Meet Ruby! She is a 14 month old Labradoodle from Simi Valley, CA. She is in the Two Week Board and Train Program. Ruby is an over exuberance puppy who wants to meet every person and dog she sees which tends to result in heavy leash pulling to get to each individual. When her over excitement gets the best of her, she oftentimes will result in jumping on that person. Even though she may not be too big, it is still not a good habit to have as Ruby could knock over grandma. During moments of over excitement, she will bark and continue to do so until the excitement has passed. However, Ruby does understand her basic commands when there are no distractions around and at home. Throughout her stay we will work on solidifying all of her basic commands regardless of the environment. Stay tuned for Ruby's transformation.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/05/2023
This morning Ruby had a wild day at the park showing how she loved the world and had to see everything in it. Once we got home, Ruby enjoyed sniffing and checking out the front area. We spent the afternoon getting to know each other and the house dogs. Ruby was quite excited to see new friends and was ready to jump in with all four paws. Training started with manners around senior dogs.
As we were working, she alerted to a neighbor walking by but didn't bark or run to greet him. I was also very proud of her when a toddler came by on a push bike, she stood there wagging her tail but didn't approach. I re-engaged with her to help practice focus and self control.
Ruby enjoyed her first walk with me while practicing basic commands and showing
her recall and we started learning the sit command with an implied stay. We used that command at the front door and at dinner time to help teach her self control.
At dinner time she was excited and checking out the kitchen. We practiced a ten second sit with her bowl just out of reach. After a wild play at the park, a drive home, meeting new dog friends and two walks, she is already sleeping soundly.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/06/2023
This morning Ruby ate about ¾ of a cup of her breakfast. She would take a bite and then try to go see what the other pups were doing / eating.
Busy day today, got a couple of long walks in around the neighborhood and then went out to Thille Park in Ventura. I expected some natural environmental distractions like birds and squirrels on the way and at the park, but we ended up with 11+ dogs coming through the park at various times along with a large truck coming around to empty trash cans.
There were some large crows in the middle of the park and Ruby was trying to slyly chase them but was corrected to ignore them. She was excellent around the dogs, no running to play or jumping on them. She was also polite to all the two legged people, small and large. Even the guy in the truck was impressed and called her a good girl for not running away when he pulled up. She did get a little nervous with an elderly man shuffling along with his cane but we stayed in a sit while he passed. While we were leaving the park, a vehicle was trying to park and rubbed the tire on the curb. Ruby did jump at that and continued to look back waiting to see if it was coming after us.
One of the pictures includes a skateboarder with a little dog in tow, we’re a little further back because the skateboarder was nervous that Ruby would chase him or the dog. Things we worked on were long sits and downs, recalls and heeling. I’m finding that Ruby is sitting behind the knee instead of beside the knee on a heel sit. I was working on placing her to correct that.
Overall Ruby is settling in nicely, enjoying all the walks and different smells compared to her normal surroundings.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/07/2023
As per our discussion at drop off on Sunday, I’ve been applying lavender essential oil on Ruby’s spay incision daily and it’s healing nicely. She wore the donut cone Sunday afternoon and evening, and Monday when she wasn’t out training. She’s been ignoring the incision and hasn’t worn the donut cone since then.
Ruby had some playtime with my Belgian Tervuren late yesterday. They had fun running around the living room and bodychecking each other. My Belgian is a little taller than Ruby but she is solid and kept the Belgian on his toes. When the fun started escalating, they were separated into kennels for some calming down time.
Ruby is slightly whiny at night, but when it comes to bathroom breaks she’s great about vocalizing that she’s not just being whiny but she needs to go outside. There have been no accidents in the house.
I’ve been feeding Ruby in the kitchen but she wants to see what my dogs are doing and eating. This morning she ate about half of her food and wanted me in the room with her. She did finish her food when we returned from our outing today. I will also start feeding her in the crate. There are two reasons for this 1) The crate is in the living room and where I feed my dogs. This way she can be near them and know what they’re doing. 2) Even more crucial is that she’s unhappy about spending time in the crate and fights to go in. Feeding her in the crate will rebuild a positive association with the crate.
This morning was a pack walk with my two dogs. Ruby was corrected a couple of times to be reminded this was a walk and not play time. She is learning to respect the senior of the group.
Today's outing was at Studio City Recreation Center where she was working around other dogs and groups of people. Groups ranged from 1 person walking by themselves to five walking together with dogs, and the tennis courts were full of people talking and yelling. Ruby’s only reaction was looking behind her when someone was talking loudly at the tennis court and then when another dog started approaching her. She stayed focused on me while we were working proper placements for heels and sits.
After some continuous work she couldn’t wait to get in the car and into the crate. Usually she will have me pick her up – probably because she doesn’t want to go into the crate – but today she gave up waiting for me and jumped into the car and crated herself.
When we returned home she was still pretty tired, went in her crate, then started whining. Turns out she was asking for the remainder of her food from breakfast this morning. She finished it in her crate.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/08/2023
While cooking dinner last night, I had Ruby in the kitchen with me. I thought I should start teaching her cooking skills. She thought it was great fun until she discovered she wasn’t allowed to taste the food. At that point her feeling was why bother.
Ruby started her morning out with only eating half of her breakfast. We went on a pack walk and Ruby said she really wants to make friends with Kiki, the senior Akita. I laughed and said to keep on walking.
Today’s exercise was at Kimball Water Park in Ventura. We started out at the baseball fields where I discovered that Ruby really thinks the bleachers are too small for her. I had her walk back and forth on one thinking that it was the texture of the bleachers she didn’t like. In the dugout she was willing to place on the top which were a double to triple wide compared to the seating part.
When Ruby decides she doesn’t want to work anymore, she has an automatic down, so that’s where we started our heeling today. Had a few times where she thought that as long as she sat, that was good enough. She seemed to forget – or decided to test – where the proper sitting was for a heel. She’s also making recalls a little more challenging because she doesn’t want to get far from me. She knows I’m going to call her back. My answer to that one is to start running with her, when she passes me I either stop or go in the other direction so I get some distance.
Today’s video has some jumps / cuts, mainly because I had some offscreen moments, and it was reduced for time. I tried to include some of the exercises that weren’t so pretty as well as the ones she did great on. Her placements on the cot are awesome and I’m already able to get Ruby to place six to eight feet away. I’m looking for other items out in the environment that she can place on as well.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/09/2023
This morning was breakfast back in the kitchen, need to work on those meal manners. She did really well, decided to lay down and wait for the break command which was given at 75 seconds.
Today we went to the park behind the Thousand Oaks Library and visited ducks, turtles and squirrels. The video today is in that park but away from the wild life, the animals were all around a pond that was set down lower than the sides. The area around the pond was not conducive for video mainly because it was closed in without a lot of area to walk around. For example, one side had large landscaping rocks that were taller than Ruby and had flowers placed on them. Another side had a small trail that lead to the pond but not a lot of area to video, and the last side was an area on cement that although was large, was a seating area that would make it difficult to see Ruby working. We practiced place a little but she has that down so well that we went back to heeling and recall to work on cleaning that up.
Although I give Ruby several minutes for potty time at the beginning of our training sessions, she would rather sniff that time away. Several days in a row she gets very anxious and all of the sudden can’t focus or do anything right. Today I recognized what was going on – it’s the third day in a row – and gave her a break to go potty. It seems that as she is training and out on walks, she is so focused on the commands (which is great!) but forgets all about potty time. I will start incorporating a few more breaks in her time out and about to provide her with the opportunity to potty. While it may not be an all together ideal situation, it is great for Ruby to learn to take advantage of that potty time given at the beginning of arriving somewhere new. The exercise during this time is likely attributing to her need to release her bowels.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/10/2023
As you can see from the Video, Ruby had a very busy day at Santa Monica Pier. We did some heeling exercises with long sits. Many people were oohing and ahing over her as we were at the end of the pier practicing. I found that Ruby didn’t want me out of her sight in this busy environment and continued to break her sit to keep me in her line of sight.
Ruby did very well coming down three flights of stairs from the parking garage and going back up. We stopped at a grassy area before we started training but she was more interested in all the different smells. She was fine during the training session and didn’t pee until we got back to the house.
This week has been a busy week for Ruby, so we did little stops here and there, visited friends, and took time out to look in the glass like a mirror. Puppies are always interesting to watch when they ‘discover’ themselves unsuspectedly.
Ruby was thrilled with visiting new friends while we practiced restraint. As always, people are very complimentary regarding Ruby. She would like to say 'thank you' herself.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/12/2023
11/12/23
Ruby enjoyed some play time in the house without her house mates. She helped herself to Diego’s crate and his toy stashes. It was funny to see her pull out so unstuffed toys and throw them around. She did find herself a tennis ball but I guess she decided it was too big for her mouth before I could get and traded it for a rope ball. Once I started on the breakfast route she came and shared kitchen time with me.
While we were working on food manners she would keep looking at me and then at her bowl, seemed like she was trying to decide if she really had to wait. That seemed funny to me because she’s such a grazer, eats one piece at a time and then walks around as she’s chewing it. She did great waiting for me to release her.
Today the original plan of working around kids and other dogs at the park but Ruby seemed to forget all the work we’ve been doing so we returned to basics. Once we reviewed the basics, we started doing the long down durations. As we were training, we had a couple of large dogs try and come visit. Ruby stayed in her sit while they approached but followed me as I move to deal with the dogs.
Pupdate 11/13/2023
Ruby has been shaking her head so I checked to see if there was an ear infection brewing. Ruby’s left ear has a lot of little hairs that could be tickling her. The right ear actually has a mat with hair attached from the inner ear. A groomer could help with trimming the ear hair and combing that mat out.
I am working all commands with Ruby, and practicing doggy push-ups. That’s where the dogs receive a command to sit, then down, then sit, and repeat. Ruby likes to default to a down when she doesn’t want to work or thinks she should be done.
While in the house and / or before training, she can tell if she has the ecollar on or not and makes choices not to do simple commands like come or sit. She would much rather go investigate the house to find something more fun.
Ruby is also getting vocal during training, talking back when she feels like she’s done or doesn’t want to follow a command. Ruby appears to have a tendency to run away when she is confused/scared/stubborn causing her to be a flight risk. I will continue working with her in enclosed areas like the backyard, tennis courts, baseball diamonds, etc. so we can continue off leash training. Other environments will be trained on leash.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/14/2023
Ruby and I have been out many times today. We started at the tennis courts only to discover they are locked in the morning. I will try again later in the day to see if we have better results. Instead, we had a nice mile walk working on heeling and sits. When we came around the corner from the house, Ruby broke her heel and started running to the house. She stopped immediately when I called and returned to her heel.
The video above is in the backyard and I have Ruby tethered. The reason is that every time I try and move away from her she continues to follow me. I’m sure she figures that’s exactly what I want. As we continued the training, she realized I wanted her to stay in position. I chose not to use a music clip today so that you can hear the commands and know that she’s responding immediately. Her barking at me was the complaint that she had already done this and couldn’t understand why we were continuing to do so. I’m moving around to help proof her, many times a dog is fine when you’re in front of them but if you get behind the dog, they’ll do the unexpected.
When I stepped in so we could do a recall to sit or heel, I made sure I was within her tethered reach so she wouldn’t get any mixed signals by getting pulled back by the leash.
This afternoon Ruby and I visited Topanga Mall. We had children follow us in which made Ruby a little anxious. I turned around and walked towards the children, then followed them into the mall. Ruby did great, was very happy to understand what was following her and was no longer anxious. We had a lady come up to say hi that I had to remind Ruby she was to stay in a down. Within a minute we had a little boy stomping as he was walking. It startled Ruby but she stayed in her down. As we were leaving the mall two skateboards were coming directly as us. Something new and the noise was echoing off the walls. Ruby panicked but I was able to reel her back in to a heel. Right after that a baby stroller came towards us but Ruby handled that better.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/15/2023
Ruby had a busy day starting at the court house. We did a few places around the fountain, tried a bench but it was too slated for her to balance on it. Most people walked around her, or watched her as they passed us. One of the attached pictures is a group of ladies oodling her and Ruby looking up as they were passing her by.
Once the rain hit we tried our luck at Pacific View Mall in Ventura. Although it wasn't busy, we found some new experiences - escalators. We didn't ride them but we did watch them. Ruby did some nice heeling up and down stairs. Ruby also received several compliments on how well mannered she was. We found some very white faceless mannikins that started Ruby 's anxiety. I turned the direction around and we stood in front of the store window while she realized there was no threat.
A picture in this grouping is of a high functioning special needs individual who wanted to see Ruby. Although we went over the rules - come to her straight up, if she goes to jump up, back away, etc. He really wanted a hug from her but she knew better than to jump up. He quickly knelt down to pet her sides. I decided to let it go because I felt this was an important moment to capture, she made a choice not to jump up on someone.
We needed some more distractions so off to Lowe's we went. Jackpot!! The most important thing that happened to Ruby while we were at Lowe's was rolling down one of the aisles were employees pushing two very loud carts. Ruby just came into a sit position from a heel, and I told her off as she was looking at the carts, a reminder that she was still working. She didn't move from her sit position while they passed, and then one more followed up that wasn't as noisy. I think this was a great follow up from yesterday's skateboards encounter.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/16/2023
Ruby and I actually had a chance to get into the tennis courts at the local school this morning. We practiced off leash heeling and sitting, which she was right on mark. We did several places on the benches in the courts where she did fine until I was about 12 feet away and she recalled herself. I had to rig the leash back up so that when she went to jump down she would feel the leash keeping her there. A few repetitions of that helped to remind her what place was.
On our walk back to the house there were three large dogs behind a chain link fence. Two malamute mixes I knew were dog friendly, the third was a Maremma which looks like a great pyrenees with a narrow face. Apparently that one was a bully and tried to act like it was going to chase Ruby. We stood our ground while I told the dog to be nice . . . yes, sometimes it works. And of course the other two nice ones showed up and the three of them started walking the fence line. We joined them on the outside walking to the end of the fence where I turned Ruby back around to face them before we continued on our way.
Anytime I gave Ruby a 'Break' Command - letting her know she didn't have to work but could sniff the ground, run in front a little, etc - she chose to stay within a foot on the left.
In the afternoon we returned to Lowe's where I was hoping for some distractions of the two legged type. We were in the garden section where there were employees moving inventory around, making loud noises. Ruby jumped and looked, but didn't break her sit. We had a gentleman walk by while Ruby was in a long sit - he was going to walk around but I encouraged him to walk by while we were training. Ruby didn't move a muscle, and the gentleman was so impressed he had to come by and say hi to Ruby. Good girl Ruby!!
She is still getting over excited with children but she's getting better. It's hard to control the kids - they like to run up on her and I have to remind them to slow down before they can pet her.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/17/2023
Today we spent time out at the Santa Monica Pier. This is the second time Ruby was out there and today she had a lot more fun! She showed a lot more confidence, wasn't as afraid of the musicians with their loud music, and even had a loud cart coming at us. She took it all in stride. She also showed off her heel, place, and long sit skills. Ruby had a chance to meet a couple of people and was admired by many. As a matter of fact I had a gentleman step up and show me a picture of what could have been Ruby's littermate. Didn't chat long to get more info, this outing was for Ruby.
Ruby was great about not responding to strange people or dogs. One dog came over to visit and with an OFF command - which is the go to command if she starts sniffing while heeling, reaching out to sniff someone, or anything that she shouldn't be doing - she totally ignored the dog. No worries about the other dog. I had other team members leading the dog in a different direction. This was a moment in time that I noticed, that I knew you would want to hear about.
We've been practicing door manners and wanted to show you her progress in the video.
______________________________________________________________________________
Pupdate 11/18/2023
About 8pm last night, Ruby asked for more food; she was pretty adamant about it. I tried taking her out for a potty walk, giving her water, but she kept going in the kitchen and looking where I keep her food. I gave her an additional 1/4 cup of food which seemed to keep her happy for the rest of the night. Yesterday was a lot of work and maybe that's why she was extra hungry.
For Ruby's last day with me, we took a nice walk around the neighborhood and visited the large dog house - only two were out today. Ruby didn't like being on a down while I went to go say hi to the big dogs. A nice time to help stretch her limitations and reduce the anxiety levels. She did a great long heel, and responded to the break command by moving away from me about 8 feet. She reacted appropriately with any OFF commands given - we passed a yard that had a gate open that she wanted to check out and immediately back pedaled to return to our walk when I said OFF.
The afternoon was video time - which meant a lot of waiting before being released, but she did great. The break from that was rewarded with zoomies - where the dogs run as fast as they can, mainly in circles - Ruby included stairs in her zoomies and went up and down a couple of times.
We look forward to seeing you tomorrow.
Comments