Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Los Angeles, CA | In-Training
- Scott Hansen
- Nov 9, 2025
- 23 min read
Updated: Nov 30, 2025
Meet Steven! Steven is a three-year-old Labrador Retriever/Malinois mix here for our Three-Week Reactive Board and Train Program. Steven is a sweet pup; however, he does display several unwanted behaviors. Steven was adopted by his pup parents about a year ago. Steven is a sweet, loving pup. However, Steven displays several unwanted behaviors. Steven can perform a command or two and has been to prior training; however, he lacks structure and will perform the tasks inconsistently. Steven cannot be left alone due to his anxiety. He will get into cabinets, jump on countertops, and eat or destroy anything that is left unattended in the house. Over the next twenty-one days, Steven is going to learn to be an obedient pup through consistent, clear communication and balanced training at home and by discovering new people and places. Steven will learn to perform all these things on leash through a positive and balanced training environment. Through structure and consistency, Steven will demonstrate how great a pup he can be! Stay tuned for Steven’s three-week transformation!
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/9/25
Today, Mr. Steven joined me for his three-week board and train program. On the way home, we stopped at a local park to see what commands Mr. Steven could perform. He did not do very well! But I think you know that, and that's why he's here. After I tested his skills, we had a mini photoshoot for his profile picture for his blog. I don't know if you know this, but as soon as dogs see a phone or camera in front of their face, you are now invisible to them, and they must ignore you at all costs. Once we got what we needed, we loaded up and headed to Mr. Steven's temporary residence for the next two weeks.
Once we got home, I let Mr. Steven smell Ms. Toji, Ms. Bear and Mr. Mookie through the front gate. Ms. Toji was excited to see Mr. Steven. Mr. Steven had his tail wagging and was curious to meet them. Mr. Steven had no issues coming to the house. I let him explore each room and meet everyone. Throughout the introductions, Mr. Steven showed no adverse reactions. My whole family likes him already. I took Mr. Steven outside to meet Ms. Toji only.
We then went on a long walk around the block so that he could get used to the sights, sounds, and scents of his temporary new neighborhood. He didn't pull me around the block and did poop and pee. I didn't see too much unwanted behavior on the walk, except for sticking to a specific spot that interested him. That should be easily corrected with the prong collar and e-collar.
I brought him inside and convinced him to go into the crate. He wasn’t too happy about going into the crate but I hung out in the office with him while he was in there so he should start getting more comfortable.
As a reminder, I keep track of his weight and will ensure that he maintains his weight while he is with me. He was not too excited about getting on the scale either, but we figured it out. I started defrosting his food for the next few days.
I've attached the e-collar familiarization video. On his e-collar, I have already added the hypoallergenic titanium contact points. Please review it a few times before Mr. Steven's turnover. We'll practice together to make sure you are comfortable with the system before using it with Mr. Steven. I will introduce the e-collar for tomorrow’s training.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/10/25
Mr. Steven and I headed over to Whittier Narrows in El Monte, CA, today to kick off his training. I was impressed with Mr. Steven's responsiveness to the training. I used the prong collar just in case he had any adverse reactions to the other pups. This collar gives me a lot of control. I have been observing Mr. Steven interact with Ms. Toji. He's had no issues. I let him interact with Mr. Mookie, another Labrador Retriever who is going home today, and Mr. Steven had no issues with him. They were both chasing after the ball, and there was no growling or fighting.
I introduced the "place", "down", "heel", "sit", "sit" when I stop walking and door manners. Door manners are that he has to sit politely until I open the door and walk through it. He can go through with me or after me, but never before me. Also, he cannot go through the door unless I allow him to. This does not mean he won't run through an open door, but rather a structured process for him to understand that nothing happens unless I allow it. I think we are going to do well over the next few weeks. Tomorrow, I will introduce the e-collar into our training, and we'll see how responsive he is to it.
Mr. Steven also spent the entire night in his crate without any issues. He has been nice and loving to my wife and kids. I'm hesitant to let him be outside by himself for too long because I don't want him scaling any walls. I am hoping that if he hangs out with Ms. Toji, after my other two dogs go home today, he will enjoy being out there with her and interacting. I'll have to let him out in short spurts to monitor how it goes.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/11/25
Today, we took the time to formally introduce the e-collar system to Mr. Steven. As you can see in the video, I started by playing fetch with Mr. Steven. I love a pup that is driven by a ball or toy. This is going to make the training so much more productive and fun! After a few times going back and forth with the balls, I loosely put the e-collar onto Mr. Steven, then back to fetch. I started using "centerline" drills. The premise of this drill is that you stand in the middle, send the pup in one direction with the ball. When he gets back to me or you, in the middle, you show him another ball and say "out", then he releases the ball, and we throw a ball in the other direction. We stand in the "middle" of the line, and the dog goes back and forth obtaining the ball. This will continue to reinforce the command "out" that I will work on with him. Once we did this a few more times, I put the collar on properly, nice and snug. Then I started at 0, and slowly moved the numbers up 5 at a time until I noticed a reaction from Mr. Steven. I observed the first reaction around 10. 10 is a great number, but we finished around 20ish due to the extra excitement and the collar moving.
After playing for a few minutes like this, I went into some training with Mr. Steven. We worked on his "place" and "extended down" while my mini-trainer went around him as a distraction. She was extremely helpful, and Mr. Steven was extremely respectful of her.
Lastly, I brought out Ms. Toji to play fetch with all of us. Mr. Steven is having no issues with Ms. Toji. I let them interact in the dog run, and they have no issues. I wanted to show you how well Mr. Steven is interacting with another pup that is about his size.
A few things that I have learned/confirmed about our four-legged friend in the last 48 hours:
He LOVES to play with the ball! To the point that he has already destroyed one tennis ball, I'll be ordering more as soon as possible. He would put the ball on my chair to get me to play with him more.
He can be stubborn about releasing the ball. I will introduce the "out" command paired with the e-collar to teach him how to perform this task more consistently. I call this the eject button/method.
He definitely is not a pure lab because he has an engine that doesn't tire. He can go for hours and hours. I was skeptical at first about the Malinois links, but the toy drive and energy levels are off the charts.
He CAN stay in the crate for extended periods of time without freaking out.
He does have separation anxiety and will look out my front window, will stay at the door when we let him out to go potty, and will bark and cry if left unchecked.
He has had no issues interacting with other dogs to date.
He LOVES his food and LOVES treats.
I believe with the structure that I am teaching him, he will learn how to be a much better behaved pup that will fit into your lifestyle.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/12/25
Today was another backyard session for Mr. Steven and me. I am pleased with the progress that Mr. Steven is making. We reviewed his commands. He gave me a great two-minute "extended sit" followed by an extended "place" and an extended "down". I then introduced the "come-to-sit" using a tennis ball. He did ok with this task, but we will have to keep practicing.
His "heel" was not that pretty today, but that's something that we will hammer over and over again.
We have been working on his food manners and door manners each day, also. Mr. Steven does love his food, and it requires a tremendous amount of impulse control not to jump up and get the food as I put it down. He wants to run through the door when I open it. We don't do either one of those things around here. The structure is having a nice, positive impact on Mr. Steven.
Mr. Steven made it through the whole night in his crate without making a cry, a bark, or scratching at the crate to get out. I have a cover over the crate at night to comfort him and so that he can't necessarily see, although he can hear when I or a family member is coming or going. I even caught him in his crate on his own earlier today after playing with him. I was still in the room with him, but he went in on his own, which was impressive considering that he really, really, really didn't want to go in on Sunday, a mere 4 days ago.
Great progress so far, Mr. Steven!
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/13/25
The rain has come and we couldn't have finished a minute sooner! I took Mr. Steven to Rynerson Park in Lakewood, CA, to work on his "heel" and his commands outside before the rain came. We completed our training today as rain began to fall. I really wanted to focus on his "heel". We spent most of our time working on this task, but also reinforced the extended "sit", "down", and "place". I was really happy with his progress. There were several smaller dogs in the vicinity of where we practiced.
After the video, we took a longer walk to the park, where we encountered other medium-sized dogs. Mr. Steven remained in a decent "heel" and showed no adversity towards them. We practiced his "place" at the playground on a bench where Mr. Steven immediately drew attention from a family there. The little ones came running up and said hi to Mr. Steven. He displayed his loving Labrador characteristics by giving them several puppy kisses and sitting nicely while they pet him and said "hi".
When I got home, I worked on him not immediately jumping out of the crate. He is strong and impulsive, especially when getting out of the crate. I want him to sit politely before I let him out. He was resistant to this, but I will start reinforcing this behavior everywhere we go so that he understands that he does not just get to bully his way out of the car.
Over the next few days, we will be training indoors to avoid the rain, but we can still accomplish plenty of tasks.
Steven | Labrador/Retriever | Pupdate 11/14/25
Today, Mr. Steven and I stayed indoors. Today we worked on his door manners. I displayed for you the two different types of door manners. The first method will be your most frequently used. You approach the door, have him "sit", open the door, then, after you go through or at the same time as you, you can say "ok" and he will follow you through. We do not let the dog go before us through the door.
The second method is to put Mr. Steven in a "place", then "down", or even simply "down" before opening the door. In this method, he will have to remain in the "down" position and not get up while you walk out the door to pick something up or let someone in.
I also had him "place" and "down" while eating so that he could be in the same room but understand its ok to hang out on the cot while other things are going on. I got up and sat down several times, ensuring that he stayed in "place" and didn't have to follow me everywhere I went. There is a time and a place for allowing him to just roam around and be himself, but when I'm at the table or writing these pupdates, it's time for him to relax and not demand attention 24/7.
He continues to go into his crate with no resistance, and even last night, he was sleeping in there with the door wide open. He could've lain wherever he wanted, and he chose to go in there and sleep. He continues to get along with my family and Ms. Toji. He's eating all of his food without issue as we reinforce his food manners. He will jump into the car without issue, although he has tried to avoid the crate when jumping in. Other than that, he's been a great student.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois | Pupdate 11/15/25
Today, Mr. Steven and I headed over to Petco. This was a bit of a gamble to see how he would do in a high-stimulation environment for him. There are dogs - big and small, their scents, urine spots, toys, snacks, and other animals all over the store. I had him on the flat collar and only the e-collar despite the high-stimulation environments. Overall, he performed really well in the environment. I picked up a bone treat for him and some doggy ice cream. He wanted to sniff around some other pups that were in the store, but Mr. Steven was fine.
For the remainder of the day, we've been hanging around inside. My son, nephew, and his cousin have been keeping Mr. Steven entertained for hours. He loves to play fetch with the green toy you sent with him.
The only unwanted behavior I am getting from Mr. Steven at this point is that he jumps on the doors. He keeps trying to open my back door because it has a handle on it. He jumps inside the office through the door when he hears us in the other room. I do not mind letting him roam around, especially since it's raining outside; however, I do want to continue to work on his separation anxiety, and I don't want to cave into his demands the first second he scratches on the door.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/16/25
Mr. Steven and I ran out to Liberty Park in Cerritos, CA, during a rain break. Surprisingly, there was a birthday party going on, a beach volleyball match, a pickleball match, kids playing on the playground, and a few people with their pups. Mr. Steven did whine a little bit at all the excitement there, but was not vocal or disobedient to get to those things.
We practiced all his commands around the playground, and Mr. Steven did so well! As you can see, I let the leash drag while practicing all the commands. Although Mr. Steven is going to be able to perform all his tasks while we hold the leash, letting the leash drag, it gives me an idea of how well his mastery of the commands is coming along. After our training, I gave him a quick brush. He is quite the shedder, and I wanted to leave some of that fur at the park and not all over my house.
Due to the rain, we have been managing his breaks inside and outside. He loves my son. He's the only one patient enough to throw Mr. Steven's green hockey puck toy to him over and over and over and over again. I am pleased with how well he is coming along.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/17/25
Mr. Steven and I headed over to Home Depot in Montebello, CA, to meet up with some fellow off-leash pups. Our usual meetup location was rained out, so we headed to a nice indoor area. Mr. Steven continues to show what a great pup he is. He has had no adversity being around the other pups. He is showing more and more of his excitability at times. A quick reminder with the e-collar and/or leash pressure serves as a disruptor and gets him back on track.
We have a ton of time left to challenge and master Mr. Steven's skills. Keep an eye out for how I am going to challenge Mr. Steven to be the best version of himself he can be!
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/18/25
A break from the rain but not the chilly temperatures! Mr. Steven and I headed over to Liberty Park in Cerritos, CA, to practice his commands with the leash dragging. I messed with his speed in the "heel". He does keep pulling to my right side. He may frequently walk on your right side. I had to pick up the leash a few times and put him on the left side of me. I had fun with him during this process. Then we reinforced his extended "place", "down", and "sit". I also worked on his "come-to-heel," which is coming along nicely. We had one nice young kid who wanted to say "hi" but didn't want to pet Mr. Steven. He sat there nicely so she could enjoy him from a distance. We also go to meet a new friend, Mr. Whiskey. Mr. Steven did well with this interaction. I would be on the lookout for signs of discomfort from Mr. Steven, such as raised hackles, raised ears, straight tail, when encountering new pups. Mr. Steven's hackles went up a little bit, which is ok when new dogs meet, but it's in combination with other things that it can get sketchy. If we tense up and get nervous, he can feel that and will get more amped up. Stay calm, observe for the signs I mentioned above. If you start to feel uncomfortable, recall Mr. Steven and go on your way. Don't go up on the e-collar remote, but be ready if you need to disrupt his fixation on a dog. Trying to muscle and pull him away invokes his opposition reflex, which is to pull even harder in the opposite direction (think sled dogs), and then you're trying to out-muscle him. We don't want that.
After the session, I gave him a brushing. I'm going to need a Roomba after Mr. Steven's time with me. We also went for a nice long, leash leash-dragging walk around the park. I only picked up the leash as needed to ensure he was in the correct position.
Keep up the great work, Mr. Steven!
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/19/25
Today was a quick backyard session. I was going to introduce Mr. Steven to off-leash work but we ran out of sunlight. I want my long days back! I digress. Not surprising that Mr. Steven was a little confused with the off-leash attempt. I had mentioned that he is guessing to go to my right side as of late for his "heel". Whelp, when you take the leash off and let him make his own choices, he can almost do anything he wants before I can catch him and reset him. He was all over the place with his "heel", "come-to-sit", and anticipating when to break his "sit" when trying to work on the "come-to-sit'. This is a common occurrence for pups wanting to avoid the stimulation. We were working at level 15. This is good news, but also challenging. I am happy that he wants to please and perform the task without the stimulation. The problem is that when he is off-leash, this is my primary communication with him. When he is on-leash, I can use the leash pressure. However, his overanticipation and trying to read my body signals are causing him to perform the commands poorly and at the incorrect times. This is called "generalization". Mr. Steven is highly intelligent and can tell when I am going to ask him to perform a task. He will guess what that task is based solely on where I position my body, my hands, my posture, if I'm looking at him, etc. He is observant and eager to please. We will need to reshape some of these behaviors before attempting to challenge him to be off-leash again and think for himself. This is also his last attempt at doing what he wants, versus listening to me and performing what I am asking of him. Most pups have at least one bad day about a week or so into the program as they are trying to overcome their old ways mentally.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/20/25
Today, Mr. Steven and I headed over to the Los Cerritos Center in Cerritos, CA. I went ahead and slapped on the prong collar again. This might be a small step backward as we were working towards progressing him to some tasks off leash; however, with two days in a row of poor heeling and bad come-to-sit, I felt it was necessary to put the wheels back on the track. I did use my lightest and shortest leash, and it worked out extremely well! You can even see in a few pictures that he doesn't have the leash on! Wow! He's really impressive. There were plenty of "How cute" and "Awws" as he posed for his pictures.
To reinforce the "heel", I purposely walked extra slowly throughout the entire mall while making sure that he maintained a proper "heel". This worked out great! Also, there were a few other pups walking through the mall, but a small "off" and "heel" kept Mr. Steven on task. Once again, he just wanted to say "hi" by my observations, but I hadn't told him to stop heeling; therefore, he was not allowed to greet them.
Overall, a really good trip to the mall to get out of the house and reinforce what he has learned. He is mighty comfortable with me and the family and has let all of his fun-loving personality come out. He has tried to jump on my wife a few times, so we are going to try and fix that in the coming days.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/21/25
Mr. Steven and I headed over to Rynerson Park in Lakewood, CA, to continue his training. I have continued to ask more and more of Mr. Steven. As you can see in the video for today, I asked him to do all of his tasks with as little input from me as possible. I keep challenging him. He is quite clever and observant. Whenever I stop moving, he gets up or breaks from his position. This is his anticipation of the next command. He does fine as long as I am moving around for two minutes or more; however, that's unrealistic to expect you to be moving around nonstop at all times. He needs to hold his position/command until given another command. This is why I had to reset him several times on the "place" and "down". This is part of his learning and growing. The only "cue" or command should be the verbal word and not what my body language is. Dogs are very clever and will pick up on where you are standing, what you are doing, and anticipate based on those things. As a trainer, it's my job to recognize the cues that the pup is picking up on and proof him off of these cues or teach him not to rely on those cues.
I was really happy with his "heel". The extra work we put in at the mall by moving slowly helped out with locking in his position. I varied my speed again today, and he did well. He also did well with his "come-to-sit" without me holding the leash. He definitely has a good understanding of all the commands. I just want to see it much more consistently.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/22/25
Today, Mr. Steven and I headed back to Liberty Park in Cerritos, CA to finally train with some sunlight! I decided to bring a ball with me to see how much I could get Mr. Steven to do using it as a motivator. It worked amazingly! I am dialed into what Mr. Steven responds to. He responds to pressure, firm commands, clear communication, tennis balls, and food as motivation, of course, tons of back rubs and belly rubs as well. I feel like you could train Mr. Steven to do just about any task with the right objective and reward in hand. I introduced the command "under" and I was trying to get him to send away to "place" with the ball, but he was too keen on where it was at all times. "Under" was fun because I rarely can get other pups to crawl under that smaller bench area for an "under," but I knew with how much he was in his drive state for the ball that I could get him to do all kinds of things. I also worked on his impulse control by bouncing the ball in front of him and not letting him get it until I actually said the word "yes!". This is a different command than "break". Yes is more of a marker that "yes, you did the correct thing, so here is your reward." I also slipped off the prong collar about halfway through to see how well he would respond and perform without the prong collar and primarily using the tennis ball, e-collar, and/or the flat collar as needed. He did well!
It was nice that people were actually playing pickleball, volleyball, several birthday parties, kids playing at the park, and one or two pups walking around with their pup parents. The entire time, Mr. Steven was focused on me and my tennis ball. I couldn't ask for more from him during this training session.
Great job, Mr. Steven!!
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/23/25
Today, Mr. Steven and I headed over to Rynerson Park in Lakewood, CA, to review some of his commands, but mainly to play fetch with Mr. Steven. This is something that I save for my special, high-performing pups. Mr. Steven has been an exceptional student. His best asset is also his biggest weakness, his intelligence, eagerness, and willingness to please. He picks up on things quickly; however, he overanticipates and wants to overgeneralize on his commands. This is a very common attribute for Malinois. You can see that he breaks to chase the ball too early or won't "place" when he is in a high drive state. He was only allowed to "break" and run after the ball once I or my mini-trainer said "yes". We say "yes", then move to throw the ball.
Mr. Steven also got to meet our newest board and train member, Mr. Lucky. Mr. Lucky was a little shy around Mr. Steven due to their size difference. Mr. Lucky did have his hackles up at first, but I disrupted him before he got hyper-fixated. He wasn't trying to be rude or aggressive towards him, but Mr. Lucky was intimidated by his size, and since it was his first day here, I didn't want him to be too uncomfortable.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/24/25
Today, I reviewed all of Mr. Steven's manners around the house. We practiced his door manners, car manners, and food manners. I performed all of them on and off-leash. We started with his car manners. We approach the vehicle, put him in a "sit", then say "load up," and then he can enter the vehicle. For door manners, we approach the door, put him in a "sit", open the door, and then say "ok," and he can follow us out the door. For food manners, we put him in a "sit" and then put the food down and give him the command "break," and then he can eat his food. Although based on his suspected reactivity, he was enrolled in an on-leash program, but I am going to push him and see what he can do on and off-leash.
I did get another board and train today, Mr. Garth! Mr. Garth and Mr. Steven are similar in size, and we will monitor their interactions. For now, Mr. Steven seems ok with Mr. Garth.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/25/25
Today, I wanted to review Mr. Steven's commands off-leash. He did so well! I am really proud of how far he has come. I feel like he may have been taught to "heel" on the right side, which is why he keeps breaking to the right when I say "heel"; however, we have spent 2 1/2 weeks practicing his "heel" on the left side. It must be programmed into him pretty well, or he thinks that's where I keep the treats or something, so he goes over there. That's why I put the reward pouch in front of me so he doesn't try going to one side or the other due to the toys.
I also brought out all the dogs so you can see him actually play with other dogs. Be warned - do not think that he is a playful, joyful, social butterfly. He can tolerate being around other dogs, but cannot tolerate them trying to take his ball. He also doesn't like it when dogs get right into his face (except little Mr. Lucky). Mr. Steven is not reactive but protective of his space and toys.
I would always be mindful of his behavior around other dogs. A quick stimulation on the e-collar is enough to break up the reactivity. Be prepared at all times around other dogs and be prepared to raise the level as needed to disrupt him. He has only shown me adverse reactions to other dogs when they were too close and/or similar in size. As you can see, though, he can be around them and maybe only certain ones. I probably wouldn't recommend taking him to the dog park and hoping for the best. You're better off finding an open space without other dogs to play fetch with him. He won't turn and go after another dog, and it will give you plenty of safe space and time to react if he does get fixated on another dog.
I'm really proud of all the progress we have made!
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/26/25
Mr. Steven and I headed over to the Citadel Outlets in Commerce, CA, to review all his commands on and off leash in a public place. Mr. Steven was a little overstimulated at first and was not as structured as I would like him to be, but with patience, consistency, and clear messaging, we got him on track. We couldn't find anyone to practice his greeting manners, but he did great overall. Several small dogs were walking around, and Mr. Steven paid them little attention.
Good job today, Mr. Steven!
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/27/25
Happy Thanksgiving!
Today, Mr. Steven and I headed over to Liberty Park in Cerritos, CA. We have been here multiple times over the past few weeks. I wanted to get out and reward him for doing such a great job yesterday at the Citadel Outlets. I would say that Mr. Steven is quite a special dog. He could be trained to do just about anything. I don't really think there is anything that he wouldn't or couldn't be taught to do. However, a dog like that, that doesn't have a purpose or clear structure, can look messy, untrained, and sloppy at times. We have to ensure that he has structure in his life. The lack of structure will lead to destructive and several unwanted behaviors. If he is not being satisfied mentally and emotionally, it will come out in other forms. He has left quite a debris field in my office when left unsupervised for too long. He has stopped whining and barking, but now it is manifested in other behaviors. I bought him a nice hard bone with peanut butter early on, but when he is stressed or waiting for someone to come home, he wants nothing to do with it. He enjoys the toys when he is calm and feels comfortable.
In summary, keep him stimulated daily. This does not mean you have to play with him all day. You can have him place and down. He has a purpose and a mission. Let him know this makes you happy. And if he can see you when doing that, his emotional needs are being met. The Malinois blood makes him quite needy in this regard. Mr. Steven is a great pup, and you should be proud of all the progress he has made in his training!
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/28/25
Today, we worked on Mr. Steven's etiquette around the house. We reviewed his door manners and car manners. We have covered this a few times by now. As you can see in today's video, everything is off-leash with Mr. Steven. He can get amped up quickly, but we need to stay calm and put the structure in place to keep him focused. To follow up from yesterday about keeping him mentally stimulated, this simple type of training around the house was enough for him to crash out for almost an hour. He needs that structure to help him burn up that energy. Plus, you get to spend some one-on-one time with him. We also had an opportunity to work on his jumping on the doors and windows while I was training the other pups. This training will take a little more time, but he will learn to figure it out. We just have to give him positive reinforcement when he is calm.
Steven | Labrador/Malinois Mix | Pupdate 11/29/25
Mr. Steven and I headed over to the Citadel Outlets in Commerce, CA, today to brave the post-Black Friday crowds. Overall, Mr. Steven did well on his final day. There were lots of pups, big and small, tons of people, but Mr. Steven was well-behaved and didn't overreact at all. We were even able to say hi to a couple who had a small pup, and Mr. Steven was nice and calm.
Remember that just because he has been able to perform off-leash commands with me, I always recommend following all leash laws, ordinances, and rules in your area. Also, you will have to practice being off-leash in low-distraction environments before going to the Citadel Outlets on Black Friday weekend.
Attached to this pupdate are the pictures of the e-collar that I have been using with Mr. Steven and that you will be receiving at the turnover tomorrow.
As a reminder, here are the obedience commands that he has learned while with me:
Sit/Extended Sit: Press the black "S" button + say "Sit".
Down/Extended Down: Press the black "S" button + say "Down".
Place/Extended Place: Press the black "S" button + say "Place".
Come-To-Sit: Press the black "S" button + say "Come" + use your hands to guide into place.
Heel: Press the black "S" button + say "Heel".
Food Manners/Refusal: The pup must patiently wait in either a "sit" or "down" while you prepare the food and then say "break," allowing the pup to access the food.
Car Manners: Press the black "S" button + say "Load up!"
Greeting Manners: Have the pup "sit" then allow for the new person to say hi
Door Manners: Place the pup in a "sit", open the door, and then allow the pup to go through with you, or say "ok" and let the pup inside
"Off" + black button "S" to stop the pup from performing unwanted behavior. Always press the black "S" when using this command.
"Break!" - no stimulation, and the pup can freely sniff or go potty.
We will be reviewing how to perform all these tomorrow during the turnover! We can't wait to show you how much he has learned and how great a pup he will be in the future!
Comments