It feels like there isn’t much to update on Jessie and that’s not a bad thing! She is running so smoothly and doing so well there just isn’t much to report. She just needs this to be her way of life now and for her person to have high expectations of her obedience and behavior. She is one smart cookie!

The one thing I have made very little progress on is getting into the car. She just shuts down! I’m not giving up though. I will keep trying to find the answer. My next method to try will be steps and a lure dog (Dana) showing it’s safe in there.

Jessie has had a very productive weekend. She is now enjoying off-leash freedom on her remote collar. Her obedience got sloppy again when the leash came off but she is already cleaning up again.
One funny thing about Jessie is that she refuses to hop into the car so we are trying to tackle that for her owner. She clearly wants to get into the car and she is certainly physically capable. She just seems to have a disconnect between wanting and doing when it comes to actually getting into the car.
As we continue our work Jessie has been willing and happy to learn and very eager to please. She is a fun dog with her cute quirks.

Jessie had a milestone today. She is now officially on her ET-300 remote collar. She still needs a long line (20’ leash) for her formal obedience workouts but her exercise and playtime are all now with no tether. She has LOVED getting to play and romp off the leash and this has greatly helped her calm down. Her house manners have always been pretty polite but getting some real romp and play time has calmed her down on Placemat which has helped her stay longer.
Moving forward I will be moving her towards not needing the line during obedience work outs and refining the commands she already knows. She is doing so well!

Jessie is coming right along. She only needs minimal correction now for most of her commands. She is sensitive and fussy and so it’s easy for her to decide throwing a tantrum is the way to go but if her handler acts fairly unimpressed by the theatrics she cuts it out quickly and gets back to soliciting praise. She is a very cuddly dog who likes affection and so rewarding her is very easy to do. You just have to make sure you aren’t accidentally praising her anxiety or nervousness. It’s all about timing.
Jessie still every now and then will put the brakes on while walking and try to halt the walk but she is quickly realizing that that no longer works and it’s much more comfortable (and fun!) to follow along nicely.
She is quick to learn and also quick to see if she can clown her way out of work or throw up some “poodle-tude” and pout but when she is working well she is absolutely charming to work with. The kids love her and they enjoy her bouncing.

Jessie is a very soft natured, young, Standard Poodle. She is here for two weeks of training to help grow her vocabulary and allow her owner to give her right answers when Jessie makes mistakes. Her owner wants off-leash control with a remote collar and I think that with Jessie’s brightness and willingness to please I am confident we will get there without a problem.
Today we introduced Heel/Autosit, Implied Stay and Come. She is responsive to the training and LOVES praise. Tomorrow we will introduce Down and Placemat and keep working on what we did today.
Poodles are always fun to work with. They were bred for learning and Jessie seems to be cut from that cloth. This will be an entertaining couple weeks for sure so stay tuned!

Duncan goes home tomorrow! He has come a long way and is doing really well. He has a good understanding of the commands Heel, Sit, Down, Stay, Come, and Place. He still sometimes guesses impulsively what I am going to ask him to do next and he wants to be in on the action all the time. One of the most important things his owner will need to do will be to make sure to encourage him to sloooow down and finish the task at hand. If he is in a Down he can’t just pop back up and follow me. He has to stay and wait until I tell him to do something else. Once this becomes a habit for him it will be easier for him to slow his thinking and his impulsivity will decrease.
He has done well with the remote collar but he does pout sometimes because he has to work harder and not rely on the leash to tell him what to do. But it’s been good for him and he has enjoyed the freedom it’s given him.
Duncan has been a blast to train and I am looking forward to our follow ups. He is a great worker!

Duncan is trying SO hard. He knows his words and he knows what to do but he is still just so impulsive he sometimes struggles to make the right choices. I ask him for self restraint in almost everything we do together. He must wait to eat. Wait to come out of his kennel (door open). Wait to go through a threshold to the yard. Placemat for 2 hours a day. He is slowly getting more patient but you can see him toiling when he just really really wants to go.
With the blessing of his owner I am introducing him to a remote collar because these more than other tools I use encourage the dog to hold THEMSELVES back instead of the dog sort of knowing the leash will hold them back. So far it has been a smooth introduction but you can tell it makes him pout a little that I can get him now no matter how fast he goes.
He is such a lovely dog and I really feel like he is making big strides in his patience. He came ready with a work ethic and willingness to please. We just need to slow him down a little so he can think before he acts. Good job Duncan!

Duncan is a handsome English Lab who is here for a week of obedience training. He is a perfect lab meaning he is a bit of a buffalo who doesn’t realize how strong he is. Eager for adventure and happy to be with his people I can tell he will be a fun dog to work with.
Today we started Heel/Autosit, Down, and Come. His Implied Stay is difficult for him but we started that too. He wants very badly to get the answer right and he isn’t very argumentative. Mostly he is just impulsive and needs to learn some skills and manners. Once he does that he will be a truly lovely dog.