18/02/2026
This is how confidence is built in under 60 seconds 💪
This morning Leo and I were enjoying a wintry walk ❄️ when suddenly a big bag started blowing towards us!
Leo tensed up when he saw it moving so we moved away a little so he could observe at a distance, did a ‘spin’ and a ‘middle’ and then approached the bag.
He went, “I actually think I could stand on it?” 🤔 and on he got.
I didn’t cue him. It was purely, “Do you feel able to offer anything?”
He could have chosen to look at it then disengage, put one paw on it, nose target it or go round it.
I used my location specific reward marker “snack” to feed him in position before releasing him.
That choice was mainly because it was slippery and I didn’t want him launching off enthusiastically to grab a treat. Feeding in position and then releasing him kept everything slower, calmer and much safer 🐾
Leo walked away happily, having conquered his fear of the bag 💪 and ready to head home for breakfast and his morning snooze.
It took less than a minute out of my morning to give him that positive experience, but it had a very big impact on how Leo felt the walk went ✨
If I’d turned back or cajoled him past it and you’d asked Leo how his morning walk went, he’d have said,
“There was this weird thing that moved towards us. We managed to get away from it but I hope it’s gone by tomorrow.”
Instead, he’d say,
“It was great. I saw something odd, I checked it out, I stood on it… and I was fine.”
And that’s the life-changing bit ❤️
Because confidence isn’t about never feeling unsure.
It’s about feeling unsure… and discovering you can cope anyway.
And that changes everything. 🐾✨
