After picking up Milo, we stayed at the park for a bit to play around and get to know each other! He is extremely sweet and took to me very quickly. While walking around, he did a great deal of pulling, and barked at a couple other dogs. Even throughout his pulling, he would come back to check in with me every so often, which I think is a good sign. Since Milo's name was recently changed, I'm going to start by teaching him to respond to Milo, his new name!
At home, I let Milo sniff around my house and tried to get him settled in. So far, he seems to be very confident and comfortable! It's been a pleasure to have him today!
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Pupdate: 11/5/2023
Milo and I went to Garfield Park for his first full day of training! We introduced him to his E-collar, and started working on a couple commands. For Milo's Come To Sit command, I want him to come to my right side, walk around my legs and sit at my left side with his ears at my knee. From here we can go into the Heel command, where I want Milo to walk politely at my left side without pulling forward or veering off to the side. He's doing well getting the motions of these commands down, although we have a lot of work to do before he will perfect them!
Other than his training, Milo and I played around the park and the house! He also ended up eating the rest of his dinner last night, he just needed a little more time.
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Pupdate: 11/6/2023
Milo and I went to Almansor Park for today's training! His Heel has improved massively, and he's barely pulling on me now. He still tries to stop and sniff occasionally, but he's starting to get better about that as well.
We started working on his Place command today! For Place, I want Milo to hop onto a raised object, such as a bench or a cot like the one in the picture above. This is a great confidence booster for Milo, and it's also great to use around the house! I love using the Place command while I'm cooking dinner, or preparing the dogs' dinner, so I know they won't be all over me while cooking. Milo was a little bit skeptical the first time I asked him to hop onto the place cot, but he picked up one paw at a time and slowly got on! After a few repetitions, he was getting on and off the cot with ease! Great job, Milo!
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Pupdate: 11/8/2023
Milo did an incredible job today at studio city recreation center! We worked on all of his commands, including his Down command. We just started on his Down, but he's already starting to get comfortable with it. He was very hesitant at first, as this can be a very vulnerable position for a dog, but he's starting to get a little more confident.
We were in close proximity to other dogs today, and Milo got distracted by them a few times, but he was very polite for the most part. When Milo starts to hyperfocus on another dog, squirrel, or any distraction, I use his Off command. Off is our "do not do" command, and can be used whenever Milo gives me an unwanted behavior such as jumping!
In today's video you can see a glimpse of each command we've been working on. He Heels with me a little, performs his Place and Down commands, as well a couple of repetitions of Come To Sit. It seems Milo's toughest command so far is Come To Sit, as he likes to stop in front of me or right behind me, instead of the preferred stopping point at my left side. He's improving each time we try it though!
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Pupdate: 11/8/2023
Milo went to Almansor Park today for training! He did great with his commands again today, and seemed to get even more comfortable with his Down command. In addition to that, his Come To Sit command is becoming much more smooth and he is nailing the proper positioning more often than not.
I noticed Milo shaking his head today and upon further investigation, found a large amount of wax and a faint yeasty smell that indicates to me he might be developing an ear infection. I cleaned out his ears with cotton balls, but I can tell it's still bothering him. I'm hoping a veterinarian will give him some medicated ear cleaner to sooth his ears. I'll give updates on his ears each day until it's resolved.
Milo is still chipper and engaged, but I'd like him to be as comfortable as possible!
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Pupdate: 11/9/2023
Milo and I went to Santa Anita Mall today for training! This mall has a great outdoor section as well as indoor sections, and we spent a lot of time in each. Milo was definitely more comfortable while we were outside, but he did very well inside too! He remained calm and collected the whole time and performed each of his commands without issue. Milo has been doing spectacularly with these basic commands. He's performing each with a loose leash and I very rarely need to use any leash tension or adjustments as he is responding quite well to the E-collar. Even with the commands he was having a tougher time with, Come To Sit and Down, he is now getting his positioning right almost every time, and he's laying down without any leash tension at all! Great job, Milo!
I'm keeping his ears clean until he sees his veterinarian. He seems to enjoy the massaging feeling while he's being cleaned. He's still shaking his head, but not as much as yesterday.
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Pupdate: 11/10/2023
Milo and I went to Almansor Park today for training! I started working on his commands with his leash dragging. Allowing the leash to drag gives me some idea of how he might perform off leash while still having access to the leash should I need it. Milo performed and behaved just as well with his leash dragging as he has been with it in my hand! There was one point at which Milo got very fixated on a large fluffy dog who was also playing in the park, at which point I stepped on his leash and asked him to come to me. He did so with very little hesitation. He did a great job of holding his positions without breaking toward me, as you can see in a couple of the above photos taken from slightly farther away. Furthermore, after I took these photos, I asked Milo to come from that distance and he did his full Come To Sit command with great fluidity.
I continue to keep Milo's ears as clean as possible. It's becoming a morning and evening ritual, where Milo will rest his head on my lap while I wipe his outer ears. I'm sad he has an ear infection, but at least there's this one part we both can enjoy!
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Pupdate: 11/11/2023
Milo went to Santa Anita Mall today! We continued working with his leash dragging, except today we used a smaller leash to further replicate the sensation of being off leash. Even around the many distractions at the mall, Milo did a really good job of staying with me and behaving himself! We tried working on a slightly more advanced command today as well, which is Come To Heel. For this command, I want Milo to come when asked, but instead of sitting at my left side, I want him to fall into his heel position and walk with me. Right now, he still takes a second or two to find the correct position, but he's getting the hang of it quickly!
Other than that, Milo is still doing great with his basic commands, although he still sometimes wants to roll over for belly rubs when asked to lay down, as you can see in the above video.
Another thing Milo likes to do is lean heavily into me when he sits next to me. I love his cuddles, but I don't want him to rely on me being in physical contact with him in order for him to be comfortable. I want him to be just as comfortable when he's several feet from me, which we're working on!
Milo's ears are still bothering him a bit, which you can see when he shakes his head a few times throughout the above video. Wiping then each morning and evening is still helping though!
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Pupdate: 11/12/2023
Milo and I went to the park for training! There were several games going on to capture Milo's attention, but he generally did a great job of being a good boy! He was fully off leash today, and we walked by soccer, volleyball, basketball and baseball games. There was one time he wanted to break away from me to say hi to someone to get free pets, but aside from that he stayed with me. He was fully off leash most of the day today, and he behaved almost as well as he would've with his leash. I'm currently trying to expand on his basic commands, in the same way we are with his Come To Heel command. He's doing a brilliant job with everythingI've thrown at him so far, so I'm soon going to add in another more advanced command to his repertoire.
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Pupdate: 11/13/2023
Milo had a long day today! We went to Almansor Park this morning to start our day off strong! Milo was full of excitement and we had a nice training session around the park.
As previously mentioned, Milo has been having a tough time with his ears. He got to see his veterinarian today, and my theories were confirmed! Milo had an ear infection, and we are working to treat it as we speak. Milo has been loving his routine ear massages, and it seems that adding his medicated ear cleaner hasn't changed that!
After his appointment, Milo spent the rest of his day mostly relaxing. He had a very fun play session with my personal puppy last night, which is shown in the above video. My girl can be extremely pushy and hard to play with, so Milo's ability to stand his ground and play was very impressive to me.
Tomorrow, class is back in session! Milo will continue to work toward his goals and become the brilliant pup we know he can be!
In addition to his Pupdate today, I'd like to share Milo's E-collar video with you! We discussed this over coffee, however, it will be extremely valuable to practice and understand how his E-collar operates. It is our primary communication tool with Milo, and the fastest path to a great pup is clear communication!
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Pupdate: 11/14/2023
Milo and I went to Garfield Park today! He was off leash for most of the day. He's doing well with each basic command, as well as his more advanced commands. His Come To Heel command is going very well, and we're also working on his Send Away To Place command! This is an extension of his basic Place command, and he's picking it up fairly well. He still sometimes stops short when I ask him to go to a place object, but his confidence is growing!
Milo was still a little lethargic this morning, but he started showing more energy throughout the day! After the park, we went home and Milo got a nice nap. We will go back out to the park later this evening for some more exercise and playtime!
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Pupdate: 11/15/2023
Milo and I spent the day going to and from Almansor Park! It was raining on and off all day so we tried to stay dry, but still get some time outside.
In today's video, you can see the process of showing Milo a new place object and slowly increasing the distance between me and the object. At first, I need to walk all the way up the the bench to show Milo it's something I am okay with him jumping on. Then each time I ask him to hop on, I increase the distance by a couple steps. You can see Milo not wanting to separate himself from me very easily, but by the end of the video he does a few good repetitions!
Milo's ears seem to be slowly getting better. He is doing a great job letting me put his ointment in his ears each day!
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Pupdate: 11/16/2023
Milo and I went I Santa Anita Mall again today! It wasn't as crowded as last time, but there were still plenty of distractions to test Milo. He was off leash for about half the time we were there, and he did great all day!
After the mall, we went home where Milo got some playtime with my personal puppy, and we're all going to the park this evening!
Milo has been shaking his head much less. I don't think his ear infection is completely gone yet, but it's clearly getting better!
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Pupdate: 11/17/2023
Milo and I went to Santa Monica Pier today! He did very well and was off leash most of the time, although he was a little more nervous than I expected. This was definitely the most crowded place he's been with me, and he did very well with that in mind! The first time we walked by the arcade he showed great interest in going in. When I reminded him to stay in heel position, he did, but he usually doesn't break from the position very easily. I'm not sure if the noises inside attracted him or potentially the smells. Either way, we walked by it a few times and after that he didn't have any more issues with that area.
He didn't seem to like the areas with very loud music, and he got excited a couple times around the other dogs, but overall he did great off leash in such a crowded area.
Milo's left ear seems almost entirely cleared up, although his right ear still seems to be bothering him a little, and producing earwax.
Milo is going home tomorrow, and I will miss him greatly! He has been such a pleasure to work with every single day!
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