Tikaani, a one year old Malamute, has joined OffLeash SoCal for our Three Week Board and train program. Tikaani comes to us with previous training, so he does know his commands. His owner says he is a smart boy, but can be stubborn and not listen when he feels like it. At home he is destructive of the furniture and likes to steal things. He has shown aggression towards other dogs and has had one bite incident. Over the three weeks Tikaani will be working towards his off leash obedience and manners. Check in to see his progress!
Pupdate 5/12/2024
Tikaani is getting settled in at my home. He got to meet some of the pack. They got to greet each other through the fence. He actually did very well. Tikaani was calm and didn’t try to bark or lunge at them. He actually showed interest and being playful towards one of the male dogs. So far, so good. For now he will stay separated and I will let him get adjusted to his new surroundings.
Pupdate 5/13/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to the park to work on his obedience. We met with other OffLeash SoCal trainers and their dogs so Tikanni could work around dog distractions. Surprisingly he did very well. He was definitely interested and a bit whiny, but didn’t show any aggression. It seems like he wants to engage in a more playful state. We were able to walk past the other dogs without any lunging. We practiced all his commands to see what he needs more work on. He listened to all his commands in the beginning, but started to become stubborn and defiant when he didn’t want to listen anymore. Tikaani needs some work on his duration. It’s hard for him to stay still and hold his commands.
Pupdate 5/14/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to the park to work on his obedience. We practiced all his commands and worked on his duration. We worked a lot on his Heel command, getting him to slow down and walk next to me rather than trying to lead ahead. A big struggle we had while walking was with his nose. He wanted to sniff and try to mark everything so I tried incorporating a new tool, a halter leash. Similar to a horse halter, it gave me more control of his head than his choke chain. He was not a big fan of it a first, jumping around like a child horse and trying to yank and pull it off. After tiring himself out Tikaani got used to the leash and left it alone. At home I let him interact with the two dogs that he has shown interest and playfulness towards. Tikaani did very well greeting them, no reactivity. I thought that he would try to play, like he does through fence, but he wasn’t interested. I think he was too tired from training.
Pupdate 5/15/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to Lowe’s to work on his obedience commands around distractions. He did very well. Tikaani was focused and obedient. He did so well we were able to work semi-off leash, letting him drag the leash while we trained. He received a few compliments, from the employees and customers, on how well mannered he is.
Pupdate 5/16/2024
Today Tikanni joined me on a little shopping spree at the mall. It was pretty busy so he was able to practice his command around plenty of people distractions. For the most part Tikaani was very well behaved and focused. We did come across a few dogs, which distracted him. He wasn’t vocal or reactive, but very fixated. We will continue to work around dog distractions so Tikaani Can become desensitized when seeing them.
Pupdate 5/17/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to an indoor mall to work on his obedience around more distractions. He did very well. He was focused and obedient. When he gets tired he starts to get a little pushy and tries get out of his commands, but I make sure that he follows through with them. Tikaani is more used to the halter leash, though he does try to be sneaky from time to time and slips off the lead around his muzzle. He was the center of attention today. Tikaani had quite a few admirers that stopped to watch him train.
Pupdate 5/18/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to the park to work on his obedience. He was a bit stubborn today, trying to push his weight around and not listen to his commands. I made sure that he followed through with every one. After some repetition he finally started obeying right away and we were able to work semi-off leash. At home I let Tikaani socialize with the other dogs. He did very well being around them. The only one he was really interested in was my female German Shepherd, who wanted nothing to do with him.
Pupdate 5/19/2024
Today Tikanni and went to a local shopping center to work on his commands around distractions. He did better today, less stubborn. We practiced all his commands semi-leash. Tikaani got to have some more socialization with the pack at home.
Pupdate 5/20/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to the park to work on his obedience. We met with other OffLeash SoCal trainers and their dogs so Tikaani could work around more dog distractions. He was a bit whiny around them, wanting to go up and say hi. After working around them for a while, I was able to drop the leash and do some semi-off leash work at a distance. We had one reactivity incident where we came across two small dogs walking in the park. Tikaani was whiny but still staying in his heel command. It wasn’t until we got closer and the little dogs started lunging and barking at him that he started to bark back. He didn’t lunge towards them, but actually was jumping away as he was reacting towards the other dogs. It took a minute for him to settle down and focus as we continued to walk and distance ourselves from the little dogs.
Pupdate 5/21/2024
Today Tikanni and I trained at home. We practiced all his commands and worked on his duration. We worked on his socialization skills. I let him run around and play with the other dogs. Tikaani doesn’t realize how heavy he is and likes to throw his weight around on the other dogs. other than being a little too pushy, he did very well playing with the other dogs.
Pupdate 5/22/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to the outdoor mall to work on his obedience. He did pretty well with his commands, being able to drag the leash around as we trained around the mall. We came across a few dogs. He was interested, but when I told him off and corrected with the ecollar, Tikaani he stopped focusing on them and put his attention back to me. We were walking around a corner when we came in close proximity to another dog. I was very surprised how well Tikaani responded. We were able to walk by smoothly without any reaction. Tikaani received a few compliments on how well mannered he is.
Pupdate 5/23/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to Lowe’s to work on his obeying around distractions. He worked completely off leash today! He did pretty good. We walked around the store and he stayed at my side the entire time, even as we passed by people. A few times Tikaani tried to break command but I made sure that he followed and completed them. We need to tighten some of his commands and get him desensitized with dogs before we can start working off leash out in public around high distractions.
Pupdate 5/24/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to the beach to work on his commands around distractions. We met with other OffLeash SoCal trainers and their dogs so he could practice around other dog distractions. He did pretty well following his commands with all the commotion going on around us. He was a little distracted by the other dogs, which made it hard for him to listen. I tried using the 1200 ecollar, which is a little stronger than the 300 he currently has. It seemed to work better, not having to work on high numbers with Tikaani. His working level ranged in the 20-30.
Pupdate 5/25/2024
Today Tikanni and I went to the park to work on his obedience. We practiced all his commands and practiced his distance and duration. The park was pretty active with dog distractions. We had a bit of a struggle with the dog reactivity. Tikaani was very fixated and whiny when we came across other dogs. If the dogs weren’t interested in him, we were able to pass by more smoothly. If the dogs were reactive towards Tikaani, he would vocalize and jump around. Luckily there were a good amount of dogs that we were able to through it. Towards the end of training Tikaani was able to pass by dogs smoothly, without any vocalizing or fixating. If no dogs around he does great and is able to work off leash, but it’s the dog distractions I can’t trust him to be off leash around.
Pupdate 5/26/2024
Today Tikanni and I trained at home. We practiced all his commands and worked on his distance and duration. I used his friends as a distraction and let them play around us as we trained. He was a little distracted in the beginning, wanting to go play with his buddies, but as we continued to work Tikaani was able to focus on his commands. We also worked on his food and door manners. For door manners, Tikaani is not allowed to pass thresholds until given permission. For food manners, Tikaani needs to wait patiently for his food. Just because the bowl is on the floor does not mean it belongs to him.
Pupdate 5/27/2024
Happy Memorial Day! Today Tikanni and I went to the park to work on his obedience. We practiced all his commands completely off leash. We worked on his distance. He did really well. Tikaani was focused and obedient.
Pupdate 5/28/2024
Today Tikaani and I went to the park to work on his off leash obedience. We practiced all his commands and worked on his duration. He did pretty well. There were a few times he broke command before I asked him, but I made sure that he followed through with each command. At home we worked on Tikaani’s duration place and having him be calm and relaxed when inside the house.
Pupdate 5/29/2024
Today Tikaani and I went to the outdoor mall to work on his obedience around distractions. He did pretty well. We were able to do some off leash training when there was no dog distractions around. As you can see in the video, Tikaani still gets a little worked up when we come across dogs. You can see and hear that he is not as intense like he was before. I could tell that it’s just excitement and wanting to go say hello to the other dog. I noticed once he sees another dog he is completely fine and wants to socialize.
Pupdate 5/30/2024
Today Tikaani and I went to Santa Monica pier to work on his obedience around distractions. We met with other OffLeash SoCal trainers and their dogs, so he could practice around more dog distractions. He did much better today being calm around the other dogs. Tikaani was focused and well-behaved. He had many admirers that stopped to watch him train.
Pupdate 5/31/2024
Today Tikaani and I went to Lowe’s to work on his obedience. We practiced all his commands and worked on his duration. We worked on a new command, Under. Tikanni did very well with his obedience and caught on quickly to his new command.
Pupdate 6/1/2024
Today Tikaani took the day off from training and spent his last day playing and socializing with us friends before he goes home tomorrow. I had the groomer come to give him a bath so he could be nice and clean when he sees you tomorrow. He was not happy about it, howling the whole time he was getting bathed. I am very proud of Tikaani and the progress he has made over the three weeks! He can’t wait to go home and show you what he has learned!
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