Radley | Bernedoodle | Palos Verdes Estates, CA | In-Training
- meganoffleashsocal
- Mar 18
- 16 min read
Updated: Mar 25
Meet Radley, a six-month-old Bernedoodle from Palos Verdes Estates, California! This sweet and playful pup is here with us for our One Week Board and Train Program, where we will work on teaching him basic obedience and manners. He has some knowledge of a few basic obedience commands, but he has a short attention span which causes him to be easily distracted and struggle to follow through with what is asked of him. Radley also comes to us with some undesirable behaviors, such as pulling on the leash, barking, playing too roughly, counter-surfing, and trying to escape through open doors. Over the next seven days, we will be working on improving his obedience, discipline, and manners to set him on the right track to becoming a well-behaved pup. Stay tuned for his transformation!
Pupdate 3/18/2025
Today Radley and I spent the day bonding and getting to know each other after he was dropped off with me. He was very quick to warm up to me, and seemed happy to be making a new friend! However after the initial excitement of meeting me wore off, he decided that his surroundings were generally more interesting than me, so focusing on me wasn't his priority. He seemed pretty calm and easygoing overall and didn't get overexcited or worked up about anything in particular, though he often found himself invested in smells on the ground or by trees, and liked to stop and watch people or dogs that moved around us.
Before beginning any training, I first tested his knowledge of commands to get an idea of his current capabilities, and what areas may need some extra focus on going forward. I asked him basic commands such as Come, Heel, Sit, Down, and Place, but he was typically more focused on his surroundings rather than anything I was asking of him. His recall was unreliable overall, and he almost always ignored the Come verbal cue, his name, and even leash pressure attempts to guide him to me when called. If he did happen to move towards me, he would often walk right past me and did not seem interested in staying near me once he got close. He didn't seem to understand Heel, and was almost always at the end of the leash walking around rather than following my lead. He was able to Sit on command sometimes, however he would often need to be asked multiple times before he would follow through. He was unable to perform Down on command, though he was content with relaxing in this position on his own accord. He wasn't able to perform Place either, and he didn't seem to understand what was being asked of him. Even when working with relatively low and easy to reach objects, he seemed to lack confidence about jumping or climbing up.
Once we had spent some time at the park testing his knowledge, we headed home to get him settled in before jumping into our first training session! During today's training, we focused on introducing him to the e-collar, as well as Come to Sit and Heel. The e-collar will be an important tool in his training program, as it will allow for effective communication with minimal to no leash pressure needed. By pairing the e-collar stimulation with leash pressure, we can teach him that these two forms of pressure mean the same thing, allowing them to eventually be used interchangeably. I have included a tutorial for the e-collar in today's pupdate, so be sure to check that out!
The goal for Come to Sit is for Radley to come when called, approach his handler's right side, circle around their back, and finish with a Sit facing forward on the left side. This ensures he not only comes when called, but also that he remains stationary until told otherwise, which will be a common theme among all of his commands, as they each come with an "implied stay". Implied stay refers to the concept of having Radley continuously maintain the most recent command given to him until either given a different command to do, or released with the cue "break!". The Come to Sit maneuver when completed in its entirety also sets him up to be in the perfect position to begin walking in a Heel! The goal for the Heel command is for Radley to walk nicely alongside his handler on their left side, without pulling ahead, veering off, or falling behind. His job during Heel is to focus on his handler, follow their lead at all times, and remain neutral to his surroundings. Radley seemed to pick up on these commands quite quickly overall, and we will continue working on these commands every day to help him become more reliable and consistent with them!
Pupdate 3/19/2025
Today Radley and I trained around my neighborhood, where the relatively calm environment helped to encourage focus, learning, and success! While it was pretty quiet here overall, there were still some common distractions around, such as people, other dogs, and the occasional bicycle or car passing. Radley's love for sniffing trees and bushes also meant that these became natural distractions during training as well.
Radley is often easily distracted, as he tends to focus on his surroundings even when asked to perform commands. Moments like this are a great opportunity to implement the Off command. The goal for the Off command is for Radley to stop whatever he is doing, and focus on his handler. This is a very versatile command, similar to "no" or "leave it", and can be used in various situations, such as to interrupt fixation on distractions, barking, jumping, eating or sniffing things he's not supposed to, or any other behaviors that are undesirable or inappropriate at that time. The verbal Off command when paired with leash pressure and the e-collar allows us to interrupt the behavior and help him to refocus so that he is in a better mindset to listen for upcoming instructions. Once the Off command is given, it's beneficial to immediately follow it with another command such as Sit, Come, Heel, etc. Once he stops whatever behavior he was doing, asking him to set his focus on a task will help keep his attention away from what initially distracted him or caused the undesirable behavior. Radley has shown good progress in understanding the Off command so far, and with each repetition, he seemed to be quicker to respond and refocus when prompted. However, more work will need to be done in various situations before he is fully reliable with the command.
The goal for the Place command is for Radley to jump or climb onto a designated object, such as a bench, a bed, or another object with defined borders, and hold a stationary command while remaining on the Place object until released or given a new command. We introduced this command at home using a familiar object, a dog cot. He is comfortable climbing onto and relaxing on the cot in his own time, so this was a good object to use and help set him up for success. We used some leash pressure to guide him onto the cot while giving the verbal Place cue, which he quickly picked up on. Once he seemed to understand the behavior, we began pairing leash pressure with e-collar stimulation as additional reinforcement and communication when needed. We then applied this concept to other objects we encountered around my neighborhood, such as low walls, rocks, and other types of platforms. He did well with this overall, and while he was sometimes a bit hesitant with new objects, just a bit of motivation and encouragement helped to build his confidence and willingness to Place on cue. We will continue practicing this command with different objects in a variety of environments to improve Radley's skills with this command!
Another command we focused on today is the Down command. The goal for the Down command is for Radley to lay down completely when asked, and remain in that position until released or given a new command. He appears to have some understanding of this command after all, though before today, he was very unreliable about actually performing it when asked. So we worked to improve his reliability by always reinforcing and holding him accountable for what is asked of him. If he didn't Down when asked the first time, leash pressure and e-collar stimulation were added to reinforce it and guide him. He quickly began to understand this, and was much better at listening the more we practiced. We kept the duration in which he was asked to hold his Down or other stationary commands on the shorter side today. This helps to keep training engaging and increase his chances of success with each repetition due to the realistic goals set for him in these early stages of training. As we continue throughout the program, we will work on increasing the duration gradually so he can learn to remain in this position for extended periods of time. We will also continue adding in more distractions so he can be reliable with the command in any situation or environment.
Pupdate 3/20/2025
Today Radley and I visited a local park, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. The park wasn't overly busy, but did have a variety of distractions including people, children, dogs, and small animals such as birds and squirrels. He was feeling a bit excited when we first arrived, though did seem to adjust to the new environment fairly quickly and was able to settle into a more focused mindset. The Off command was effective in helping to refocus his attention onto me and his training when he began to take too much interest in our surroundings.
Radley did great with his Heel today overall, and seems to be developing a clear understanding of the expectations set for this command. He did great with following my lead, not pulling on the leash, and generally staying close to me as we walked around. When passing distractions such as walking over interesting scents in the grass or a squirrel in a nearby tree, he would sometimes fall slightly out of position, but he was easily able to be guided back to the Heel. The main mistake he made with Heel was drifting too far off to the left while walking. We don't need him to be so close that he is making physical contact with his handler while walking, though creating too large of a gap is not ideal, so we worked to correct this by continuing to hold him accountable and further creating value in the desired position. He did good about always recalling when asked to Come, and generally always came right to me when called on the first ask even with moderate distractions around. He usually needed some guidance for his positioning, though he appears to be getting the hang of the concept as a whole. The main challenge noted for this command today was getting him to Sit facing forward once he completed the maneuver, as he often wanted to shift slightly to face me rather than face the same direction that I was. He would also sometimes spin around to look at distractions behind us, which also isn't quite what we want from him during this command, so we spent some extra time working to correct this. His stationary commands were good today overall, and he was able to perform Sit, Down, and Place without too much issue. His Sit was the strongest of his stationary commands today, and he seemed comfortable with performing it immediately when prompted and holding it for longer periods of time compared to previous days. His Down was okay overall, as it is rather new to him, but there's lots of room for improvement! He was usually able to perform it when asked, though there were some instances when I would need to either bring out a treat to lure him or provide physical guidance for him to enter the Down. He also struggled with holding his Down, especially compared to his Sit duration. Often, he would stand or sit up before he was asked to, and overall seemed to be impatient about remaining this position. His Place was pretty good, though he did seem to lack confidence when working with brand new objects we had not practiced with before, such as picnic benches. Some of the objects we practiced with required a bit of a jump for him to get on top of or jump down from, which he was initially hesitant to do. Radley also tends to be a bit clumsy and unbalanced and his awareness of his body size could use some work. With some patience, reassurance, and lots of praise for his efforts, he ended up gaining the confidence needed to Place on any object asked of him, and with each repetition it got easier for him to do.
Pupdate 3/21/2025
Today Radley and I visited a local shopping strip, where we continued practicing each of his commands around distractions. This location provided a higher volume and wider volume of distractions than we have worked around thus far in his training, so it was a good challenge to begin putting his new skills to the test. Distractions included small groups of people, other dogs, music, food, and loud noises from the busy street nearby. This was quite a jump in distraction level compared to our previous days of training, so understandably, Radley had a slightly more difficult time staying focused here. He seemed a bit overwhelmed by everything, especially when we first arrived. When he got too distracted or worked up, he was prone to having a bit of a tantrum if asked to perform commands, which resulted in behaviors such as jumping around, biting the leash, or simply stopping in his tracks and refusing to budge from his stance. While it's important to remain mindful and respectful of his feelings and limits, this is not a behavior we want to encourage, so we patiently worked him through these moments and continued to hold him accountable for the command asked of him so he does not come to believe these behaviors will get him out of having to follow commands. One of the more difficult distractions for Radley today was loud noises, like noisy engines from passing vehicles, car honks, and other environmental sounds common with locations like this. It's important that Radley learn to work through challenges and small fears like this, especially when it comes to something as unpredictable as noises, as they cannot always be realistically avoided in real-life situations. We ended up having a great opportunity to work around a consistent amount of loud noises in the form of car honks today, as there were some people holding up some funny signs by an intersection, and just about every car that drove by would toot their horn in passing. At first, we kept some distance from this area and worked to encourage neutrality towards the distant sounds, and as he gradually got less concerned about it, we worked our way closer and closer. Eventually, we were able to stand right by the crosswalk area at this intersection right by where the honking cars and sign holders were, and Radley no longer seemed to have any concern about these noises, which was wonderful to see!
As for his command performance here, overall he did a good job despite the challenging environment. His Heel was generally pretty solid, though his tendency to veer off too far to my left seemed to be a persisting issue. One method we used to address this was having him Heel next to me alongside a wall, which physically prevented him from veering off and improved his chances of success as we practiced. When venturing away from the wall, he would tend to stick much closer to me for a while, as he had grown accustomed to being in the correct position. However, if he began to lose focus or interest, he would tend to start veering away again and need reminders to return to position. Radley did well with his Come to Sit, and his recall was particularly impressive as he always came directly to me whenever I called him. His positioning still needs a lot of work, however, as he still tended to spin around for his Sit instead of facing the same way as I was. He was able to Down with decent reliability overall, though there were some instances when he would be a bit hesitant and need some guidance for him to follow through, which was mainly when a lot of distractions were around at that moment. He did well with getting into objects for Place today, though he still seemed a bit hesitant about climbing or jumping off, and would tend to need some extra encouragement and reassurance to help him through it.
Pupdate 3/22/2025
Today Radley and I took a trip over to an outdoor mall area, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. The mall had a good amount of distractions around, including people, other dogs, food, music, and noises from the nearby street.
This ended up being another challenging environment for Radley today, and he was quick to feel overwhelmed while training here. Similar to our experience yesterday, whenever Radley became overwhelmed or frustrated he would act out by exhibiting behaviors such as jumping, trying to flee, refusing to move or follow simple commands, as well as biting and pawing at the leash. This would most frequently occur when a form of pressure such as the leash or e-collar were being used, though there were also times when he would do this when no pressure was being applied and he simply did not want to do what was being verbally asked of him. We made sure to take breaks frequently throughout our time here, by finding a quieter area and giving him some time to relax and decompress. This helped to provide a bit of a reset for him and bring his tension levels back down, allowing him to be able to train for another period of time without being as prone to these kinds of behaviors.
Radley did well with his Heel overall, and seems to be doing better about not veering off to my left as we walk. Occasionally walking around or alongside of objects or obstacles, such as poles, benches, and walls also helped to serve as natural reminders that he needed to stay close to me. Radley was able to perform Sit with good reliability overall, though there were a few times when he did not want to Sit and would act out in an attempt to avoid doing so. However once he realized that his behavior was not as effective as he'd hoped, he would settle back down and follow through with his Sit. He was able to Place quite well for the most part, and this ended up being one of his stronger commands today. Down was a challenging command for him at the mall, and while he was always able to get into the position eventually, it often required some extra help and repetitions of being asked for him to do it. When in quieter areas he had very little trouble with Down however, so his hesitation for Down seemed to be related to the distractions in the environment while in the busier areas. Come to Sit was another command that resulted in some big challenges for Radley today, as we needed to spend some time working on cleaning up his positioning and encouraging the desired result for the command. He was good about always coming to me when called, though he would almost always attempt to spin to face me or walk too far ahead and sit in front of me at my feet instead of in the proper position beside me. When prompted to correct himself by trying to guide him into position or asking him to re-do it, he would tend to get easily frustrated and act out. As always, we held him accountable for the command given and worked him through these moments until he settled down enough to try again. We ended up spending a good portion of time working on Come to Sit alongside a wall, as this limited the space he physically had available to make errors, and helped to facilitate success which reduced overall frustration.
Pupdate 3/23/2025
Today, we took Bradley to a new shopping strip for training, and it was an excellent opportunity to challenge him with some distractions. We worked on commands while navigating through a bustling environment with plenty of people, other dogs, food smells, and the occasional car driving by on the nearby street. The level of distractions around were similar to our past two days' locations, but the key difference was the quieter street traffic. Since it was a side street rather than a busy main road, the noise level was significantly reduced, which helped create a more focused atmosphere for training.
I was thrilled with how much Bradley improved today compared to the past few sessions. The quieter street traffic seemed to have a big impact on his ability to stay calm and focused. He was noticeably less distracted by the environment, and behaviors like leash biting, jumping, or ignoring commands occurred much less frequently. Bradley was more responsive to me, and we had a much smoother training session. He didn't seem as overwhelmed by the distractions, allowing him to focus better on the tasks at hand and respond with more consistency.
As for his performance on the commands, Bradley showed great progress! His Heel was generally spot on, and he consistently stayed by my side despite the various distractions around us. The Come to Sit command showed clear improvement from yesterday, with Bradley sitting in the correct position more reliably, and him correcting himself without any frustration if asked to adjust slightly. Additionally, his Sit, Down, and Place commands were performed well, and he was able to maintain each position for over a minute without breaking it.
Pupdate 3/24/2025
Today was Radley's last full day with me, so we spent the day putting all of his learned skills to use to have a fun, productive, and memorable last day together! We started the day off by visiting a park, where we met up with some other OffLeash SoCal trainers and their pups. Despite the distractions they created, Radley did a fantastic job staying focused and on task. He also got to spend some time practicing with the other trainers, which was a great lesson for him to learn handler transferability, as starting tomorrow when he goes home, it'll be important for him to be able to listen reliably to people other than myself. Towards the end of the session Radley was feeling very calm and even a bit sleepy, so we spent some time relaxing in the shade together and enjoying each other's company.
After our time at the park, we took a trip to an indoor mall! This location was much more distracting than the park, with crowds of people, food, music, and many other types of distractions around. Despite all the hustle and bustle, Radley's training definitely paid off and he did a wonderful job with all of his commands! Throughout our session here, he displayed a great level of focus, discipline, and reliability with following instructions. He never let anything around us take away from his ability to follow commands, and he was in a great mood the whole time we visited here. He also had many admirers who stopped to compliment both his adorable looks and his impressive obedience skills!
Radley has made such an amazing transformation in these past seven days, and the differences in him are truly night and day! He came to us with some knowledge of a few basic commands, but he tended to be unreliable and easily distracted, and generally showed very little interest in listening to anything asked of him. Since then, he has learned to stay calm, focused, and neutral to his surroundings even in the most busy of places! His confidence, patience, discipline, and overall manners both in public and at home have all improved so much! Whether we are at home, out in a busy place, or anywhere in between, Radley now has the skills needed to succeed and make good choices throughout his life. While he may seem like a whole new pup, he is still the same goofy, loving, and playful pup he always has been, and with his new obedience skills he is even more of a joy to be around and take with on all sorts of adventures! Radley has been such a pleasure to train and share my home with, and I am forever grateful to have had the opportunity to help this good boy become the best version of himself! The sky is the limit for Radley, and I know he has a very bright future ahead in his continued training journey with his family!
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