Oh, Monty.
🤣
This dude is a Great Pyrenees/Poodle who graduated out a couple weeks ago.
When I say this young pup gave us a run for our money, I mean that at his graduation session, I was floored internally. I was thinking "you know EVERYTHING being asked but because your mom is asking it, you don't want to do it." Those are the literal thoughts that cross our minds in graduation.
If any trainer says every graduation is perfectly smooth and without a hitch, laugh at them for me, because that's not reality. We're taking 30 years of combined training knowledge, plus every ounce of personality profile we know about your dog (what works, what doesn't work, drive, motivation, temperament, etc), assessing owner skill levels on the fly, owner anxiety levels (we've seen everything from owners breaking down crying to a husband and wife fighting about getting a divorce right there in the session, to people answering the phones and just walking out while we're talking, to one person actually interrupting me to go do yoga in the corner while his wife worked the session... 😳). We have to take owner lifestyles, children ages, etc into consideration. We are turning all of that into a recipe for success and translating to the owners how to work their dog...and it's condensed into 4 hours. Talk about the hardest part of the job! I'm exhausted after graduations!
So, back to Monty. It was a rough session because he didnt want to listen, but I took a deep breath and focused on helping his owner become his leader, not just another littermate that he can throw tantrums with, like he was doing before. Sometimes even we as trainers have to recenter ourselves.
And it's a dang good thing we do!
Monty is wildly success at home, off leash, as a BABY, even around his family which includes human babies! We received this from his mom. 🩵 I couldn't be more proud of his owners for taking this so seriously so getting out there to work!
"First time I did any sessions without a
Chief and Beaux kid-proofing!
Doesn't look like a lot, but this is absolutely HUGE for Buddy.
Buddy is here for Behavior Mod for recently attacking a dog. When his owners called, I asked how he handled on the leash, and they responded that he's never been on one. They'd only had him for a month after someone left him abandoned and neglected at the dog park, so they didn't know a whole lot about him just yet.
For all dogs - all ages, breeds, sizes, and for all problems - you absolutely have to start with getting relevance and respect ON the leash before you can ever expect those things with your dog OFF the leash.
In this session, Jimmy was working with Kate and Buddy, coaching her through some things like pace changes, leash pressure, etc. Ray had another dog working just off camera. Buddy did very well, and we are super proud of him. Lots of work left to do!
I'm usually pretty good at getting a read on people at their graduation sessions. There have been several that I've told my staff at the end of the session "this owner is going to absolutely rock it."
Chanel's mom is one of those owners. As soon as she left the session, I told my staff she was going to run with this training. And boy was I right! Her mom is out there working her despite being sick herself.
Chanel is just a PUPPY. She came in for training as unmanageable, eating and passing socks, growling at her owner when she tried to take items from her, knew no commands, biting the leash, etc.
Now she's heeling off leash like a completely different dog, even as a car passes them.
This is what happens when owners take their training seriously! We are so proud of all of you who do!
Gilly girl went into public today!
Working at distances to desensitize, counter condition and reassociate people.
Working "Go Say Hi" with Gilly!
Such a dramatic improvement in her fear of people. This game is wonderful in helping build her confidence for safe interactions with people!
Told yall to stay tuned for her! ;)
Chief demonstrates a perfect switch of mental gears from alert to double down!
Man, I hit record at the exact right time.
If your dog isn't achieving double down, work it until it becomes the new normal.
Good Vs Yes marker demo!
This is Chief. He came in yesterday afternoon, and this is his first "session," so he's a blank slate that doesn't know any obedience. As you can see, there's a few bad habits of overstimulation, jumping, pulling, etc - all things that are very common for average untrained pet dogs.
But if you have 5 minutes or 10 minutes, get out there and start building your good marker and yes marker. This drill builds engagement with the "yes" and duration with the "good".
Rosie had a busy morning this morning from Sam's Club, to Tractor Supply to Big Easy Diner!
Huge thanks to the staff at Big Easy Diner for wonderful service and great food.
Kate and Ray's new adopted dog, Lila B., came with this "ecollar" from Wish.com...
Literally, that's where it came from.
This collar delivers the most abrasive sensation we have ever felt from a "training" collar. Even the stimulation sensation it sends is drastically different from the quality collars we use in training.
People see these collars with lower numbers like 0-16, and they assume it's "nicer" or less confrontational than a collar that goes from 0-100. The reality is, it's not AT ALL. The numbers on lesser quality collars are wildly inconsistent, as is the timing of the delivery. You do not want a 3 second delay from the time you hit the button to the time it delivers, and you certainly don't want numbers that are inconsistent and even painful.
Jimmy can hold a 50 on our ecollar, and it's uncomfortable but not "painful." The abrasive delivery on this collar at a 5 was too painful for him to hold. Ray even refused to go higher than 5 on this collar, yet he's held 100 on ours.
So remember that you get what you pay for. When dealing with a training tool like an ecollar, the quality of delivery is vital.
A 4 on that collar is equivalent to a 25 on our ecollars. So remember that when you have a collar that goes from 0-10 or 0-16 or some other random number, just because you're in single digits, it doesn't make it nice.
Spend the extra money and get the quality your dog deserves.
Northshore Canine Academy offers obedience training and behavioral modification in Slidell, LA. Our motto is "We train dogs and educate people!"
