Mochi | Old English Bulldog | Orange, CA | In - Training
- priscillaoffleashs
- Aug 1, 2022
- 17 min read
Updated: Aug 21, 2022
Meet Mochi! A sweet, 7 month old Old English Bulldog, who has joined us for our Three Week Board and Train program. Mochi is very nervous when in new environments and is very unsure of people, therefore avoids them. Over the next three weeks Mochi and I will be working on building her confidence through exposure and proper socialization. Stay tuned for her 3 week transformation!
Pupdate 8/1/2022
Today I brought Mochi to my house and got her all settled in. At first she did not want to get out of the kennel. I gave her lots of encouragement and added slight leash pressure in the direction I wanted her to go. After some time, Mochi worked up the courage to come out of the kennel. We walked around the front of my house then worked our way to the backyard. Mochi is very unsure of her new environment which was expected. We walked together in the backyard and then hung out together to build our bond. We will get started on introducing her to some new commands tomorrow and expose her to new places!
Pupdate 8/2/2022
Mochi and I began to work on her obedience today as well as socialization. I introduced her to the E collar along with leash pressure. Leash pressure is used to guide Mochi with directional changes of the leash. Once she follows that pressure path the pressure is released. At first Mochi was unsure of the leash direction I was guiding her with and resisted. We worked through it, making frequent turns which helped Mochi follow my lead. She began to understand how to turn off the leash pressure and turned with me. Whenever I applied leash pressure I also stimulated Mochi with the E collar so she can pair the two together. Mochi responded well to this and only struggled with falling behind during our Heel a few times. This is due to a lack of confidence she has in herself. When she falls behind I encourage her to come with me by applying a slight leash pop and cuing Heel. Heel is the action of Mochi walking by my left side, turning when I turn and sitting when I stop walking. She should check in with me frequently and stay by my side until she hears the release word Break. When Mochi is on Break she knows is she free to do as she pleases. I cue Heel before I move forward from a stationary position and before I change direction to give her a heads up to turn with me. Once Mochi caught on to this and Heeled with me, we went for a walk outside. Mochi was nervous around her new environment. We Heeled together with frequent turns whenever Mochi wanted to pull. Turning helped redirect her attention back to me. I rewarded her whenever she checked in with me and followed through with commands. It is great that although she was nervous in this new environment, she was comfortable enough with me to take treats. We will keep working on building Mochi’s confidence in new environments as well as our relationship. Good work Mochi!
Pupdate 8/3/2022
Mochi and I took a field trip to the local Home Depot. This was a lot for Mochi to soak in initially. I took her at a time where it would be busy but not overwhelming so we can get desensitization started. There were small crowds of people that definitely startled Mochi. Whenever I saw a crowd, I worked her near it a distance then worked our way closer and closer. We saw stairs and walked up it together which is great for confidence building. She did not want to climb the stairs at first but when she saw me step onto it, she felt confident enough to follow. I then had Mochi walk with another handler. At first she did not want to leave my side. After a lot of encouragement, she followed the handlers lead and performed a nice Heel. With a lot of exposure to new noises, crowds and sounds, we will keep working on building her confidence!
Pupdate 8/4/2022
Mochi and I took a trip to another Home Depot today. I noticed she was nervous while around shopping carts and anything with a lot of movement. I began to work with her while a shopping cart moved behind us. At first she froze and didn’t want to walk forward. I gave her a lot of encouragement as well as a few leash pops forward and she worked through it. Towards the end of the session she formed a nice Heel while in front of the shopping cart.
I introduced Mochi to a new command today which is Come to Sit. Come to Sit is the action of Mochi coming around behind me to sit on my left hand side ready to Heel. I step backwards a few steps to help motivate her to walk towards me. I will slowly fade out the footwork so Mochi can Come to me without having to help with added movement. We worked on her Extended Sit as well which was difficult for her while around crowds and noises. Whenever she got up before I released her, I cued Sit again helping her with added leash pressure if needed.
Pupdate 8/5/2022
Mochi and I ventured out to the local store today. We came across other dogs and
it didn’t phase Mochi at all. She appears more comfortable with walking by new people yet is frightened when they are walking quickly towards her or with large objects in their hands. We will keep working near crowds to desensitize Mochi.
Her Extended Sit is improving. Mochi allows more distance between us while she sits and is holding it for up to a minute consistently with minor distractions. When we are loading up in the car she is now jumping up into the crate. I give her a lot of encouragement and run a few times back and forth towards the car which helped her work up the motivation to jump up. Good work Mochi!
Pupdate 8/6/2022
Today was a great day to take a stroll and visit the park with Mochi. Most of our work this far has been constant exposure to new noises, places, smells and people. The park was busy with people having photo shoots, birthday parties, and walking with their dogs. We began by walking around the whole park together a few times to help her acclimate to her new surroundings. Once we walked around we began to practice her Come to Sits. Mochi is beginning to Come more frequently with less leash pressure when there are very little distractions. If distractions arise, I coach her some more with added leash pressure.
I then introduced Mochi to a new command today which is Place. Place is the action of Mochi going to a designated area that you point to and staying there in a Down or Sit position until released with the cue Break. It is a great command to use to help Mochi enter a calm state of mind and can be used at home with an elevated dog cot or bed. It can also be used outside on any surface. Today we worked on Place with a bench. At first Mochi did not want to jump onto the bench. I helped Mochi up onto place by sitting on the bench and applying leash pressure towards the bench. This helped her become more comfortable with it. She then voluntarily jumped onto the bench consistently. After Mochi became consistent with Place we worked on guiding her into the Down position. Down is great to pair with Place to help Mochi reach a calm state of mind. I applied slight leash pressure towards the floor and praised Mochi once she went into the down position. Now we will build off that and have her perform Down with a longer duration as she offers the behavior more fluently.
Pupdate 8/7/2022
Mochi and I took a trip to the local beach today. Since it is a Sunday, the beach was filled with people, kids and dogs. This was a lot for Mochi at first but after a lap around the beach, her posture became more confident. Passing by crowds is what we have been working on since this is what Mochi gets nervous around the most. She tries to hide between my legs or run the opposite direction when she sees them. I work her through this by guiding her with a leash pop back towards my left side and cuing Heel. We will keep walking near crowds and Heeling through these challenging scenarios. Mochi was able to perform Place for a minute which is great! We will keep building duration and start working on adding distance between her and I. Adding distance is great for building confidence as Mochi would learn to stay in a stationary position without being next to anybody.
It is taking less and less time for Mochi to come out of the crate. I give her a lot of encouragement and she now comes out without much leash guidance. This is demonstrating that she is feeling more comfortable and confident with new environments. Once we got home, Mochi hung out in the backyard with me and Blondie, the other board and train pup that I have. Great work Mochi!
Pupdate 8/8/2022
Today Mochi and I worked on exposing her to a new environment today where there were several dogs and kids running around. After walking a few laps around the park we went to work by the other trainers and their dogs. Mochi was unsure of the environment but continued to Heel with me as we worked on her Come to Sit and Place command. We practiced Place on a new surface. The surface was a table at the park. After a few tries, Mochi was able to jump on the table and perform a Down. She is performing Down more quickly and holding the position for longer periods of time. After working on Place we went to work by the other trainers where they all took turns offering Mochi a tasty freeze dried treat. Mochi was skeptical at first but with some guidance from me and encouragement from the trainer’s, she took a treat from everyone! This exercise will help her pair a positive experience with new people. Excellent job Mochi!
Pupdate 8/9/2022
Mochi and I ventured out to the local Petco today. As always we began our training session by walking around the store, exposing her to her new environment. We then began to work on her Place command which she can perform for one and a half minutes. We are almost at our two minute goal! We then worked on her Come to Sit and Extended Sit. Mochi was able to hold her Extended Sit in the back of the store first where there was less distractions. As we spent more time in the store, Mochi felt confident enough to hold her Extended Sit closer to the front of the store for a minute straight while dogs and people passed by. Shopping carts passed by Mochi and she was still able to Heel next to me! We can pass by very small crowds of people but Mochi can still be very skeptical of large crowds or certain people. When we got home Mochi spent a lot of time outside with Blondie and I as we played with toys together. When we are at home Mochi feels very comfortable, playful with a relaxed posture which is big for her. Good work Mochi!
Pupdate 8/10/2022
Today Mochi and I introduced her to the command Under. This is a great command to use when going out with Mochi and needing her to relax underneath any surface. Under is great to use with her because Mochi feels safe when underneath a surface as well. At first Mochi was reluctant to go underneath the bench. I fed the leash through to the other side of the bench and added leash pressure towards me on the other side. Once I walked over to the other side of the bench and gave Mochi lots of encouragement, she followed the leash pressure to go underneath the bench. I kept it short and sweet, offering her praise and rewarding her with a treat for working up the courage to follow my lead. Once we repeated this and I saw her get more comfortable, I began to work on duration with her while she was Under the bench. She was able to hold it for up to 30 seconds which is almost at our 45 second goal! We also incorporated repetitions of her Coming to Sit by my left hand side which she is becoming very consistent with! Now that Mochi knows all of her commands, tomorrow I will begin to introduce her to added distance while using a 15 ft leash. This will be a challenge that she has demonstrated she is ready for. Amazing work Mochi!
Pupdate 8/11/2022
Today Mochi and I took a trip to the local mall. The mall was quite busy today with crowds of people everywhere. We had the chance to have a pack walk with the other trainer’s dogs which helped give Mochi the confidence to walk through these crowds that she was very unsure about. We took turns taking the lead and when it came Mochi’s turn to lead the pack, she did great! She looked back a few times but followed my lead when I cued Heel to keep moving forward. At first she struggled to hold her Extended Sit. I began to reward her in increments of 15 seconds while she stayed in position, which helped Mochi give me her full attention. Once we build more consistency with 15 seconds increments, I will keep increasing the duration of time before she receives a treat to slowly wean her off the treats when she is ready. We walked all around the mall and even took the elevator together which is great to desensitize Mochi to. She was nervous while in there yet worked through it. We didn’t focus too much on increasing distance today with her commands, since she needed some help with duration for her Extended Sit and Down. Place is Mochi’s favorite command as she can hold that for a whole two minutes already!
Pupdate 8/12/2022
Mochi and I began to work on creating distance with all of her commands at the local park today. At first she naturally wanted to follow me when I stepped more than 6 ft away from her. When she tried to get up I applied a leash pop along with stimulation from the e collar reminding her to sit. After a few repetitions Mochi began to understand what was asked of her. Everytime I walked to the end of the leash, I walked back to her and rewarded her. She did great with holding her commands while I walked away. The environment wasn’t too busy which is what I looking for to start her off with an area she is comfortable with. We worked on her Extended Sit and Down. If I cued Sit and she tried laying down, I helped her up with slight leash pressure upwards. As Mochi improves with distance, we will begin to add more and more distractions again. Once we got home, Mochi ran around and played in the backyard with my other pup Blondie. Blondie helps Mochi come out of her shell and have fun. When Mochi is in the backyard with us she looks completely comfortable and happy. When she is outside of the house, she is curious of her surroundings yet not totally comfortable with a tucked in tail. Whenever Mochi passes by crowds of people with me or anything she is unsure of, I offer a lot of praise and reward her for overcoming it. The more challenges the better! We will continue to work through any fears she may have. Excellent work Mochi!
Pupdate 8/13/2022
Today Mochi and I took a trip to the local Petco. Since it’s Saturday there was a lot going on over there. We began with a walk around the whole store before getting to work. We worked on her extended Sit with her Come to Sit from a 15 ft. Distance. Mochi was able to hold her Extended Sit at the back of the store for up to 3 minutes today. When we went to the front of the store, it was more difficult for Mochi. She made it two minutes a few times but was less consistent due to crowds of people passing by and looking at her. I increased rewards with Mochi when we got to the most challenging part of the store. Every time she looked at a crowd of people then checked in with me, I marked it with a Yes and rewarded her. She caught on to this and began to offer me her attention more frequently. She was less focused on her surroundings which is what I was looking for. We have a lot more exposure to work on but her attention towards me is definitely improving! I gradually increased the amount of food that Mochi is eating due to the extra exercise she is getting and according to what the back of her Nutro bag recommends. The scale seemed to be a bit unbalanced previously so I moved it to a more balanced spot. This is her correct weight at the moment. Excellent work Mochi.
Pupdate 8/14/2022
Mochi and I focused our work today on her manners. She now automatically lays down for her food waiting for me to release her with the cue Break. This takes a lot of impulse control for her to not eat immediately when she wants to. Mochi now runs out of the kennel as soon as I release her to come out, whereas before she would wait till I left the room to come out of her kennel. When she comes out of the kennel we play together with toys and with the other board and train pup that I have, Blondie. Playing with Mochi is important because it teaches her to have fun even in a new environment which helps tremendously with her anxiety. When she is very anxious she focuses too much on her environment. I want Mochi to know she can have fun wherever she goes! This week when we visit new places we will be adding some playtime in to see how it translates to new places. We then took a walk around the neighborhood to continue exposing Mochi to new environments. Although she is still skeptical, she continues to explore these new places with me without needing to apply a lot of leash pressure. I reward her whenever she voluntarily checks in with me, and she is doing it more frequently now, even from a distance.
Pupdate 8/15/2022
Today Mochi and I ventured out to the local park where we had the opportunity to work some more on proper socialization! After walking around the whole park to expose her to her new environment, we worked on all of her commands. I noticed today that Mochi’s tail was not all the way tucked in as before. Although it wasn’t completely relaxed, her body language seemed more relaxed than prior trips we had taken together. After Mochi seemed acclimated to her new surroundings, we worked on all of her commands with distance and duration. Mochi was able to hold her Extended Sit and Down for up to two minutes today. She was fluently performing her commands and checking in with me frequently. I then gave a few treats to the other trainers and practiced having Mochi take treats from each trainer. At first she took a while to take a treat from the first trainer. As we practiced with each and every trainer, she opened up and didn’t take long to take a treat and say hi. I also marked it with a yes and rewarded her every time she said hi so she knew she was being rewarded for each interaction. Mochi has been looking to me more when she is unsure of something, whereas before she would see something that would make her nervous and book it the opposite way immediately. Although at times when she is very nervous she will do that, it has become a lot less frequent and her trust with me is building. This is why rewarding her when she looks to me in uncertain environments is very important. I want Mochi to trust my lead and look to me for guidance, structure, and protection. As long as mochi understands I won’t let anything happen to her and am here to help guide her through every scenario, that trust will continue to build! We work through it! Amazing job Mochi!
Pupdate 8/16/2022
Today Mochi and I went to the Montebello mall to work on exposure and all of her commands. When we initially arrive somewhere, Mochi takes her time to get out of the kennel. I add slight leash pressure towards me and give Mochi lots of encouragement to make the decision to jump out when she is ready, always making sure to mark it with a yes and reward her as soon as she jumps out. We then walked inside the mall where Mochi seemed more confident than ever before walking past crowded areas. She is very aware of her surroundings yet did not run away to hide away from people, or run to hide herself behind my legs. I am able to walk 20 ft away from her while she is in the sit position. She enjoys walking as a pack and consistently holds her sit for up to two minutes.
I did notice last night before putting Mochi in her kennel, that she was straining while trying to poop. She seemed constipated so I ran to the store today to purchase a few cans of pumpkin which should help ease her constipation along with plenty of water!
Pupdate 8/17/2022
Mochi and I took a trip to the beach today. We focused our work today on Place with Down, Under and her Extended Sit. At times Mochi is still hesitant to jump onto new surfaces. Once she sees me put my foot on the surface first or even sit on it, she sees it as safe enough to jump on. We repeatedly practiced her jumping on then getting rewarded while on top of the surface. Practicing this at a distance from big distractions first sets her up for success. Once she shows confidence in a less distracting area, I gradually bring her closer to crowds of people. When she passes through an environment that is a lot for her to take in, I coach her extra reminding her to Heel and rewarding her at a threshold that she is comfortable enough to eat. Once we’re done training, I lay down with her and just hang out, letting her soak in her environment and rewarding her when she checks in with me. Even just hanging out with Mochi in new areas is great exposure!
Pupdate 8/18/2022
Mochi and I ventured out to the Block of Orange today. It takes Mochi a few laps around her new environment to acclimate to her surroundings. I have noticed the time it takes her to get more comfortable to work has shortened which is great! Her Place command is improving and she can perform it for a minimum of two minutes as crowds of people pass by her. As we Heeled together, there were janitors passing by us, rolling loud carts. Although Mochi was unsure of it, we continued to Heel together and she stayed walking near me on my left side. This was great because before she would change sides and try to walk on my right side, furthest away from the loud noises. Her Extended Sit was consistent and she was able to do it as small crowds passed by her. We even had the chance to say hi to a friendly lady! I asked the lady to approach Mochi slowly and from her side. Mochi felt comfortable enough to say hi which was big for her!
I have been cooking boiled chicken for Mochi to mix with 3 teaspoons of pumpkin for her to eat in the morning. This diet has helped her with her constipation and she is now having healthy stool again!
Pupdate 8/19/2022
Today Mochi and I took a field trip to Fashion Island! As soon as we worked through jumping out of the car, she began to work with another trainer. This was great practice for Mochi as she is often weary of new people. She took a treat right away with the trainer and Heeled nicely next to him as we walked around the whole mall. She Placed onto multiple surfaces, even some that were very tall! We practiced saying hi to new people and as long as the approach was slow and calm, Mochi was comfortable enough with it. She was a little jumpy around a loud rolling cart that passed by her during her Heel and tried to walk into the trainer’s leg. When she does this it is best to guide her with the leash back into a Heel position on the left side.
Her Come to Sit is very consistent when in a moderately distracting area. We are working on getting Mochi confident enough to Come to Sit around larger crowds which she is already showing so much improvement with!
Pupdate 8/20/2022
Mochi and I have been working on all of her commands with as many new people as possible. Doing so helps her overcome her fear of new people. Initially when Mochi walks away from me she looks back at me. I did notice it took her less time to focus back on her handler this time. She Heeled nicely with the other trainer. There is a part where she noticed the janitorial rolling cart and tried to walk in the opposite direction. Her handler worked her through it and Mochi kept Heeling. When they worked on Under, Mochi didn’t go all the way underneath the chair. He reset her and tried again until she was all the way Under. Her Place command is her favorite! She can jump high and is getting used to new surfaces each day. The first video is from her working with the other trainer yesterday at Fashion Island.
Mochi has a ton of fun with her bestfriend Blondie who is a sweet gentle giant and has really helped Mochi come out of her shell!
Pupdate 8/21/2022
Mochi and I took a trip to the local park where we worked with another trainer. Mochi Heeled nicely with me around the whole park practicing Place and under for 2 minutes or more. I gave her frequent breaks to help her explore and get comfortable with her new surroundings. She can Come to Sit by my left hand side without any leash pressure which is great! We have been working on gradually getting closer to crowds of people or distractions while working on her recall. With constant exposure Mochi will only improve with that moving forward. Her confidence has been improving each day and with structure from a leader that she can follow, she will continue to overcome her fears. Mochi and I can’t wait to show you what she has learned!
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