Smokey | French Bulldog | Los Angeles, CA | In-Training
- meganoffleashsocal
- Sep 7, 2024
- 18 min read
Updated: Sep 13, 2024
Meet Smokey, a three-year-old French Bulldog from Los Angeles, California! He's here with us for our One Week Board and Train Program, where we will be working to improve his obedience and manners. This fun and playful pup has some knowledge of a few basic commands, but he is easily distracted by his surroundings and struggles to listen when asked to do something. While he is generally a friendly pup, he tends to display reactive behaviors such as barking, lunging, and nipping at people and other dogs while on leash in public places. Smokey has also shown signs of resource-guarding with his food. He also often experiences anxiety and overstimulation when in new or unfamiliar environments, and struggles to settle or relax. Over the next seven days, we will be working to improve his obedience, confidence, and manners, as well as improve his reactivity issues to set him on the right track to becoming a well-behaved pup! Stay tuned for his transformation!
Pupdate 9/7/2024
Today Smokey and I spent the day bonding and getting to know each other after he was dropped off with me. He seemed a bit unsure about me at first, but did warm up to me eventually. Overall, he was pretty easily distracted while at the park, and appeared rather anxious. He didn't display any reactive behavior at the park however, even when people and other dogs walked past us within close proximity which was good to see. While working around my neighborhood later in the day, he did seem a bit more relaxed overall, and despite running into distractions such as barking dogs behind fences, bicycles, and many people, he showed no signs of reactivity in those situations either. I fed him dinner in his kennel tonight, and he didn't display any resource guarding behaviors towards me at all. I was able to walk around his kennel and touch the gate near his bowl without any issues, though he did seem a bit defensive when another dog walked past him while he was eating as he did bark a few times. When he realized they weren't interested in him or his food, he settled back down and calmly ate the rest of his meal.
While at the park, I tested his current knowledge of commands to see if he's had any prior training, and what areas may need some extra focus on going forward. I asked him basic commands such as Come, Heel, Sit, Down, and Place, but he was more focused on his surroundings rather than anything I was asking of him. He would sometimes Come over to me when called with lots of excitement and encouragement, though he would rarely come all the way to me, and mostly ignored the recall cue and his name alike. When asked to Heel, he didn't seem to recognize the command at all and was almost always at the end of the leash walking around or trying to pull wherever he pleased rather than staying next to me. He was unable to perform Sit, Down, or Place on command, and seemed too distracted and nervous to settle into these stationary positions. He also seemed to ignore leash pressure from both a flat collar and a slip lead, however once we switched to a prong collar he was much more receptive to the communication and guidance it provided.
After our time at the park, we went home for some rest before heading out in the evening to begin introducing him to training while around my neighborhood. We focused on introducing him to the e-collar, as well as Come to Sit and Heel. The e-collar will be an important tool in his training program, as it will allow for effective communication with minimal to no leash pressure needed. By pairing the e-collar stimulation with leash pressure, we can teach him that these two forms of pressure mean the same thing, allowing them to eventually be used interchangeably. I have included a tutorial for the e-collar in today's pupdate, so be sure to check that out! The goal for Come to Sit is for Smokey to come when called, approach his handler's right side, circle around the back, and finish with a Sit facing forward on the left side. He is then asked to hold this Sit until released with "Break", or given a new command. This ensures he not only comes when called, but also that he remains stationary until told otherwise, which will be a common theme among all of his commands, as they each come with an implied stay. The Come to Sit maneuver when completed in its entirety also sets him up to be in the perfect position to begin walking in a Heel! The goal for the Heel command is for Smokey to walk nicely alongside his handler on their left side, without pulling ahead, veering off, or falling behind. His job during Heel is to focus on his handler and follow their lead at all times, which will take some practice to get the hang of. Smokey had a slow start to learning these commands, but as we practiced more he began understanding what was expected of him, and seemed to respond well to the e-collar also! We will continue working on these commands every day to help him become more reliable and consistent with them!
Pupdate 9/8/2024
Today Smokey and I began our training session at home, where we focused on three commands, Off, Place, and Down. Once he made some progress with these commands at home, we took the training outdoors to work on these commands around some more distractions. We also continued working on each command he has learned thus far. He didn't display any reactive behaviors while training today, and also ate both of his meals without any issues with resource guarding.
Smokey is often easily distracted, as he tends to focus on his surroundings even when asked to perform commands. Moments like this are a great opportunity to implement the Off command. The goal for the Off command is for Smokey to stop whatever he is doing, and focus on his handler. This is a very versatile command, similar to "no" or "leave it", and can be used in various situations, such as to interrupt fixation on distractions, barking, jumping, eating or sniffing things he's not supposed to, or any other behaviors that are undesirable or inappropriate at that time. The verbal Off command when paired with leash pressure and the e-collar allows us to interrupt the behavior and help him to refocus so that he is in a better mindset to listen for upcoming instructions. Once the Off command is given, it's beneficial to immediately follow it with another command such as Sit, Come, Heel, etc. Once he stops whatever behavior he was doing, asking him to set his focus on a task will help keep his attention away from what initially distracted him or caused the undesirable behavior. Smokey has shown good progress in understanding the Off command so far, and with each repetition, he seemed to be quicker to respond and refocus when prompted. However, more work will need to be done in various situations before he is fully reliable with the command.
The goal for the Place command is for Smokey to jump or climb onto a designated object, such as a bench, a bed, or another object with defined borders, and hold a stationary command while remaining on the Place object until released or given a new command. We introduced this command at home using a familiar object, a dog cot. He is comfortable climbing onto and relaxing on the cot in his own time, so this was a good object to use and help set him up for success. We used some leash pressure to guide him onto the cot while giving the verbal Place cue, which he quickly picked up on. Once he seemed to understand the behavior, we began pairing leash pressure with e-collar stimulation as additional reinforcement and communication when needed. After a few repetitions, he quickly picked up on what was being asked of him and was able to Place with minimal to no leash pressure. We then took the Place cot outside, where we continued our practice. He did well with this, so we moved on to practice with other types of objects such as stairs, low walls, rocks, and other platforms. He was sometimes a bit hesitant at first, but with a bit of guidance and some extra encouragement, he was able to follow through. We will continue practicing this command with different objects in a variety of environments to improve Smokey's confidence and overall skills with this command!
The other command introduced to Smokey today is the Down command. The goal for the Down command is for Smokey to lay down completely when asked, and remain in that position until released or given a new command. To begin working on this command, we used leash pressure and physical guidance to guide Smokey into the Down position while the verbal command was given. After some practice, he gradually seemed to catch on to the concept and we began adding in the e-collar stimulation as reinforcement when needed. We kept the duration for this command pretty short at first with lots of breaks and praise, as this helps make the training fun and rewarding. As we continue to practice this we will continue increasing the duration gradually so he can learn to remain in this position for extended periods of time. We will also continue adding in more distractions so he can be reliable with the command in any situation or environment. At home, he did okay with the Down command after lots of practice, though he still needed lots of guidance to enter the position. While outside however, even with minimal distractions around, he was extremely hesitant to perform it and was unable to do so even with consistent physical guidance. We tried to use some food and treats to lure and motivate him, however this was not successful either. Since Smokey is prone to experiencing anxiety, Down may be a particularly stressful command for him to enter on command as it is an instinctually vulnerable position. We will continue practicing and working to develop a positive association with this command to improve his ability to perform it.
Pupdate 9/9/2024
Today Smokey and I visited a Home Depot, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. This location was pretty busy, with lots of people, loud noises, machinery, shopping carts, and some other dogs. While he never displayed any reactive behavior towards these distractions, Smokey did seem pretty tense here and struggled to maintain his full focus on his commands effectively due to his anxiety. He did seem to settle down a bit the longer we spent here, though he never seemed able to fully relax. This seems to be a common behavior for Smokey, as even at home he often struggles to settle fully. He still seems to be warming up to me slowly, though does not seem to trust me fully. When I go to pet him, he will often flinch away nervously, and he does not engage with me on his own accord. The only place he seems to feel comfortable is within his kennel, so during break times throughout the day I have been leaving it open for him to retreat into when he needs it, which more often than not he will choose to spend time in there on his own rather than anywhere else in the room with me. He has also been struggling to go potty while outside presumably due to his anxiety, and so far has only gone potty while indoors or in his kennel. Despite being taken out to potty frequently and constant supervision at home, he seems to be persistent about holding his potty until he absolutely cannot hold it any longer which results in an accident. We've tried finding the most quiet areas during the most calm hours of the day or night to take him out, though the moment we set foot out the door he tends to be on guard and too nervous to consider going potty, regardless of how long we spend encouraging him to go. He had a poop accident while working in Home Depot despite having the chance to go before we entered, and before departing we visited a grassy area nearby and waited there for around half an hour, but he refused to go again. On the short ride home in the car, he had a urine accident in his kennel. We spent a good portion of today training at home to work on his commands in an environment that was as calm and comfortable as possible. We did make some more progress with each command, though Down is one he still struggles with a lot. Once again food was unsuccessful in motivating him, and he still needed lots of physical guidance to enter to position. He did get a bit frustrated a few times and tried to nip at me while we practiced this at home, though by using the Off command he understood this behavior was not acceptable. We also made sure to take lots of breaks and give him time to unwind during this practice to help keep training a positive experience for him. While at the Home Depot, he still struggled with his Down as expected, though our work at home did seem to have some impact as he was able to enter the position with some guidance, similar to how he would at home. This is an improvement from yesterday, where he would simply refuse and firmly resist any attempts to help him into the Down position while in public. Smokey is however making fantastic progress with his Heel command, and he did a great job overall with following my lead as we walked around the Home Depot. He did not try to pull on the leash or veer too strongly away from me, and was able to maintain and correct his positioning with minimal leash guidance needed. His Place and Sit commands were good overall, and he seems to be getting the hang of these commands. His Come to Sit could use some work in regards to his positioning for Sit, though he seems to be understanding the concept. He did have a few stubborn and anxious moments while training at Home Depot, where he would tend to freeze up and refuse to budge, though with some guidance he was able to snap out of this and return to his obedience.
Pupdate 9/10/2024
Today Smokey and I visited a Petco, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. The store was decently busy, with plenty of people and other dogs, as well as other distractions such as shopping carts, treats, toys, and small animals in their enclosures. Smokey did manage to stay pretty focused overall and didn't have any reactions towards anything we encountered. He was quite anxious in general however, though there didn't seem to be anything specific that was causing it, as he seemed just as nervous in completely quiet sections of the store as he was around busy areas.
Overall Smokey's Heel was pretty good today, and he seemed to have little issue following my lead around the store. He would occasionally veer off slightly or pause to look at or sniff something that caught his attention, especially around the treat aisles, though the Off command was effective in helping him refocus. He did well with his Come to Sit today too, and seemed to understand to always come right to me when called, and was able to be guided through the maneuver to my left side with no issues. He does seem to have a tendency to turn and face me whenever I ask him to sit, which is a habit we will continue working to break as the goal is for him to sit facing forward at the left for Come to Sit. He did well with Place, and was able to jump or climb onto some different objects around the store with confidence. He still struggled with Down and was unable to perform the position on command, though with physical guidance he was able to enter the position. We spent some extra time working on his durations for stationary commands today, as we are aiming for a goal time of having him be able to hold his positions for one minute and thirty seconds without breaking it. He averaged around one minute today which was good to see!
Smokey is still having trouble going potty outside, and once again he was unable to successfully go potty outdoors today. We spent over an hour today trying to get him to potty, and he would persistently just stand and stare in a random direction or sit down and refuse to move, making no attempt to sniff around or find a spot to potty. While on the drive over to Petco, he pooped and peed in his kennel about a minute into the trip. Thankfully, he didn't seem to mind too much while I wiped him down and cleaned him up. This was the only time he went potty all day. We tried once more at night with no distractions around outside, though he was still too nervous and on edge to go potty.
Pupdate 9/11/2024
Today Smokey and I visited a park and continued working on each of his commands around distractions. He did a decent job overall, though his anxiety still seemed to cause him to struggle to fully relax or focus. We ended up spending a lot of our visit focusing on helping him build confidence, learn to settle in the public space, and working to desensitize him to the various stimuli present around us. Later in the day, we shifted our focus towards his house manners at home. House manners are something we have been working on little by little each day since day one. Even seemingly mundane day-to-day tasks can provide excellent opportunities for training. These manners include areas such as Food Manners and Door Manners.
The goal for Food Manners is for Smokey to be able to hold a stationary command while his food is prepared and set in front of him. He is then asked to remain in that position until he is released before he can get up and eat his food. Smokey tended to be pretty impatient for his food, and in the early stages of his training he was prone to rushing to the food bowl the moment it was set down even if it meant pushing me out of the way to get to it. As he progressed in his overall obedience, patience, and impulse control, he quickly replaced his bad habits and learned to be polite and patient even when faced with very tempting distractions such as food directly in front of him! In regards to resource guarding, he doesn't seem to have any issues with me being around him while he is eating, and I've successfully been able to get close to him and even add food by hand into his bowl while he is eating without him having any negative reaction. He will still be a bit on edge if another dog is too close while he is eating however, so we've made sure to keep him separate during feeding times to ensure he is comfortable and relaxed as possible.
Another area of manners we have been working on is Smokey's Door Manners. The goal of Door Manners is for Smokey to hold a stationary position while near a door and remain there until released or given a new command, such as Come or Heel. He is asked to hold the position at the location asked of him, and not break the command even if the door is left open, if someone is knocking on it, or if people walk in or out of it. This practice teaches important boundaries, and prevents impolite and possibly dangerous behaviors he once displayed, such as trying to escape through open doors or shoving past people when walking through doorways. With daily practice, Smokey has made great progress with his manners related to doors, and understands to follow instructions even with the added distractions the door may create. After Smokey has been asked for a stationary command, a door can be left wide open, and he understands to not walk through the doorway unless given permission to, and when invited he can walk nicely through the doorway without shoving through or trying to rush out. Smokey does still seem to have some anxiety about going outside so he is sometimes a bit hesitant about walking towards the door at first, though he does seem to be getting better about this with time.
Smokey continues to struggle with going potty outdoors, however. He did successfully urinate a small amount outside in the morning, which was good to see, though he peed again in his kennel on the way to the park, and pooped and peed in his kennel at home later in the day.
Pupdate 9/12/2024
Today Smokey and I visited the Santa Monica Promenade, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. This was a busy location, with crowds of people, many other dogs, loud music, and a variety of other distractions. This was the busiest place Smokey and I have visited together, and as expected he was a bit overwhelmed by it all. We took it slow, and worked to help him feel as calm and comfortable as possible during our stay. While his anxiety never fully settled, he ended up doing a pretty good job with his commands and was able to focus for good portions of time. We also were able to capture some great footage of him performing all of his commands that will be used in putting together his final video, so be sure to check out today's video for a sneak peek!
Smokey's Heel was one of his best commands today, and he did great about sticking beside me as we walked around. He would sometimes fall slightly out of position when his concentration began to waver, though he was easily able to correct himself with a bit of guidance. His Come to Sit was good overall as well, and he was consistent about always coming to me when called. He seems to understand the maneuver around to my left side for the most part, though he would occasionally turn his body to face me and end up bit crooked during the sit, which is something we will continue working to improve during the remainder of his program.
As for stationary commands, Smokey did a good job with his Sit and Place commands, and was able to perform these positions wherever asked of him without issues. As usual however he did struggle with his Down, and was unable to perform the command without some form of physical guidance. Once in a stationary position however, including Down, he was able to remain in that position for a minimum of a minute and a half, even with distractions around! This is a great display of his focus, patience, and obedience. We made sure to give Smokey lots of love for all of his hard work today, and he enjoyed the rest of the day relaxing and unwinding after our visit.
Smokey did go potty once outside today, which was good to see! He did however have a urine accident in his kennel twice today, once on the way to Santa Monica and once again on the way back.
Pupdate 9/13/2024
Today Smokey and I visited a park, where we practiced all of his commands around distractions. The park was pretty busy during the Friday evening, with lots of people, children, and other dogs. There were also lots of squirrels and birds around, which added to the distracting environment. We ended up spending a good portion of our visit here away from the busiest areas of the park, to help give Smokey the best chances to succeed with his obedience and feel as relaxed as possible. The longer we spent here the more he did seem to relax over time, and eventually we were able to make our way into the busier sections without Smokey getting too overwhelmed. We also spent some of our day at the park playing and exploring around together, helping to further the positive experience of our time together. He even ended up having a bout of playful zoomies, which was of course adorable but also so great to see him feel happy and secure enough to let his playful side finally show.
Smokey did great with his Heel overall, and seemed to have little issue with staying directly next to me in the proper positioning as we made our way around the park. He would sometimes veer off slightly if something interesting caught his attention, such as a squirrel running up a nearby tree, though he never tried to fully leave my side or pull on the leash towards anything. His Come to Sit was also pretty good, and he always came right to me whenever he was called. He sometimes sat a bit crooked, though by asking him to reposition himself each time until he got it right, it occurred less frequently with more practice. His stationary commands were pretty good overall as well. He was able to perform Sit and Place with no issues at all, and was really great about holding any of his positions until he was released or given a new command. His Down was as usual a tricky command for him still, as for most of our visit he was unable to get into a Down without physical assistance. However, during the last stretch of our visit, he did seem to be feeling a bit tired out from all the training and playing and ended up offering a Down on his own to get some rest. While it was possibly just due to him being tired, we of course still celebrated this small victory, and rewarded him for it. Afterward, he was able to perform Down several times again when asked, with very minimal to no physical assistance needed which is a great sign of progress!
While Smokey still has a journey ahead of him to fully overcome his struggles with severe anxiety, he has still made an amazing transformation in this past week, and the differences in him are truly night and day! Before the program, he had a tendency to immediately become overexcited, overwhelmed, and overstimulated by everything around him, without the ability to settle down or respond to commands at any point. Since then, he has gained the ability to adjust to new and busy environments, allowing him to warm up to training and maintain focus even around distractions. He has learned many new commands, and improved drastically with his overall obedience skills. His tendency to pull with all of his might anytime he walks has been replaced with the ability to Heel. His recall is now much more reliable and consistent, and he has developed a positive association with coming to his handler whenever he is called instead of trying to ignore them. He has developed the patience, confidence, and focus needed to perform and remain in stationary commands, even for extended periods of time. While he never displayed any notable reactivity issues while with me, the doors for communication have been opened, and he has learned skills that will reduce the chances of this occurring in the future. While he may seem like a whole new dog, he is still the same goofy, loving, and sweet pup he always has been, and with his new obedience skills he is even more of a joy to be around and take with on all sorts of adventures! He was a pleasure to work with, and I am forever grateful to have had the opportunity to help set this good boy on the path to success. I know he has a very bright future ahead in his continued training journey with his family!
Comments