Meet Rip! He's a two-year-old Pitbull from Inglewood, California here for our Three-Week Board and Train Program! He’s extremely friendly and kind, however; he will jump on new people, pull on the leash, chase after anything with wheels, and can get overstimulated quickly. Rip may know a command or two, however, he is highly inconsistent and can be easily distracted. Over the next twenty-one days, Rip is going to learn a lot of structure and consistency through basic obedience tasks and proper manners in areas such as at home, in the car, and in meeting new people Rip is going to learn how to do all these things on and off leash and demonstrate how great of a pup he can be! Stay tuned for Rip's three-week transformation!
Pupdate 10/27/24
Today I brought Mr. Rip on over to my house. On the first day at home, I like to take my time introducing the pup to all the new rooms, people, break areas, and Ms. Toji, my four-year-old German Short-Haired Pointer. Mr. Rip had no real issues or reactivity to the environment at home. I introduced Mr. Rip to Ms. Toji. They did not seem overly interested in each other but they also just met each other. I took Mr. Rip on a walk around the neighborhood to let him get adjusted to the sights, sounds, and smells. He made sure to mark as many things as possible even though he was running on empty after the 2nd or 3rd tree! He did pull on the leash almost all the way around the block. I dropped a poop bag and had to go back to get it towards the end. At this point, Mr. Rip was a little tired and I started introducing the "heel" to him. The first day is the only free day that Mr. Rip will get while he adjusts to the new environment. Tomorrow his training gets kicked off and we will work on his obedience and new structure.
Pupdate 10/28/24
Today I introduced Mr. Rip to several tools I will use for his training. The first tool that I'll be using frequently is the pinch collar. When I picked up Mr. Rip, he had on the rope slip lead collar. These are quite similar in that they put pressure on Mr. Rip to encourage him to perform the task we are asking of him. Since Mr. Rip doesn't know very many commands and the ones he does know are inconsistent, over the next 3 weeks, I will be asking him to perform all the tasks repetitively while pairing them with the verbal command, the pressure of the collar, and the stimulation of the e-collar. Eventually, we want to remove the pressure of the collar and only use the verbal command + e-collar stimulation. My goal is to start on the pinch collar for the first week, then transition to a slip lead which is similar to what you had on Mr. Rip. Then for Mr. Rip to be able to walk and perform the tasks on a flat collar with the leash dragging and then no leash. This will take time as I ensure that Mr. Rip understands all the commands thoroughly before progressing to the next level.
The e-collar is a great tool that we will be reviewing thoroughly. I will be making a video on how to use the e-collar when yours arrives. I will go over all the features and functions of the e-collar. Besides our voice, the e-collar is going to be the most used tool when communicating with Mr. Rip. He appeared to feel the stimulation around 15 which is a nice low level. The e-collar goes from 0-100 so it is very sensitive and able to make small adjustments. I worked with him around 20 for most of the video you see today. When I test the e-collar stimulation on my hand or arm, I can start feeling it around 10. So these are good numbers to be working with. I did have to go up to about 40 when my daughter came out and was actively being a distraction.
For the commands, we reviewed "heel". "Heel" will be his best command as we will perform that everywhere we go. Whether it's from inside the house to the vehicle, to the park, to a walk around the house, to working around distractions, Mr. Rip will be required to perform the "heel" everywhere we go. I also started working on when I stop, Mr. Rip is expected to stop as well and perform a "sit". After the video, I introduced the bed and "place". I tried to get him to "down" but it doesn't seem like he knows that one yet so we will focus on that this week as I introduce all the commands to him. I also introduced the "off" command when he was distracted.
Distractions! The good news is that I have a 5-year-old daughter which is a high stimulus item for Mr. Rip. The bad news is that I have a 5-year-old who is very distracting to training! Actually, these are both fantastic for Mr. Rip's training. The more I can practice in a controlled environment with someone who isn't afraid of the pups and enjoys helping the more it allows me to countercondition Mr. Rip slowly but surely. I had her bring out a scooter to see his reaction. He was super excited about the scooter! I used my leather leash to ensure I had a good grip so that Mr. Rip wouldn't pull through. I slowed him down and used the distractions to introduce and work on the "off" command. We will have to revisit the high-value stimulus later in the training when he is more locked in. I did get him to "heel" and "sit" and focus on him for a short period which is a great sign!
Home life: The last two things for today! Mr. Rip is adjusting well to the Hansen household. I will say that he isn't a food hound and doesn't love his food but I'll leave it out and keep giving him opportunities to eat as much as he wants. He does enjoy the dog toys I have. I might need to take him to the pet store and pick out some squeaky, tough ones to play tug of war. These might be helpful in his training if I can find a toy to reward him for good behavior. Overall, off to a good start!
Pupdate 10/29/24
Today Mr. Rip and I headed over to Rynerson Park in Lakewood, CA. We worked on a lot of things today. First, prior to leaving, we started working on his door manners. This requires Mr. Rip to sit and wait at the door until I give him an "ok" or a "heel" to walk through the door with me. Mr. Rip is not allowed to go out the door until I allow him to. We will be using this one whenever we leave the house or I let him outside to go potty.
When we got to the park, I attempted to start by working on his car manners and the command "load up." That did not go so well, but that's okay. I have a few tricks to get them to work on loading into and out of the car, but we had plenty of other stuff to work on, so we will revisit that another day.
I let Mr. Rip go potty and mark a few things in the area before we got started. Mr. Rip is not a robot and does have basic needs such as water, food, and going to the restroom that need to be satisfied before we dive into training. If he is hungry, thirsty, or thinking about going potty, then it's difficult for him to focus on the task at hand. So, there is no harm in letting him get that out of his system.
He did a great job working through his desire to go potty while still performing all his tasks. He ignored some bikes and squirrels which is great progress. I really enjoy working with him.
Pupdate 10/30/24
Today Mr. Rip and I headed to Liberty Park in Lakewood, CA. As with Rynerson Park, these parks are adjacent to the river bed trail and there are lots of bikes and distractions that I can work in the proximity of but not right next to them and continue to work on counter-conditioning Mr. Rip's excitement towards those things.
The good news is that after today, the only thing Mr. Rip and I have to work on and formally introduce him to is his "load up" command for getting into and out of the vehicle. Today we worked on "come-to-sit" and "under". We reinforced "heel", stop and sit when I stop, "place', and "down". The "down" is sometimes a struggle because he is interested in everything going on around them. The "down" is one of the most vulnerable positions for pups and sometimes they are reluctant to perform the "down" when there is excessive stimulus around. I found out yesterday that he can hold the "sit" and "down" for about a minute before he gets up and starts wandering around in a low-stimulus environment. This is a good starting point and we will continue to build on that. As you can see in the video, I am mostly using my body to shape his "down" while sliding his paws out. After we did this a few times, he understood "down" as was evidenced when we went to practice the "under" command.
We moved from the benches to some high tables at the park. These tables are great for introducing the "down" as they are high enough for both of us to fit in there and I can get him into the "down". Overall, Mr. Rip did well but was distracted by an e-bike and a mini-bike riding around. I would reset him every time he broke the position. Also, which is common early on, the pup will start to guess if it's "place" or "down" before approaching a bench or object that I am going to ask them to perform one or the other and they will attempt to do the opposite of what I am asking them. We will continue to reinforce the difference between "place" and "down". As you see in the skateboarding session, I walked up on top of the bench with Mr. Rip as he was attempting to perform "under".
Lastly, I brought a skateboard with me to see if I could start counter-conditioning his obsession with the skateboards. With how obsessed he is with them, I plan on having a skateboard or scooter with me everywhere we go. I don't want those items to be paired with negativity and he starts giving avoidance behavior. I want him to know that those items are not going to do anything to him and that they mean nothing. The positive meaning is going to come from him ignoring them and me rewarding him with praise and not having to give any input from the e-collar or regular collar. I'll keep doing training like you see in the video today. My goal is to be able to walk along the Huntington Beach Boardwalk with him behaving or even something as simple as my kids riding their bikes and scooters near him while he performs a proper place/down. We will see how much I can ask of him but I will definitely do my best in exposing him to these environments; however, just based on one skateboard close to him, he is highly stimulated so it's going to take time and repetitions. I was able to do a little bit of gliding on the board and keep him in the "heel". Looks like I'll have to learn how to skateboard again for Mr. Rip!
Pupdate 10/31/24
Today I worked on Rip's door manners. We went for a walk around the neighborhood so he could go potty and empty his seemingly endless bladder. While we were on our walk we still worked on heeling and him needing to sit when I stop. When he sees a tree or something to mark, I give him the "ok" command to let him know he can go. Once his bladder is empty, and he tries to mark something, then I say "heel" + a low-level stimulation and we continue on our walk.
For the door manners, Mr. Rip is doing much better! As you can see in the video, he had no problem hanging out by the door. A neighbor walked by on the opposite side of the street with their pup and Mr. Rip paid them no mind. I then tried to have the bicycle go by the door but then he started breaking the "down". I reset him and worked on this for a bit.
We worked on the skateboard and bicycle excitement. He doesn't seem scared of them but rather he wants to play with them. I give him the "off" + stimulation when he gets too excited. Signs of being too excited are the whining which will be followed by barking. His excitement is leaking out as vocalization. I would continue to give the "off" command and then ask him to do something else such as "sit", "down" or "place". Also, I gave him a few chances to go up to the items. When he chooses to not go all the way up to it and come to me, I would give him a lot of praise and pet him for it. This is going to be a lengthy process. What we need from Mr. Rip is to ignore that excitement and be more willing to follow our commands. When there is little to no stimulus in his area, he can sit, down and heel without issues. We just have to build him up to doing those things when those high level stimulus are around.
Pupdate 11/1/24
Today Mr. Rip and I headed over to Rynerson Park in Lakewood, CA. My goal was to work on all his commands in another low-level stimulus area. There are usually kids running around, playing sports, and a few bikes here and there but nothing too crazy. Unfortunately, that's not what was there today. We did get to work on a lot and this was our longest continuous session of addressing all his distractions.
You described your issues with Mr. Rip best: "He acts like he has never been outside before." No truer words have been spoken. He was doing fine with his "heel" and "sit" when I stop but when I approached the playground and there was the magical kid on the scooter, he started getting excited. Luckily we did have a few minutes of not much going on and I was able to have him in an "under" for about two minutes. I was right there with him to minimize his breaking the "under" command. We proceeded to walk around some more after the "under" command.
This is when we ran into his number 1 distraction. A scooter and a bike rider enjoying themselves. I get the feeling after being with Mr. Rip for almost a week that he wants to play with them. He isn't scared or intimidated by them. It also appears to be largely visual. Some of the bikes, he can hear the spokes but he's doing fine with the bikes. He ignores other dogs. It's the scooters and even whenever I bring out the skateboard. The skateboard is going better. He will go up and check it and then come back to me. I was able to ride the skateboard and he pulled me while I was on it. He doesn't chase after it or try to get the wheels which is what leads me to believe that he is just excited when he sees those things. I tried to sit with him on a bench and keep his eyes focused on me and not the scooter. This kind of worked. I am trying to find a positive way to redirect his energy toward those high distractor items.
At this point in his training, I would usually like to be converting off the pinch collar and being able to walk through low to medium stimulus areas on a flat collar or even leash dragging. Mr. Rip is still on the pinch. He can "heel" with the leash dragging but when there is a high-value distractor, nothing else matters. I could switch to the flat collar this week but his distractibility is too concerning to have the leash dragging. I'll keep working on it and encountering this stuff head-on. The lack of impulse control around these items does impact his training because he is too distracted. I will likely have to do a few more backyard sessions and start locking in these commands before we encounter too many more distractors.
Pupdate 11/2/24
Today Mr. Rip and I headed over to Discovery Park in Downey, CA. I wanted to see how distracted Mr. Rip is at sports parks. Overall, he did ok. I think what I continue to see with Mr. Rip is his lack of impulse control around high-value distractions. He was able to "down" in the outfield of the softball game even when two balls were hit his way. He broke his "down" when he observed a bicycle that was off in the distance. I was able to reset him because bikes don't seem to be too big of an issue for him (well not as much as skateboards and scooters).
I then went over to where a flag football team was practicing. Also, a father and his kids were practicing soccer. I had Mr. Rip "place" and "sit". Once again he was doing so well with all the commotion going on in the background. He made it almost two minutes doing this without me holding the leash; however, as Murphy's Law would have it, as soon as I stepped back to "break" him, the soccer ball rolled by and Mr. Rip went full speed after it. As I have mentioned before, he only wants to play. He isn't trying to be mean or aggressive in any way, but that lack of impulse control around high-value distractions means that off-leash work will be challenging. I find that if I turn around and go the other direction (not practical in every situation or for everyday life) I can get him to calm down and follow the "heel". He is very visual and once he has that target item in his vision, it is difficult to redirect his attention.
Lastly, I went over to where the actual flag football game was being played and put him in the "under" and "down." He did ok with this. Once again, a few high-value distractions such as the bike rider and a momentary scooter rider sent him into overdrive. The football game itself didn't bother him at all. You can see in the clips from today that a quick reset is all it takes to get him back in line and then the timer restarts.
While moving from place to place we worked on the "heel", "come" and "sit" commands. He does love to mark his territory but marking isn't the same as needing to use the restroom. Once you give him his adequate bio breaks, and he wants to break off to mark something, that's an "off"+low level stimulus and then remind him to "heel" and keep on moving. When he's doing well and I know that he's thinking about marking something, I'll give him the "break" command to get it out of his system but it's when we say, not when Mr. Rip wants to do something. He has to give us enough good, wanted behavior before he gets to do what he wants. Once that is out of his system, we can expect him to perform well and be focused on the task at hand.
Pupdate 11/3/24
Today Mr. Rip and I headed over to Petco to pick out a toy that would help us with our training. I took my mini-trainer with me. We tried a few different toys but he wasn't too interested in the toys. It was worth a shot to see if we could find something to help with our training. You had advised me that Mr. Rip could use salmon and chicken-only treats. I found some treats that were pure dried chicken and fish. More on those later. Overall, Mr. Rip was doing a good job in the store and was well-behaved. Of course, someone came into the store pushing their bicycle because why not? Mr. Rip did fine and didn't get too excited. We checked out the other animals there and he was nonchalant. We even had some strangers come and say hi to Mr. Rip.
When we returned home, we tried to see how good those treats were while I worked on some physical conditioning and preparing for the "load up" command. I have a ramp for the pups to practice loading into the car. I might be strong enough to pick up Mr. Rip and put him in the vehicle and crate but that's not a good long-term solution. He has a lot going on so we've barely been able to work on the "load-up" command. As you can see, it went well. I used the front of my house to go up and down at first. Then I used my momentum and brought him up the ramp. Then I wanted him to go up without me. My mini-trainer gave treats at the top when he did it by himself. Then we transitioned to him loading into the car. My human treat dispenser was inside the car giving him treats when he did it. We placed treats on the ramp to get him up and in without the crate inside the car. Then we tried to get him to go into the crate all by himself. We made it about 70% of the way and then I gave him a little push-in. There were treats inside there for him to get when he went all the way in. He's still not quite fully ready for the "load up" command but we'll have to practice that some more.
The good news is that he did like the salmon and chicken treats. We will be meeting up with our fellow trainers tomorrow and we will be addressing some of the high-value distractions. I'll be sure to update you on how it goes!
Pupdate 11/04/24
At Whittier Narrows Park in El Monte, CA, today was quite the day. We got to meet up with our fellow Off Leash trainers. I brought all of Mr. Rip's favorite things: a soccer ball, a scooter, and a skateboard. We tried several techniques that I was unable to practice on my own such as having people brave enough to ride the scooters and skateboards around. We had several trials with several different techniques such as moving further away as he got excited, keeping him busy in the "heel", walking away until he was calm, and even trying a gentle leader leash, to escalating the levels of the e-collar to higher levels. Due to Mr. Rip's thin coat and sensitivities, he is having skin irritation due to the pinch collar. The pressure and fighting to get to those high-level distraction items are causing it to become irritated. We will be moving away from the pinch collar from now on and working on a flat collar and when he's inside his crate relaxing, I'll be taking off the flat collar as well.
Based on everyone's input today, we do have to prepare you for the fact that Mr. Rip will not be an off-leash pup. I have tried a lot of tried and true measures and Mr. Rip's prey drive to go after the wheels is uncanny. As a dog trainer, we specialize in balanced training to modify behavior. Some things are genetically built into a pup and some behaviors have been reinforced so much that it is really difficult to eliminate those behaviors. I can not say for certain which one of the two factors listed previously is the reason for his high drive for the wheels and kids on skateboards or scooters. Even if I did know, we modify behavior and not genetics. And a behavior such as going after the scooters and skateboard which is that hard imprinted into him could take a long time of counter-conditioning. He has shown signs that he sort of can do it without pulling the entire time but his obsessiveness and alertness are a challenge. Another thing to remember is that we are a balanced training company and I would love to find a positive way to reward your dog for ignoring those items but he doesn't like the toys and once he's in that high drive state, he won't even stop for his new treats. It could be related to not being neutered but there's only so much diminished drive you will get by doing this procedure that I can understand why you haven't done this. With that in mind, I will keep pressing on with his training so that he does have a solid foundation with all of the commands while on leash around low to medium distractions.
My plan for the next few days is to fully verify if it is only the scooters and skateboards by taking him to Home Depot at least once this week. Other than that, I will be doing a lot of positive training in my backyard and making myself as valuable as I possibly can before reintroducing the skateboard and scooters. Mr. Rip does like me a lot and even gets along well with my family. He was even sleeping with my son yesterday before I put Mr. Rip up for the night. He is a great dog and gets along well with other people and dogs. Everywhere we go there is always someone who will comment on how beautiful and calm he is (when nothing is around).
Pupdate 11/5/24
Today Mr. Rip and I are attempting a new approach to his training. I will try to solidify as much as possible in the most positive way possible and ensure we keep the distractions to a minimum. We can't control everything with our pups but my strategy going forward is that I will be the candy machine that gives out his favorite food/treat for everything good that he does or for anything that I ask of him.
We went for a 10 to 15-minute walk around the neighborhood today. I had the ecollar with me but only used a light slip lead. I was able to have the leash dragging for a few feet due to the almost zero stimulus environment. The most distracting thing for Mr. Rip on the walk was the smell of other dogs. He wants to mark everything but as we discussed earlier, he had already gone pee and poop, so I can reasonably ensure that he stays on task which was the "heel" at the time. In these low-stimulus environments, he is doing well.
For today's video, I wanted you to see how far Mr. Rip has come with his training. I know we had to break the news about him not being off-leash and that he won't be fully cured of his skateboard and scooter addiction after these 3-weeks but we are making a lot of progress! I had the e-collar on him so that he knows that it was time to listen and be the best pup he could be; however, I did not use it once in the entire video and he was able to do almost all his commands. I hope you are proud of Mr. Rip because I am. I only rewarded him with treats and he was able to perform the "place", 2-minute "down", 2-minute "sit", and "under". His "heel", "come-to-heel", and "come-to-sit" were a little off. I worked on those after the video using the treats and my body positioning as ways to shape the behavior. We are going to rinse and repeat this formula for the next few days with a little bit of ecollar and leash manipulation to refine the commands.
Side Note: Mr. Rip was really excited about my treadmill this morning and a few "off"+low-level stimulations were enough to disrupt the behavior. I then had him "down" on his favorite relaxing spot and he paid me no mind for the rest of the time I used the machine. I plan on using this as a continued counter-conditioner for him as well.
Pupdate 11/06/24
Today we went for a long walk around the neighborhood reinforcing Mr. Rip's "heel" and his performing a "sit" whenever I stop walking. He did so much better today than all the other days! I am so proud of how well he did today!
After we finished our walk, we went into our training. Today I used a balanced approach of ecollar and treats to balance out Mr. Rip's training. Mr. Rip is doing well! We did a two-minute place and sit, a two-minute plus "under" and "down". I worked on his "heel" and "come-to-sit". Sometimes he seems overly interested in hunting for treats, so I have to ensure that he stays focused going forward. I was pleased with his training today.
You asked me about his ability to go to the airport and be in that environment. Luckily, I had some luggage around so I decided to see how well he would handle the bag rolling around him. He had no issues! I think Mr. Rip would be fine at the airport. I have seen these fancy scooter bags for some kids and parents; so just keep an eye out for those occasional high-stimulus items.
Lastly, I checked Mr. Rip's neck area for irritation after Monday's training. It looks like there is some scabbing underneath his neck area. Due to his sensitive skin, wrinkles, and his pulling from the skateboard and scooter training while on the pinch collar, there was a decent amount of irritation. I used the wipes that you sent over to wipe the area down and ensure it was clean and not irritated. It looks like it's healing up well. I'm trying to keep the collars off as much as possible but I do have his tracker on his collar so we need to keep it on a decent amount. I'll keep an eye on the status and keep you updated.
Pupdate 11/7/24
Today Mr. Rip and I keep it nice and simple. We went for an extra long walk around the neighborhood where we found some distractors. I brought a distractor with me to see how Mr. Rip would do on the walk. My mini-trainer was running around, hopping, skipping and Mr. Rip paid her no mind. He did get excited for a few boys playing but I was able to redirect him and get him to continue his "heel" with a medium stimulation on the ecollar. Mr. Rip ignored all the other dogs on the walk and tried to mark endless things again, but I disrupted that behavior. I gave my mini-trainer a chance to walk Mr. Rip and he did great with her! He has been nothing but loving and friendly with my kids (he even fell asleep with my son the other day when I wasn't looking!)
Lastly, we worked on his door manners some more. Overall he did well. I had my mini-trainer carry in a skateboard. Mr. Rip did start to break but because I was right there, I reset him. He was only thinking about that skateboard for a while. We walked out the house and when we came back in, I gave him a "break" and he went straight for it. All he wanted to do was play with it and he likes it. As I said, it is probably all prey drive and he wants to chase it down while it's moving. I gave him one "off" when it was time to feed him and he came off of it and went over to his feeding area. Good job, Mr. Rip!
Pupdate 11/8/24
Today, we went on our usual walk around the neighborhood. Mr. Rip seems to only want to use the restroom on real grass. This isn't a big deal except I don't have real or any grass in my backyard. This just means more practice and exercise for him. He showed signs of excitement when a few kids were playing in the front yard. Another "off" + low-level stimulus, then a quick "heel" and we kept on trucking.
Mr. Rip and I headed to our local Home Depot for more counter conditioning and to work on his manners in medium-stimulus environments. Mr. Rip can still be a little excitable and distracted by many things in the world. I really like how you described him as how he acts like he's never been places before because we sure have been to many places and he is just as excited as the first time whenever we revisit a location. He is so happy in the car and ready to get out and explore! However; getting him in the car is still a struggle. We'll keep reinforcing this. He will go about 75% of the way up the ramp, put half his body in, and then freeze right there. A little push and he goes the rest of the way. I want him to do the whole thing by himself which I know he can! I'm still using the ramp unless my bumper is close to a curb or raised surface. This is much, much better than where we started. I'm glad we have one more week to continue to refine some of these behaviors. As stated before, we got a little sidetracked trying to work on the skateboard and scooter thing but now we are working hard on getting down his commands without all those high-level stimuli around.
Lastly, we cruised over to Petco to get some more of his new favorite snacks. He did great at the store and helped me find his snacks. Today was a pretty good day for Mr. Rip!
Pupdate 11/9/24
Today Mr. Rip and I headed to Los Cerritos Center in Cerritos, CA. The mall is already decorated for Christmas! I guess we just fly past Thanksgiving! Good news is that Mr. Rip will be able to enjoy both holidays with you as a changed pup.
As I stated previously, we will continue to get better each day and ensure that Mr. Rip is coming back to you a much better pup than when you left him with me. I must say that he did pretty amazing! He was able to perform all his commands in a medium to slightly above medium stimuli. He ignored all the other dogs walking around. He performed almost all his commands with little input from me. I did observe that he was getting excited over strollers and little kids running around. As you saw yesterday, Mr. Rip can behave around little ones. It appears to be the excitement, their high pitched voices combined with the rolling around of the stroller gets him excited. I know he just wants to play and be included in the fun. I was able to redirect his energy to finish up our training but it took about a 40 on the ecollar to get him to "off". Once he calmed down, we went right back to 20 on the collar and he was back to his usual self. I feel like the mall is about as close as you can get to an airport. If he can handle the mall well, I think he'll be fine at the airport.
My last note for today is that you know your dog better than anyone. If you sense or feel the overstimulation coming, it is best to find something else to do or move from where you are prior to allowing him to get to that state. I will show you how to do this and how to continue to improve on his ability to tolerate mild stimulus. He can be a handful when excited and stimulated but even though we don't avoid problems when it comes to dog training, we also don't want to put ourselves in a position where the wheels come off the wagon.
Pupdate 11/10/24
Today Mr. Rip and I cruised over to Rynerson Park in Lakewood, CA where I thought I could use the slanted grass near the parking lot to practice his "load up." Before we started on the challenging command, I figured we would review some of his other commands before going into the "load up" mode. As luck would have it, I have the worst luck and not one but TWO kids on scooters decided that part of the training was over. When you see me walk out of frame on the first clip, I had to move away from the scooters until Mr. Rip calmed down. As you see, I had my mini-trainer with me and Mr. Rip isn't worried about her when it's just her running around.
Once he was calm and the scooters had ventured off, we rolled into the "load up" portion of the training. Mr. Rip was a little distracted but I finally got him to go in several times with "load up" and about 15-20 on the ecollar. Once again one of Mr. Rip's most favorite things in the world came by, a tiny human on a tiny bike! Whelp, we got done what we could do. I should've realized there would be birthday parties, little league games and no school tomorrow to celebrate our Veterans. Needless to say, the park was pretty busy but we still got plenty accomplished!
Once again, in his heightened state, he wanted nothing to do with his treats when being overstimulated or distracted by everything in the area. Looks like the best course of action is to move out and move away until he is calm and the distractions have moved on.
Pupdate 11/11/24
Today Mr. Rip and I headed over to La Bonita Park in La Habra, CA where we met up with our fellow Off Leash trainers. Mr. Rip did well overall. We reviewed all of his commands around other pups and a few distractions. Mr. Rip loves little kids and their high energy and squeaky voices. There were little distractions but around the corner from where we were, there was a playground for small children. When Mr. Rip started showing signs of needing to use the restroom, we stumbled upon this playground and its many distractions. We left the area and returned to our training area. Overall, Mr. Rip did well around the distractions. He was even shaking at one point due to the excitement and anxiety but was holding his "down". This shows that Mr. Rip can manage his impulses but they are still prevalent.
As we get ready to return Mr. Rip this Sunday, I'll be sharing some tips and tricks I think will help you. My first recommendation is to ensure you have a leash that is what I would call "grippy". Although I have been using a lightweight nylon leash throughout this training, I find that when Mr. Rip starts to pull or run towards something, he is so strong that the nylon starts to chaffe my hands. I would recommend leather or biothane. A rope, nylon, or similar material will make it difficult to maintain control in high stimulus environments or anywhere that may present them such as the airport.
Pupdate 11/12/24
Today Mr. Rip and I focused on things around the house. The great part about today is that we did almost everything off-leash. We did some practice in the backyard to see if we could get a little more on the send away to "place". This is still a little difficult for Mr. Rip especially when off-leash. He does rely on the pressure of the leash to perform a lot of commands so sometimes he gets confused on what to do when the pressure isn't there. He showed the same confusion when I was asking him to "come" but with a little bit of patience, encouragement and well timed stimulations, we got him to go to the right place. Next we moved onto his door manners. Mr. Rip has not really had any issues with this command once he's comfortable. We worked on his food manners. Once again, Mr. Rip hasn't really had any issues with this command either. Lastly, one of our main antagonists which is the "load up". Today was the first time Mr. Rip actually went all the way in from the ground! It was still on leash because I don't know what kind of distractions are going to come strolling down my street and I don't want Mr. Rip to run off but nevertheless, he was able to do it all by himself! This is a tremendous victory as we have been practicing this a lot!
Today's tip for Mr. Rip is to be consistent and maintain structure for him. He has spent the first two years of his life living Mr. Rip's way. In the last 3 weeks, I have taken all of that, shook it around and rearranged all the structure and expectations for him. He's now on board and understands what is expected of him. It is up to you to maintain this proficiency and build on it. I have given him the best foundation I can give him to optimize his success in the future. I will review all the structure with him during his turnover this week. The key is to be consistent and fair with Mr. Rip. Overall, he is a great pup, and I like having him around.
Pupdate 11/13/24
Last night Mr. Rip and I made an additional training stop at the Los Cerritos Center in Cerritos, CA. I have to say that his behavior has become more manageable but if you ever want to know how many strollers, small children, and adults riding on luggage scooters there are anywhere you go, Mr. Rip will definitely find them. I can honestly say that I have never noticed how many strollers and families there actually are at the mall on a Tuesday night but apparently it's a popular time for families to visit the mall. But in Mr. Rip's defense, there was only one "severe" incident where I stopped to take a phone call and Mr. Rip started barking at a stroller. Although loud and high-pitched for Mr. Rip, he wasn't really going anywhere. I would say that this is a pretty big win. It is still not acceptable or wanted behavior but it is definitely showing us that he can be out and about and will not go chasing after everything that interests him. I tried to put him in a "place" and "down" shortly after and he would not do it. Being in the "down" position is one of the most vulnerable positions for a pup. Performing a "down" when the evil baby strollers are nearby is almost impossible for Mr. Rip as he is too much on the defensive. When in these slightly higher stimulus environments, Mr. Rip responds more effectively between 30 and 40 on the ecollar. When we go over 40, he gets vocal and it is not productive.
This leads me to my tip of the day for Mr. Rip. Stimulus 1+stimulus 2+stimulus 3 = overload. What I mean by this is that Stimulus 1, the mall environment and all its distractions, plus Stimulus 2, me giving verbal commands to Mr. Rip, plus Stimulus 3, me varying the levels of the ecollar depending on his behavior will surely equal stimulus overload at some point. The biggest variable is the environment where we are. If there were no strollers or anything else that he loves around, he can do almost everything with little leash input from me. This means that if we also increase our input on the ecollar and voice, Mr. Rip will continue to be overstimulated. This is a formula for a poorly behaved pup. The best thing to do is to reset somewhere calm and try again. You also have to be acutely aware of Mr. Rip and his environment. He definitely gives signs of staring and zeroing in on the thing that excites him. We can be calm and relaxed when hanging around him but we must always be on guard of his favorite thing coming around the corner unexpectedly.
Pupdate 11/14/24
Last night Mr. Rip and I headed over to Discovery Park in Downey, CA. As you can see in the video today, we worked in an environment normally considered medium stimulus for most other dogs. Still, due to Mr. Rip's hypervigilance and reactivity, medium stimulus are equivalent to high stimulus areas for him. I would say that overall he did well. I think one of the biggest things I am proud of for Mr. Rip is that although he still barks and gets excited about scooters (because of course there was at least one at the park), Mr. Rip did stay in the "sit" and kept barking. If you can tolerate the barking, I would say that it is a large step in the right direction. He controls his impulse to not run after the high stimulus item is a marked improvement from where he was before. He did the same thing at the mall the other day where he was just barking at the stroller but wasn't trying to get up and run after it. He still isn't the strongest at sending away to "place" and "load up".
I would say today's tip is to remain consistent with Mr. Rip. I have shown Mr. Rip all his new commands over and over again. When he doesn't follow through with a command such as "place" or "load up", he is being stubborn. Mr. Rip has likely spent the first two years of his life getting away with doing what he wanted to do. We can not allow this to occur, otherwise, this will undo all the training I have put into Mr. Rip and will waste your financial investment in him. Stay consistent and firm with Mr. Rip. As stated previously, I have worked on a foundation for Mr. Rip, it will be up to you to continue to maintain and rebuild his structure. This can be accomplished by practicing with Mr. Rip for about 15 minutes a day. You don't have to practice every command all at once but reviewing a few will ensure that he understands the new structure applies everywhere he goes.
Pupdate 11/15/24
Today Mr. Rip and I headed to Los Cerritos Center in Cerritos, CA for another follow-up on our training. We reviewed all of Mr. Rip's commands. Mr. Rip was getting excited before we even parked. He knows there are strollers and things he loves in the mall. It's good that he has a positive association with these areas but it can be a little stressful knowing that he's getting ramped up before we start. My biggest piece of advice is to just stay calm and trust the training. Mr. Rip had about two barking/excitements during our entire 90-minute time there. That's not bad considering how many strollers, small children, and these tiny push cars they have for kids in the mall. Even with the excitability, he remained in the "sit" and didn't go chasing after anyone or anything. He let the whole mall know that he wanted to play with those things. On the last excitement, Mr. Rip was up pretty high on the e-collar but it seems that after that he finally relented and was very well behaved for the last 15 minutes or so we were there.
Just a few more days until Mr. Rip goes home! We can't wait to show you how good of a pup he can be and I'm sure you're looking forward to many adventures on the road with Mr. Rip.
Pupdate 11/16/24
Today Mr. Rip and I headed over to Home Depot for a little bit. It was pretty busy there today but overall Mr. Rip did well. It will be a battle with Mr. Rip for a while but he is showing signs of being more willing to be consistently obedient in medium to high stimulus areas. I am pretty proud of how far he has come and we can't wait to show you tomorrow!
I have included a picture of your ecollar as well as a video on all the features of the ecollar. You may reference the video whenever you need assistance on the use of the ecollar. See you tomorrow!
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