Rocky | Doodle | Lakewood, CA | In Training
- Reine Melnick
- Mar 28
- 16 min read
Updated: Apr 10
Meet Rocky, a one year old doodle from Lakewood, CA! He is joining us for our Two Week Community Board and Train program.
Rocky is a big boy and loves to throw his weight around to get what he wants, which includes jumping on people. During walks he tends to pull his owners around, making outings difficult. Rocky also has a tendency to ignore commands that are given to him and would rather do what HE wants. At home he loves to counter surf for food and grab things off the ground that aren’t for him.
During the next two weeks, we will be focusing on his engagement with his handler, his basic commands, and house manners, which includes not picking things up off the ground and counters!
Stay tuned for his progress into becoming a well-mannered pup!
Pupdate 3/28/26
Today Rocky and I headed to the park to kick off his training, and he made a fantastic first impression! We started by working on his heel, and he came out strong right from the beginning. Even with lots of children running around and plenty of distractions, Rocky stayed nicely engaged and showed a great understanding of staying by my side. His focus in such a busy environment was a great sign of what’s to come!
We also spent time working on his place and extended down. While he did get up a few times when people walked by, this is completely normal, especially in a stimulating environment. What stood out most was his willingness to get right back into the command without any attitude. Instead of fully resetting him each time (moving him away and starting over), I made sure to stop him before he could wander too far and guided him back into position. This is an important part of his learning process, as it teaches Rocky that breaking command doesn’t mean he gets what he wants. Instead, following through with what’s asked leads to rewards like praise and treats.
We wrapped up our session by working on his come to sit, where Rocky did really well. He was happy to come toward me, carrying a calm and respectful demeanor, which is exactly what we’re looking for with this command.
After returning home from the park, I gave Rocky some time to decompress and relax. We spent a bit of time in the backyard where he was able to sniff around, explore, and just enjoy being a dog after a productive session.
Overall, Rocky’s first day went super smoothly, and I’m really happy with how he’s settling in and responding to training. Great job, Rocky!
Pupdate 3/29/26
Today Rocky and I took a trip over to Lake Balboa Park to continue exposing him to the world around him while sharpening up his obedience! We focused on Heel, Place, Extended Sit, and Extended Down, all while working through real-life distractions like people, kids, and other dogs.
While working on his Heel, Rocky did overall really well, especially as people and dogs passed by! At the very beginning, you may notice he wanted to drift a bit farther away from my side. To address that, I simply re-engaged him by getting his attention with my hand and giving a gentle touch to the top of his head. That small reminder helped bring his focus right back to me, and from that point on, Rocky held a beautiful heel position right by my side!
During his Extended Sit, Rocky was an absolute champ. Even though he was clearly curious about the people walking by, he made the correct choice and held his position. This is a huge win for him! It’s very important that even when exciting things are happening around him, he learns that he can relax and remain in position until he’s given new instructions, and Rocky showed us he’s more than capable of doing just that.
After that, we moved into strengthening his Place command and Extended Down using a picnic table. At first, Rocky gave me a few moments of “Can I get away with not doing this?” testing behavior. Instead of giving in (even with his size), I had him do a few reps of getting up onto place and going into a down, helping guide him into a more relaxed and cooperative mindset. Once he settled in and realized we were working together, not against each other, he performed super well!
At one point, a young kid came up behind him to chat with me. I’ve noticed Rocky sometimes likes to pivot his body to face things that aren’t in his direct line of sight, but he handled this interaction really nicely. He stayed calm and composed during the visit, which is exactly what we’re looking for in these types of situations.
Overall, today was a really solid second day for Rocky! We’re going to keep building on his duration and start adding more distance to each command as he continues to grow in his confidence and consistency.
Good boy Rocky!
Pupdate 3/30/26
Today Rocky and I headed out to a park where we met up with a few other trainers and their dogs, giving us a great opportunity to work around real-world distractions and continue building his reliability!
We started the session by focusing on strengthening Rocky’s Heel. To challenge him a bit more, I incorporated some light jogging while he was in position to see if he would stay locked in or get overly excited and try to jump. Rocky did a great job here—he stayed right by my side and even maintained position when I pivoted directions, which is a big win!
Once he was dialed in at the start, we transitioned to working on his Place command. Initially, Rocky pushed back a bit, he reared up a few times and, when given firm corrections, tried to disengage and walk away. To address this, I stayed patient, held onto the long line, and simply waited him out. After about 10 minutes, he realized that the tantrum wasn’t going to get him anywhere and began to settle. Moments like this are important, as it reinforces that he can’t use his size or strength to avoid responsibility. Once we got past that, he gave me some solid repetitions on Place.
From there, we moved into duration work with his Sit and Down. As expected, Rocky tested the boundaries a bit to see what he could get away with, but those moments were short-lived. With consistency, he settled into the commands and finished with little to no issues.
After some solid work there, I wanted to revisit Heel, this time with him dragging the long line to give him a bit more freedom while still holding him accountable. He did very well for about 25–30 minutes, staying engaged and in position. Toward the end, he decided to “test the waters” again by jogging away from me. I quickly stepped in, grabbed the leash before he could get too far, and called him back. After that, we spent the remainder of our park time reinforcing Heel to make sure that behavior didn’t repeat.
Once we got home, I gave Rocky a couple hours to relax and decompress before taking him out to the backyard for some off-leash work in a secure environment. We focused on Come to Sit, engagement, and Extended Down. He performed well overall and showed good understanding, with just a few minor hiccups along the way.
Overall, Rocky had a solid day! He’s continuing to show progress, and while he does test boundaries at times, he’s learning that consistency and follow-through will always win.
Pupdate 3/31/26
Today Rocky and I took a trip to Westfield Topanga & The Village to continue building his training out in a more stimulating environment! While we were there, we focused primarily on strengthening his duration commands—Sit and Down.
Rocky did relatively well overall. As I began adding a bit of distance, there were a few moments where he would get up and walk toward me instead of holding his position. Each time this happened, I calmly reset him back into the command and stayed a bit closer to help him better understand what was being asked. After about a dozen repetitions, things really started to click, and he settled into the exercise nicely. At this stage, Rocky is capable of holding both his Sit and Down for about 5 minutes, and we’ll continue gradually increasing that duration each day.
We also worked on his Heel while navigating through the mall. His Heel is coming along nicely! There were only a few instances where he veered away from my side, but each time I calmly guided him back into position using the long line. He responded well to the guidance and showed good awareness.
We made sure to end the session on a positive note before heading home. After getting back, I gave Rocky a few hours to rest and recharge before doing another short training session in the yard to build on his Heel and overall engagement.
During this session, he had a few moments where he clearly realized he wasn’t on leash and tried to avoid coming back when called. In those moments, I was firm and clear about what I expected, and he responded by coming back into a nice Come to Sit. Once he performed well, we wrapped things up with some playtime and let Rocky just be a dog—always important after a productive day of work!
Pupdate 4/1/26
Rocky’s Pupdate 🐾
Today Rocky and I headed to the park to focus on his Place, Extended Sit, and Extended Down commands! We started off with Place, where he initially showed a bit of impatience and broke the command a few times. There were a couple moments where he tried to push back and use his size to see if he could get away with not following through. In situations like that, it’s really important to stay calm and consistent, showing him that acting out doesn’t get him what he wants. As you saw, once we worked through that brief disagreement, he settled down nicely and began following through with the command.
After working on Place with Extended Sit, we transitioned into Extended Down. Rocky didn’t argue here, but he did struggle with impatience. He tends to want to pop right back up, especially when I create distance. To help him better understand what’s being asked, I began stepping slightly away from him and then returning to my original position. This helps teach him that my movement doesn’t mean he’s allowed to break command—he needs to remain in position until he’s released or given something new to do.
Overall, Rocky did an amazing job today! He’s showing great progress, and we’ll continue building on his duration and consistency moving forward.
Pupdate 4/2/26
Rocky’s Pupdate 🐾
Today Rocky and I took a trip to the The Oaks Mall to work on his Heel, Place, Extended Sit, Extended Down, and Come to Sit in a high-distraction environment! He did extremely well overall, especially with the amount of people constantly walking by. Rocky showed great focus and composure, which is a huge step forward for him.
While working on his Extended Sit, there was one moment where he almost got up. To help remind him of what was expected, I calmly stepped slightly toward him using my body pressure. That small reminder was all he needed to settle back in and remain in position. Once he held his sit calmly for a longer duration, I rewarded him by asking for a Come to Sit. He performed it eagerly and confidently, even with everything going on around him.
We also spent time working on his Extended Down with added distance. Rocky did an awesome job here—he remained calm and held his position as people passed by without breaking command. This is huge progress for him, especially in such a stimulating environment!
After putting in solid work at the mall, I made sure to end the session on a positive note. We headed home, and I gave Rocky a few hours to relax and enjoy some free time in the yard. During that time, I incorporated a bit of Come to Sit practice. He did have a few moments where he tried to avoid coming back to my side and showed some lack of engagement with me. Rocky is very aware of when he’s off-leash, and in those moments, he tends to test boundaries a bit more.
That said, he is STILL making great progress! Even with those small challenges, his overall improvement, especially in high-distraction environments, is something to be proud of. We’ll continue to build on his consistency and engagement moving forward!
Pupdate 4/3/26
Rocky’s Pupdate 🐾
Today Rocky and I headed to the mall to continue strengthening his Extended Down and Extended Sit in a high-distraction environment! Right from the start, Rocky impressed me with his Heel—he stayed right by my side the entire time and remained a well-mannered boy, even as people walked by very close to him.
Once he settled into a calm and focused state in Heel, I transitioned him into Extended Down. We practiced me walking away from him multiple times to help him understand that the expectation is to remain in position until given new instructions. Rocky did get up once when he felt a bit unsure, but I quickly guided him back into his Down, and after that, he had no further issues holding the command. Great recovery!
Seeing his progress, I decided to move on to Extended Sit. This proved to be a bit more challenging for Rocky, mainly due to the slippery mall floors making it harder for him to stay in position. He did get up a few times, but each time we calmly reset him back into position and continued working. With consistency, he was able to remain seated, showing good determination.
Throughout the session, Rocky showed a great attitude—I saw little to no pushback or frustration, which is awesome, especially in such a busy environment. After putting in some solid work, we headed home and let Rocky enjoy some relaxing time in the yard, giving him a chance to decompress, explore, and just be a dog.
After a few hours of rest, we went back out for another 30–40 minute session around the neighborhood, this time focusing solely on Heel. I let Rocky drag the long line while we walked a couple laps around the block to really test his focus and understanding of staying by my side without constant guidance. He did pretty well overall! Even when we passed a few small “yapper” dogs across the street barking at him, Rocky stayed fairly composed. I calmly reminded him of the task at hand, and he was able to stay engaged and continue heeling nicely.
Pupdate 4/4/26
Rocky’s Pupdate 🐾
Today Rocky and I headed to Topanga Village Mall to continue working on all of his commands in a busy, high-distraction environment! We started off by focusing on strengthening his Heel as lots of people walked by. Rocky did relatively well staying by my side, though he did have a small hiccup when something caught his attention. I gave him a firm reminder of where he needed to be, and he responded respectfully, getting right back into position.
After building some consistency with Heel, we moved on to Place. At the start, Rocky was a bit unsure due to loud kids screaming nearby and chose to rear up on me. I remained still to prevent him from moving away and calmly but firmly told him “Off.” Once he settled, we retried Place, and this time he was much calmer and performed the command without any further issues.
While on Place, we practiced his Extended Sit as people continued to pass by. Rocky was very polite and held his sit nicely despite the distractions. His Come to Sit was also flawless! After recalling him, I chose to have him remain seated next to me rather than immediately giving another command. This helps prevent him from trying to predict what’s next and instead builds patience and focus. Even as a few people walked by during this time, Rocky stayed patient and didn’t argue at all—great work!
To finish up, we worked on his Extended Down. Rocky showed excellent composure here—he remained calm, respectful, and held the position until he was released.
Overall, this was a big step forward for Rocky! He’s continuing to build confidence, patience, and reliability in busy environments. Great job today, Rocky! 🐶✨
Pupdate 4/5/26
Rocky’s Pupdate 🐾
Today Rocky and I headed to Lake Balboa Park to continue working on all of his commands—and with it being Easter, the park was absolutely packed with people and dogs! It made for the perfect high-distraction environment to put his training to the test.
We started the session with Heel, making sure that despite the heavy foot traffic, Rocky stayed right by my side. He did overall very well! There was one minor moment where he drifted away due to some children running nearby, but he quickly corrected himself and returned to position. After that, he remained consistent and focused for the rest of our Heel work—great job bouncing back!
I also took the opportunity to work on his Extended Sit right in the middle of a busy pathway. This was definitely a challenge, and while I did have to remind him a couple of times of what was expected, he showed great improvement and didn’t argue much at all. That’s a big win for Rocky!
With the warmer weather, we kept things efficient and moved on to Extended Down while on Place. Rocky did an excellent job here—he only needed one reminder to stay in position and then settled in nicely. He held his Down for about 10–15 minutes without breaking, which is huge progress!
To reward all of his hard work, I let Rocky enjoy some time roaming around a large grass field on a long line. It was a great way for him to decompress and just be a dog before heading home to cool down.
Amazing progress today, Rocky! Keep up the great work! 🐶✨
Pupdate 4/6/26
Rocky had a great training session today! We met up with some of the other trainers at the park and worked on his Heel, Place, Come to Sit, along with his Extended Sit and Down. He showed awesome progress in most of what was asked, even with other trainers and dogs working nearby!
There was one moment where Rocky wanted to leave my side and wander off, but with the help of the prong collar, I was able to quickly discourage that behavior and guide him back into position. He responded well and got right back to work.
Overall, Rocky is showing amazing improvement in his listening skills and is performing commands with very minimal pushback. Super proud of him and the progress he’s making!
Pupdate 4/7/26
Rocky’s Pupdate 🐾
Today Rocky and I headed over to the Oaks Mall to work on solidifying all of his commands in a more crowded, high-distraction environment—and he really showed off how far he’s come!
We started with his Heel, and I have to say, it was super impressive. Rocky stayed right by my side the entire time, even with kids and plenty of people walking past him. He remained focused and engaged, showing great consistency and understanding of what’s expected of him.
Once I felt confident in his Heel, we moved on to his Duration Sit. Rocky is about 98% solid in this command, but he does still have moments where he’ll try to break it—especially if he notices me moving or if someone passes by a little too close and he gets the urge to follow. In the video, you can see him slightly try to readjust or follow, but I stepped toward him to use my body as a reminder. That was all he needed, and he settled right back in, remaining calm and composed for the rest of the exercise.
From there, we worked through his other commands, all of which he performed super well! I especially wanted to challenge his Extended Down, so I placed him right in the middle of a busy pathway with lots of people walking by. Rocky did an amazing job—he fully relaxed into the command and stayed calm the entire time, despite all the activity around him.
After a couple of hours of consistent work throughout the mall, we headed back home so Rocky could unwind and enjoy some well-deserved rest.
I’m super proud of how far Rocky has come—his progress is really showing, and he continues to impress with each session! 🐶✨
Pupdate 4/8/26
Rocky’s Pupdate 🐾
Today Rocky and I headed back to the Oaks Mall to continue proofing all of his commands in a busy, real-world environment. We started the session by focusing on his Heel, spending about 30–45 minutes simply walking around to gauge where his mindset was at. Rocky absolutely crushed it! He confidently walked past crowds of people, including kids, and stayed right by my side the entire time without drifting or losing focus.
Once I saw he was in a calm and neutral state of mind, we transitioned into his Extended Place/Sit. Rocky held his sit beautifully for the majority of the duration, with just one small moment where he readjusted himself, which is completely normal. He quickly settled back in and continued holding position like a pro.
After that, we moved into his Extended Down to continue building his patience and overall relaxation. Rocky was an absolute champ here! Once in the down position, he fully relaxed and was so calm he nearly fell asleep—exactly what we want to see from him in these longer duration exercises.
Rocky has come such a long way in his training, and I couldn’t be more proud of the progress he’s making. He’s showing great consistency, focus, and the ability to settle even in distracting environments. After wrapping up our session, I took him home so he could relax and recharge after a job well done! 🐶✨
Pupdate 4/9/26
Rocky had a nice, relaxed day today, but still put in some great work! We headed over to a park close to home and used the outing to go through all of his commands in a more easygoing setting.
On our walk there, we focused on a structured Heel to check in on where his mental state was at. I would have Rocky walk right by my side for about 5 minutes at a time, then “break” him and allow about a minute of freedom to explore and sniff along the sidewalk before giving him the “heel” command again. Each time I asked him to come back into position, Rocky was super respectful and quickly returned to my side without any hesitation!
Once we got to the park, I gave Rocky a bit more freedom while keeping him on a long line. Letting him reach the end of the lead and explore created perfect opportunities to work on his “Come to Sit.” He was especially eager today and came running back to me every single time I called him! This was a huge win and really showed how much his engagement and willingness to work have improved.
After about 20 minutes of recall work, we found a bench and shifted focus to his “Place,” “Extended Sit,” and “Down.” Rocky was very relaxed during these exercises and followed through on each command without any issues. He seemed calm, clear-headed, and very in tune with what was being asked of him.
Since he was doing such a great job, we decided to end the session on a positive note and head back home. Once we got back, Rocky got to have some fun meeting my pitbull puppy, Moon, in the backyard. The two of them hit it off right away and had a blast running around and playing tag! I kept Rocky on his e-collar to maintain control and used this as a great opportunity to reinforce his “Off” command. Anytime he started to get a bit too energetic or overwhelming, I gave the command, and he responded beautifully by giving her space and calming down. He was incredibly respectful and did an amazing job managing his excitement.
To wrap up the day, we also worked on some of Rocky’s in-house manners, including his door manners, food manners, and car manners. He was super respectful with each one—holding his positions, not trying to rush ahead, and patiently waiting to be released every time. This really highlighted his growing self-control and understanding of expectations in everyday situations.
I’m beyond proud of how far Rocky has come—his progress, especially with his recall, responsiveness, and ability to stay respectful even during play, has been incredible!
Pupdate 4/10/26
Rocky’s last day was a great one! We headed back to the Oaks Mall to finalize all of his commands in a busy environment. We started the outing with a structured Heel throughout the mall and even into a few stores. Rocky did an amazing job staying right by my side the entire time with no issues, even as we walked through places like Nordstrom and Macy’s!
Once he showed consistency with his Heel, we found a bench to work on his Extended Sit on Place. Rocky remained calm and held his position perfectly, not getting up at all until he was given his Come to Sit. He was eager to return to my side, and I rewarded him with some well-earned head scratches before moving on.
Next, we worked on his Extended Down, where Rocky really showed how far he’s come. He settled in so nicely that he practically fell asleep while holding the command!
After wrapping up a solid final session, we headed home where Rocky spent some time relaxing on Place while my girlfriend and I cooked. He stayed calm and respectful, making it the perfect way to end his training journey with us. Rocky has made awesome progress, and I’m proud of all the hard work he’s put in!
Comments