Rose | Amstaff X | El Monte, CA | In Training
- Alex Kruse
- Oct 19, 2025
- 10 min read
Updated: Nov 1, 2025
Meet Rose! She's a 1-year-old Amstaff mix from El Monte, California, and she's here for our Two Week Urban Board and Train Program. Rose is very sweet and wants to be friends with everyone, but she gets a little too excited and her enthusiasm turns into jumping. She also needs helps with learning to hold her commands until released, chewing on things, walking on a loose leash, and dashing through doors. Over the next two weeks we'll teach Rose all of her basic commands, make sure she knows how to Wait before going through gates and doors, stop grabbing things she shouldn't have, and generally improve her manners. Stay tuned for Rose's two-week transformation!
10/19/25
For Rose's first day, mostly I just wanted to see what she could do. She clearly knows Sit, but she could use some help making it a little more solid. She wouldn't give me a Down at all, but was actually pretty good with her Recall when I called her. Her Heel and her tendency to jump are going to be some major focuses for us over the next two weeks, but she seems eager to please so I think I'm sure we can get her doing well on her commands quickly. Once home, she was very nervous about being in her new surroundings. She met with my Border Collie and they got along just fine, but she's not ready to dive into play yet, so they just hung out together in the yard. She is very determined to get through gates without invitation, so that's going to be a huge focus for us around the house. Inside she did much better, curling up with her new buddy and taking a nap like it was no big deal being in a stranger's home. I think she'll do great once she gets a little more adjusted to me and the house, and learns what's expected of her while she's visiting.
10/20/25
Today we had group practice so I was able to start working Rose around other dogs on leash. She was interested, but she stayed well-mannered and was able to hold her sit for extended periods of time around them without issues. I noticed while working with her that she's a bit of a "velcro dog," meaning she likes to stick very close by. While that kept her at a very nice Heel, it made trying to step away from her for Sit and Recall a lot more difficult, so it's definitely something we'll be working on. I worked on her Down just a little bit, which she caught onto pretty quickly, so overall it was a good start.
At home, she was a lot more relaxed today and I was able to put her with a few more dogs without any signs of anxiety. We're continuing to do most of the work there on not trying to run through the gates since that's a safety issue, but she was already better at it today than yesterday. She slept through the night in her crate without any issues at all, and was really good just hanging out inside without trying to get into anything or making any messes. She's being a good guest so far!
10/21/25
Rose had a good day at the Library Park in Monrovia and at home today! She's finally starting to grasp that she has to wait before leaving any gates and getting out of the car. Her Heel is really good when she's a little bit anxious, like when we first got to the park, but she very much pulls if she knows she's somewhere safe and if she doesn't have a training collar on. We'll continue working on that through the weeks so she knows she doesn't need to be in a hurry to get where she wants. She was great with her Sit today at the park even with the distractions, and was able to hold it longer without trying to follow me when I backed up. She's also starting to give me a Down nicely when I ask for it. At home I finally got to see her personality shine! She was running and playing with my dogs, just generally being silly, but she was very responsive to any cues the other dogs gave her. I did also catch her digging when she got overexcited and didn't know what to do with herself. I'll correct her on that one as much as I can when I catch her doing it, and see if I can coax her into a designated dig spot to see if she'll follow through on that. Overall though, she was much better today at home now that she's comfortable!
10/22/25
Today I took Rose out to Duarte Park to work her in a larger space with the distractions at a distance so she could focus up a bit more. Her Heel is coming along very nicely, but only when she's got the prong collar on, so I'm hoping to back her off that a little bit over the next few weeks and only rely on the e-collar. I'm also working heavily on her staying in her sit, as she has a tendency to lay down in a submissive position when I back away from her, and when she's uncertain what she should be doing. On the other end, that makes giving her the Down command really easy! I just have to make sure she understands there's a difference between them and she has to perform the one I ask of her. I also worked on her Recall a little bit now that I can back away from her enough to make some distance. I'm hoping to get her on the long line for that soon. I just need to build up her confidence a little bit more so she's knows it's okay if I step away from her a few feet!
10/23/25
I challenged Rose and myself today getting her to Heel on the slip lead as opposed to the prong. I brought her out to the wash near my house where it's closed on two sides to cut down distractions and any desire to bolt, and went up and down several times over. It was a little rocky at first, but she did finally settle into walking with me without much pressure on the leash, so we'll have to see if she can keep that up in more open areas. She also has this habit (which you can see in the video) of trying to press the whole side of her body against the back of my legs. She does that sometimes while we're trying to Heel, often when I ask for the Sit, and it's her go-to when we're doing the Recall. It's a clingy, submissive action, and while I do understand that she's trying to appease me, mostly she's just nearly knocking me over lol. She's gotten a little more confident with going into her Sit when we're facing each other instead of automatically trying to shift around against my legs, but we'll continue working on that with all her commands. We just have to build up that confidence in her!
10/24/25
Today I brought Rose to just the outdoor area of the Santa Anita Mall where she could be around the people and noise, but not with the heavy traffic and echoes that inside the mall creates. I went ahead and tried her with just the slip lead today instead of the prong collar, and she remembered what we learned yesterday no problem about how to walk properly on it without pulling. She stuck by my side the entire time with the Heel, which was great. We also worked on Place, where I had her jumping up onto benches or fountain ledges and having her stay in a Sit or Down until released. I started with just the Sit because it's easier, but she was catching on okay to that, so I moved her into the Down position. It took a few tries, but she was able to get it before we left. I also worked more on having her sit properly and not lean against my legs during the Heel and the Recall. I did some stepping away from her so she didn't have the option to lean any time she started to tilt that way, but I'd hold position if she sat correctly so she'd learn that I would stick with her as long as she didn't lean against me. When she started to catch onto that, I would just nudge her a tiny bit with my leg as a reminder if she started to lean in, then she began correcting herself with that tactic. We're getting there!
10/25/25
Today was a big challenge for Rose, but all the work's paid off so far! I took her over to the Royal Oaks Trail, which is super popular with bikers, joggers, and other dogs out for walks, and I worked her on just the flat leash today. Going from the prong collar being essential, to a slip lead, to a flat in under a week is really fast progress, but she's an incredibly fast learner and only needed some minor corrections with her Heel when she got distracted here and there (typically by other dogs passing by). We also did several stops during the Heel to get her to Sit, and she was much better today about not leaning against my legs when we did that. She's getting the hang of her Place very quickly, but we're still doing some work on her placement with the Recall. She'll come every time, but the insecurity with stopping at the back of my legs is still something we're working through. She gets better and better at it every day though!
10/26/25
I took Rose to Old Town Monrovia today to walk her through a shopping district, and we were surprised with a food festival setup going on. That meant lots of noise and way more people than I had anticipated, but Rose did absolutely amazing! I had her on just her flat collar and not once did I have to correct her on her Heel. She walked right past people, dogs, and outdoor dining tables as if she's been doing it for years, and also did fantastic with going straight into her Sit wherever I put her. No leaning on my legs at all today despite the added stress of going through a busy area! She's really coming along nicely and I'm so proud of her today!
10/27/25
Rose was a lot more confident and controlled today at our group practice, which is a huge improvement from last week! She had no issues staying calm around the other dogs or holding her commands, and she was able to sit without leaning on me most of the times we did it. Her Heel on the flat collar is great now with no attempts to pull at all, and her Recall is getting a lot sharper. She still gives me a little bit of trouble with the Down if we're not on a surface she likes, but we're getting there! She does it great when we're doing Place though and she's comfortable! She's come a long way over the last week, so this week it'll just be refining everything. She's doing great!
10/28/25
Rose and I headed over to the Rotary Park in Monrovia today, which is a park that is 100% fenced in. I did a lot of work just having her Heel with me around the field, and we worked on some Place commands and her extended Sit. I gave her some freedom and let her drag the long line around for a little bit to see if she would come when I called her without my hands on the line. She ignored me one time only, but just hitting the tone on her collar and she came running right back. Every time after that was no issue, she came on the first command each time. And she did it without crowding my legs! She seemed to have a lot of fun getting to really run today, so we'll be back to do it again over the week!
10/29/25
I worked Rose mostly at home today and around the neighborhood, considering that's probably going to be the more common type of setting for her after training. We started off with several of her house manners so you can see how far she's come (especially with not rushing the door!). I know she already had a really good base with waiting to eat, so I challenged her with some cheese and meat in that bowl to make sure she could wait even with very high rewards. And you can also see that she'll now happily jump into the car in the crate without any fuss at all! After that, we took a long around the neighborhood where we could pass other dogs and cross streets, making sure she would sit and wait before continuing upon command. She did fantastic on the walk, even when kids on bikes and scooters went zipping by. Home manners overall are looking great for her!
10/30/25
I went back to Rotary Park with Rose today so I could check her Recall in a fenced area, but off leash and away from my own yard. She's still a little bit anxious with how she positions herself when she gets there, but she would come every time, even from all the way across the field! Since no one else was there and we were in a safe space, I went ahead and tried out all her other commands off-leash too for the first time away from home. Again, you can see that she's a bit nervous and uncertain without having the attached lead, but she was able to do all her commands with very little correction. It's really just that confidence still that gets her way, but otherwise she knows everything and will do it all with just a little encouragement!
10/31/25
I took Rose back to the mall today and this time we went inside with the crowds. She was a little anxious, as I figured she would be, but she listened really well and had no issues navigating around all the people. Since it was Halloween there were several kids and adults walking around with masks and costumes, but she wasn't bothered by any of those at all! We also worked on her proper greeting manners where she had to sit and wait to be pet, and she did fantastic with that. She was a perfect student for all the distractions and noise that were going on around her!
11/1/25
Since Halloween just happened to fall right before our last pupdate, I took advantage of the backdrops for a fun video. We ran all around Burbank to hit up the big Halloween houses, which was really great exposure for Rose since she tends to be a little anxious around new things. She did surprisingly well considering all the creepy decor and weird sounds she's not used to! There was a little bit of uncertainty at first, but by the time we got to the last house, she was treating everything like it was no big deal. She really did a great job with all of it, and with sticking to a Heel as we wandered through the neighborhoods.
Rose is a really sweet girl and always very eager to please. She never really got into playing with the ball at all, I don't think there's enough of the herding dog in her for that, but she does have enough where she seemed to enjoy the training and wanting to work. She got along great with all my dogs and definitely needs a dig box when she gets home, she loves it so much! Overall, she was a pleasure to train, and thank you so much for letting me be a part of her learning journey! I'm going to miss her a lot!
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