Meet Tele! He's a ten month old Miniature Australian Shepherd from Los Angeles, California here for our Two-Week Board and Train Program! Tele can be very sweet once you get to know him, but his nervousness and anxiety makes it tough for him to meet people and other dogs. He barks at people he doesn't know, and has trouble feeling comfortable in new places, environments, and around new people. He has a tough time following his basic commands, and loves pulling on his leash. Over the next fourteen days, we will help Tele build his confidence in all kinds of areas, help him with his manners in and out of the house, teach him his basic obedience commands, and show Tele how to be the best pup he can possibly be! Stay tuned for Tele's two week transformation!
Pupdate: 9/14/2024
After picking up Tele, we headed home to start getting him settled in! He barked at me for a while when we first met, and threw up a little bit on the drive home. I gave him a bath when we got back, which also gave us a good chance to spend some quality time together. He wasn't a fan of the bath at first, but he settled in pretty quickly and started enjoying the water, and relaxing as I washed him. By the time the bath was over, he started liking me a lot more. He was much more inclined to come up to me and let me pet him. Later, we went to the park. I asked him for some basic commands, and we walked around for a while. There were some sports games finishing up, and Tele was on high alert for most of our time there. Even after most people had left, a couple people walking by would put him back in this state of mind. We definitely have a lot of confidence building to achieve, so a lot of our time together will be spent showing Tele that the world isn't as scary as he thinks!
In addition to his video today, I'm adding a tutorial and picture of the E-collar we will be using with him! This will make the turnover process go more smoothly once Tele is done with his program.
Pupdate: 9/15/2024
Tele and I went to Hacienda Park today for training! He spat up a little bit on the drive there. When we arrived, he was very nervous, scanning the area and running around me in circles at the end of his leash. After sitting calmly for a few minutes, he started to get a little more comfortable. We worked on his Come To Sit and Heel commands today. For Come To Sit, I want Tele to come to my right side, walk around my legs and sit at my left side with his ears at my knee. This is our recall command. I want Tele to respond to it any time we ask, whether he is playing, on break, or holding a different position. He did very well with learning the Come part of this command, even finding the proper position relatively quickly. He struggled a bit more with his Sit. We'll spend a lot more time working on that. For Heel, I want Tele to walk politely at my left side with his ears at my knee. Once he was a little more calm, he started getting the hang of this. He still tends to veer from side to side, but began pulling forward much less! When we got home, I cleaned him up in the bath, and he got a well earned nap. After that we continued working on his commands at home!
Pupdate: 9/16/2024
Tele and I went to Whittier Narrows Park today for training! We had the opportunity to work around several other dogs and their trainers. He wasn't perfectly comfortable around all the people and other dogs, but he did an admirable job trying to stay focused. He did a much better job with his Come To Sit command today, and his Heel is starting to get pretty good. A few times, he tried to pull away while heeling near the others, but guiding him through and pressing on helped him a lot, and he got to see that everything was fine! After he got more comfortable, he actually started leaning the other direction, often veering over to try to sniff a passing person or dog. Now we just have to find the middle ground!
Pupdate: 9/17/2024
Tele and I went to Whittier Narrows Park today for training! We didn't have all the other dogs around us today, so we worked on tightening up his commands with fewer distractions. We introduced his Place command today! For Place, I want Tele to hop onto a raised object, such as a bench, and remain there until I either release him from command or ask him to perform a different command. This is great for confidence building, and very useful back at home if I need to cook, clean or have guests over and want Tele to be in a designated spot. At the park, he found it the most difficult to hop onto the bench and balance on the seat the first few times we tried. Once he got comfortable and confident with the command, he was hopping on and off very easily! Back at home, we utilized this command in a more tangible way while I cooked dinner. He found this much easier, as the cot is a bit more comfortable than the park benches. He tried to hop off a couple times, but after resetting, he finally curled up and got comfortable while I cooked.
Pupdate: 9/18/2024
Tele and I went to Garfield Park today for training! He vomited a little bit on the drive there, so I wiped him up when we got there and gave him a bath when we got home. We practiced each command on a long leash, adding distance to each command where applicable. His Come To Sit was pretty good, but he started trying to go wide around me instead of coming directly to me when asked. His Heel is getting really good most of the time, but he still wants to veer off every so often when he finds something interesting. To help with these things, we will incorporate more engagement activities out in public, to try to get him a little more excited to perform his commands. His engagement with me is getting pretty good at home, but out in public he's still just a bit too nervous and I'd like him to focus more on me, rather than anything going on around us. His Down command is great when he's asked to lay down on a place object. He's still having trouble laying down on most other surfaces. Asking for a Down puts him in a pretty vulnerable position, so I'm hoping adding more engagement exercises will help him trust me more and add the confidence he needs to perfect this command as well!
Pupdate: 9/19/2024
Tele and I went to Almansor Park today! We mostly worked on his Come To Sit command. I started dropping his leash while practicing some of his commands. Allowing the leash to drag gives me some idea of how he might perform off leash while still having access to the leash should I need it. We made a lot of progress with his recall and his Heel, although there were plenty of times I felt the need to step on his leash. Even though he made some mistakes, he seemed much more engaged with me today, consistently looking up to me and coming to me on breaks without me having to ask.
Pupdate: 9/20/2024
Tele and I went to Home Depot today! He did well with his commands, but he was extremely nervous. We took things slow, and he stuck by my side, but he did not like some of the loud noises that happen around the store. Moving carts were particularly difficult for him to remain calm around, as well as any noise coming from people moving lumber. We will definitely come back here to help him with his confidence.
He made it through most of the car ride there without throwing up, but then did vomit while we were in the parking lot looking for parking. He seems like he's getting more used to driving, but still not quite comfortable with it.
After Home Depot, we went back to the park, where Tele could keep practicing and have a little more fun!
Pupdate: 9/21/2024
Tele and I went to the park today to continue his work, but also spent a lot of time working on his in home manners. In today's video, we are practicing his door manners! For door manners, I want to be able to open the door without Tele rushing through before me. Ideally, I want the door opening to become a nonevent. For the purposes of practicing and video, I have him sitting right in front of the door, but in everyday life, he can be anywhere in the house, and I'd like him to have little to no reaction to the door opening. Once he is reliable enough with this, I should be able to even leave the door open and bring in groceries from my car without having to worry about Tele going through. The key to this is teaching him to respect the threshold of the door. While we practice, I'm showing him that he should only cross that threshold when I ask him to. This same idea can be applied to any thresholds. Gates, fences, even the line between the living room and kitchen can be treated with this respect. Tele still feels the urge to walk through before I say, but we practice this a little each day and he's getting pretty good!
Pupdate: 9/22/2024
Tele and I went to Whittier Narrows Park today for training! He still didn't have a good time on the drive there. It seems like Tele is getting used to the car rides when they are less than about fifteen to twenty minutes, but more than that is when he starts feeling ill. Once he got his feet on solid ground, he was a lot happier. His Heel was really good today, and his Come To Sit was pretty solid. He had the most trouble with his Place command today. We were using a picnic table, and I think I got him too used to the comfy cot, because he was having trouble hopping on the bench. We will take a break from the place cot (except for naps) and get more practice with other objects. Other than that, he did well with his commands, and is pretty comfortable performing them with me. He still has a fairly pronounced spook response to loud noises, and would jump at various noises. He didn't try to bolt today and when he was startled he immediately looked to me for reassurance, but it does mean we will be very slow and deliberate when deciding whether or not to take him off leash.
Pupdate: 9/23/2024
Tele and I mostly worked in and around the house today, working on his manners and behavior inside. For today's video, we're practicing his food manners and food refusal! Working on this impulse control will be great for his overall behavior. It can make his meals much easier, and it can also be a great safety measure to prevent him from eating something dropped accidentally that could be harmful. I want Tele to Sit politely when food is placed in front of him, without trying to gobble it up immediately. We can practice this each time he eats, but also increase the difficulty a little bit by using more appetizing human food. In this example, I'm using breadsticks. I want him to be able to break past the breadsticks and come directly to me. He was interested in the bread, and almost went for it, but came to me instead. I'd like him to also become more relaxed instead of on edge wondering what my next command will be, but that will come with more time. He did pretty well with this, but we will continue to practice it a little every day.
Pupdate: 9/24/2024
Tele and I went to Almansor Park today! He was a little queezy on the drive there, and vomited a little bit. Once we were there, it took some time to get him comfortable again. There weren't very many distractions today, but the ones that we did find were pretty tough for him. The main one was the big lawn mower that trims the fields. Even from far away he didn't want any part of it. Roughly half the time that Tele gets spooked, he will come to me and try to cuddle close, but sometimes, especially with louder noises, he forgets I'm there and just wants to go in the opposite direction of the noise.
Our main priority today was confidence building. The Place command is great for confidence, so we spent a lot of time on that. We went from object to object hopping up and down. Some were easier for him, like the rocks by the pond, and others were more difficult. The stone barrier was by far the most difficult for him, as it requires a lot of balance. We worked on and around this barrier for quite a long time, and he went from barely being able to stand on it to walking all the way across with only a little assistance from me and the leash. While working on these objects, I tried to keep him having fun and building his confidence, which was mostly successful. He still wasn't thrilled by the experience, but he was a little more comfortable by the time we left the park.
Pupdate: 9/25/2024
Tele and I went to Santa Anita Mall today for training! We went with Hazel, a friendly pitbull that I'm also working with. There were times when Tele displayed his nerves, especially at the beginning of the day, but having another dog he likes walking with us seemed to help a lot. The extra distraction made it slightly more difficult for Tele to stay on top of his commands, but also gave Tele something to take his mind off of the environment. We took everything pretty slow, walking around the indoor and outdoor sections of the mall throughout the day. He struggled the most with his Down command today, but I expected this, as it's a tough command to perform when he's very nervous. Balancing the new, strange environment with the extra comfort of his new friend ended up being great for him. That being said, I would also like to test him in this environment by himself soon. Overall it was a tough, but very productive day for Tele!
Pupdate: 9/26/2024
Tele and I went to Santa Monica Promenade today! He was not the biggest fan of this area. It was pretty crowded, and Tele had trouble ignoring the distractions and focusing on me and his commands. After some time, he started getting a little more comfortable, but even then, his Down command was quite tough. In the above video, we walk together down the Promenade, stopping to sit in front of a singer. The music started after he sat, and I thought this was going to make him break his Sit command, but he held it! His attention was all over the place for a lot of our time there, and he was clearly nervous, especially when I would step away from him and ask him to hold his various positions, but he pushed through nonetheless.
Pupdate: 9/27/2024
Tele and I went to Santa Anita Mall today for training! Our main goals were to practice his Down command in public, which is the toughest command for him, and also practice his greeting manners! His Down was a little easier today, but still difficult. For Tele repetition and making sure he follows through each time he is asked is the key to his success. After practicing several times, he began following through much more easily. We had several opportunities to practice his greeting manners today! These were tough for him since he's a little skiddish. He ended up doing very well, however! To practice this, I ask him to sit, and then invite the person to pet his chest. I want him to remain seated while receiving the greeting, without getting up, or shying away. First, he tried hiding behind me, then leaned up against me while receiving the pets. After that, however, he was very polite and did much better with the next few people who wanted to pet him! He started understanding the new people were friendly and became much more confident!
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