Four Legged Scholars LLC – Ravenna – Dog Training
Michelle, Dave and Cassie McCoy came to us with a dog that was possessive, hyper, jumpy, and destructive.
Drew, their American Eskimo, recently bit Michelle while she was playing with him. She wanted to get clear on what needed to be done so that Drew could learn to control his behavior better.
In addition to this he was destructive in the house with blankets, pillows, etc. Because things were getting destroyed Michelle had to go shopping at Gabe’s near Ravenna. Dog training sounded like a good idea to this family.
Dave and Cassie also noticed that Drew was very active, had trouble settling down and rarely cuddled with them. This was frustrating to them.
Whenever, they got home Drew jumped all over them in excitement. There were also times when Drew would get so aroused that he would start biting because he didn’t know how to calm down.
American Eskimos are active. Drew lives in Ravenna. Dog training definitely helped him. The family worked hard at doing their homework.
Shortly, after we started working together Drew was choosing to be calm when the owners entered into the house from work and school.
We spent time also teaching Drew to “target” which helped the owners to be able to move him into his crate which he had resistance to do at times.
Much of our sessions were spent on training Drew to drop, leave it and sit stay. He wanted to guard objects and this was dangerous. He began to spit objects out of his mouth.
Socks and paper towels were objects that he wanted to guard the most. It was amazing when he started spitting those objects out on command.
He was then asked to “leave it.” He would move 4 feet away from the object. From there he would “sit stay.” The owners could then safely pick up the object.
It took the owners quite a bit of time to understand the process and for Drew to learn it. However, we spent much time to help them understand what we were doing.
It finally made sense and Drew was doing it! Michelle was so excited when Drew was dropping pillows, socks, paper towels etc. on command.
No need to worry about getting the object back and getting bitten. What a relief!
The family understands that training isn’t completed and that Drew will still be learning more in their home in Ravenna. Dog training with positive reinforcement works amazingly well.
However, it takes time for the dog to generalize the commands to all objects. Drew knows how to drop significantly well. Sit stay is also going very well.
He needs a bit more work on “leave it.” The owners feel clear on what to do and know how to keep moving to get Drew to be more and more calm.
The last few sessions I did with Drew were amazing. As I was talking and moving around the house with the owners, Drew would choose to sit or down.
In the past, he would jump everywhere while we were talking. This was HUGE progress.
This family now feels so empowered and confident. Drew is a member of their family and they are grateful that they now know how to live together in a peaceful manner.
Michelle, Dave and Cassie with Drew, an American Eskimo – Ravenna – Dog Training
Contact us and tell us about your dog
0 Comments