Meet Monty! He's a five month old Great Dane from Los Angeles, California joining us for our Three-Week Board and Train Program! Monty tends to he nervous around new people and environments, but once you get to know him, he's a super sweet pup! He has trouble following his basic commands, pulling on his leash, and sometimes with play biting and other puppy behaviors. Over the next twenty one days we'll work with Monty on his commands, build his confidence, help him with his manners in and out of the house, and show him how to be the best pup he can possibly be! Stay tuned for Monty's three week transformation!
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Pupdate: 8/27/2023
After picking up Monty, we went over to Almansor Park to get to know each other! Monty was skittish with me upon first approach, but eventually let me pet him. At the park, he did a better job of following me around, but was still nervous, especially around the other people walking around. I asked him for his basic commands, and sometimes he would come to me when asked, but usually only toward me and not all the way up to me. Once we got home, I let him sniff around to get him comfortable. He seems to be settling in well at home, and he seems comfortable here, the tough part will be getting him comfortable when we're outside at parks and other environments! Monty hasn't eaten his dinner yet, which is pretty normal while adjusting, but I'll leave it with him and maybe add some water to it if he doesn't eat it after a while.
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Pupdate: 8/28/2023
Monty and I went to City Terrace Park today for his first full day of training! We were around a few other trainers and dogs. Monty was a little skeptical of the people upon first meeting, but he did a good job of sniffing them and not pulling away. He even allowed another trainer to hold onto his leash for a few minutes without any issue. His commands are also starting to come along. We mostly worked on his Heel and Place commands. For Heel, I want Monty to walk politely at my left side with his ears in line with my legs. I don't want him to pull forward or backward, and I don't want him to veer into me or away from me. He started doing a pretty good job sticking with me! For Place, I want Monty to hop onto a raised object, such as a bench! This command is great for confidence building, which Monty seems to need a lot of. It can also be useful inside the home when you need him to stay put for a while when you're making dinner or doing something where Monty needs to be out of the way! Monty did a good job with this today, as he happily hopped onto some planters and even placed inside a playground tube!
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Pupdate: 8/29/2023
Monty and I went to Almansor Park today for training! We continued to work on his Heel and Place, and started on his Come To Sit command! In the above video, we go through these commands, and he does a pretty good job with each. Monty has been especially good at holding his positions without breaking. For example, in today's video, he lays down in place and holds it for a good amount of time even with me walking around him. For his Come To Sit command, I want Monty to come to my right side, walk around my legs and sit at my left side with his ears at my leg. He's starting to get the hang of this command too! Monty had a pee accident in his crate this morning.
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Pupdate: 8/30/2023
Monty and I went to Almansor Park and Garfield Park today for training! There weren't as many people as I was hoping for, but Monty still did a great job with his commands. He became a bit put off by a flock of pigeons, but we walked by several times and he managed to work through it. Monty didn't have a potty accident today, although while walking from his kennel to the door this morning, he tried to mark on another dogs crate. I took Monty out early this morning before breakfast, in an attempt to get his appetite up, but he still was only interested in about half of his kibble.
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Pupdate: 8/31/2023
Monty and I went to Santa Monica Pier today for training! I wasn't sure how he would respond to the crowds and noises, but he did a good job! There were only a few times when he got spooked, one of them being when walking by a particularly loud musician. Other than that, he heeled with me up and down the pier very nicely. A few strangers wanted to pet Monty, and he did a very good job of sitting politely when they approached. I can tell that Monty feels more comfortable when I'm right next to him, because when I asked him to sit or lay down and then walked several feet away, he would often break to get closer to me. We'll work on this more. I think his confidence is starting to increase.
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Pupdate: 9/1/2023
Monty and I went to Rancho Cienega Park today! There were a few other dogs running around, but Monty didn't mind at all. There's a skatepark in this park, and Monty was a little nervous about the skateboards. He didn't pull away or bark, but he definitely kept his eye on them. Monty did really well with his commands today! I tried to have him Place on some slightly tougher objects, such as bleachers and the thin bench pictured above! He had trouble maintaining his balance on these objects at first, but after a few tries, he was hopping up and walking across them with some amount of confidence!
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Pupdate: 9/2/2023
Monty spent his day at Almansor Park and at home working on his manners! For his video today, I wanted to show his progress with his car manners. For Monty, it comes down to his ability to use his hind legs, rather than his willingness to get in the car. I added a place cot to give him a bit of a boost, and that seemed to help a ton! Usually, Monty flops his front half up onto the car and waits for me to pick him up. I'd like him to find the confidence to jump all the way up by himself, which he did a few times today! You might notice Monty isn't wearing his E collar in this video. This is because his jumping into the car and going into his crate should an entirely positive experience. I have a leash on him for safety reasons, but at no point do I reprimand him for not jumping, I simply give him tons of praise and love each time he makes another step forward!
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Pupdate: 9/3/2023
Monty and I went to the park today! We started trying to work through 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. His Heel was very good, since he usually gets pretty excited to walk and work with me. Other commands, such as his Come To Sit and Place, commands that require a bit more precision, he still needs some work on. He's been eating his meals much better recently, and I've been giving him his dinner a little earlier than usual, but hey, it's five o'clock somewhere!
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Pupdate: 9/4/2023
Monty and I worked more on his leash dragging skills! There are still plenty of times I need to pick up his leash to help guide him when he gets distracted, but he's doing an okay job so far!
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Pupdate: 9/5/2023
Monty and I went to Central Park today for training! We worked more on his Heel with his leash dragging, and also started working on his Send Away To Place command! Send Away To Place is similar to Place, however I want Monty to walk over to the place object from five to ten feet away, without me needing to walk him all the way up to it. He is starting to do a good job with this! For much of today I still used his leash to guide him throughout various commands, but I need to use his leash less and less each day.
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Pupdate: 9/6/2023
Monty and I spent our time working on his Send Away To Place command more today! He loves going to a place object, especially if I let him lay down and take a break while he's on it! That being said, he is less enthusiastic to leave the bench or whatever object he is on in order to perform a new command, such as Come To Sit. We did some reps with him going to and from a place cot in today's video!
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Pupdate: 9/7/2023
Monty went to Santa Monica Pier today! He was a little nervous in general, but he let several strangers approach him and pet him, without backing away. He also heeled with me well, even without my hand on his leash. I gave Monty an extra meal last night, and again this afternoon to try to increase his overall food intake. He ate all of his normal meals, and about half of these new, extra meals.
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Pupdate: 9/8/2023
Monty and I went to Santa Anita Mall today! We worked on his commands, but today was mostly about confidence building in new areas. This mall has a very nice outdoor area as well as indoor spaces, both of which were completely new to Monty. I asked him for his commands and still wanted him to follow through when asked, but I relied very heavily on praise when he successfully completed a command. There were way more people inside than outside, so that was a little tougher for him, but he still did a great job.
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Pupdate: 9/9/2023
Monty went to Santa Monica Pier today! Our work on his confidence seems to be paying off a little at a time because he was less nervous today than last time. This was a good thing because people were setting up for an event on the streets and it was extremely crowded just off the pier. Before Santa Monica, we went to the park early this morning, and Monty was extremely playful and full of good energy. He definitely likes the park more than crowded places like the pier, but he did a good job all day. We started working on his Under command. For Under, I simply want Monty to place himself under an object such as a bench or table and lay down. He didn't want to do this at the park, because he was excited and playful, but on the pier, he seemed to like this command more, because it gave him a slight break from the crowded boardwalk.
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Pupdate: 9/10/2023
Monty went to Brace Canyon Park Today! Today was the first day I took his leash completely off! He loved this new freedom, but was able to stay with me and perform his commands when asked. There were several other dogs at the park, which I didn't think Monty would care about, but there was a particularly barky Pomeranian who Monty didn't like at all. The little dog woke Monty up from a nap, and Monty behaved well, but he politely got up and moved behind me to resume his nap. I can't blame him. While working, Monty did a good job of staying on task, and he only got distracted a few times throughout the day!
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Pupdate: 9/11/2023
Monty and I went to Whittier Narrows Park today for training! Again, he was fully off leash for most of the time! He had a little accident this morning in his crate, which was surprising to me since he hasn't had one since his first few days with me. I did pick up a new dog, and therefore, a new roommate for Monty, so perhaps his new friend got him excited enough to have an accident. For his commands, Monty did a great job with his basic and advanced commands. We were around several other trainers and their dogs, and Monty behaved very well near them, even off leash. Sometimes Monty can be a bit slow to when asked for his Place and Send Away To Place commands, but he almost always follows through. We worked a lot more on his Under command, and he did a great job with it today!
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Pupdate: 9/12/2023
Monty and I went to Almansor Park today for his normal training, but I also wanted to work more on his household manners today. Now that Monty's appetite seems to be back and voracious, I wanted to show how he's doing on his food manners. For food manners, I want Monty to be able to sit politely when I put food in front of him without trying to get to it immediately. This can make dinner time much more smooth, but it can also be a great safety precaution, so that Monty is less likely to eat something toxic off the ground! He's been doing a good job so far, but as you can see, he still very much wanted to lean down and was very close to breaking his sit when I first put his bowl down. He needs a little more work on this, but he's doing great!
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Pupdate: 9/13/2023
Monty went to Santa Anita Mall today for training! There weren't very many people there to serve as distractions, but the turtles in the fountains were out and about. Monty did a good job at ignoring them, but I could tell he was pretty interested. There are turtles at the park we typically go to, but they tend to stay out in the pond, where Monty can't really see them. Either way, his minor interest didn't stop him from holding his positions and doing well with each command when asked. He was able to be off leash for our whole session, and I think he had more fun than the last time we went to this mall!
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Pupdate: 9/14/2023
Monty went to Santa Monica Pier today for training. He was very well behaved and attentive for the first part of the day. Towards the end he started to get tired and became less attentive, but that's not his fault. He toughest command was definitely his Send Away To Place, which he did a great job of a few times, but sometimes wanted to either stay with me, or lay down in front of the bench because it felt too high for him. My recommendation for Monty is to keep his training sessions very short, because he was very playful and full of energy for the first little bit of training, even with all of the people around, but he pretty quickly ran out of steam. Overall, he did a great job! Especially considering the nervous dog he once was, his ability to behave himself and perform his commands off leash at a place like Santa Monica Pier is amazing.
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Pupdate: 9/15/2023
Monty and I went to Rancho Cienega Park today! This was a nice relaxing day for Monty. He's been to this park a couple times, and the only difficult distractions are the skateboards at the skate park. He was off leash with zero difficulty. Without as many distractions, his Send Away To Place command was much better, and I even got him to place on the bleachers, which he had extreme difficulty with last time we were here.
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Pupdate: 9/16/2023
Monty went to Cerritos Mall today! He did very well in this indoor environment. He was well behaved both off leash and on leash and he did a great job with his commands. His only issue here was the fact that the slick tile would cause him to slide if I asked him hold a sit, but that's not his fault. In the other part of today's video, Monty shows his door manners! For door manners I want Monty to wait politely when I open the door, without trying to push through before me. We practice this each time we enter or exit my home, so he's getting pretty good at it!
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