🐶 We have worked with Jago on some great relationship building with his mum. There is always that point when we need to start integrating the foundations we have worked on in a safe space to real life situations.
There comes the moment … you let go of the lead 🙈
🐾 Quiet corner of a field …
🐾 Drop the lead and be normal, interact with him …
🐾 Start walking slowly …
🐾 Reinforce all the check-ins with us …
🐾 When he wandered after a passing distraction, don’t panic and move towards him, keep your composure …
🐾 Call him … and he is back.
CELEBRATE! 💕
I see so many posting talking about controlling your dog.
Really? 🙄
In this situation it was all about the human controlling herself first, and this was possible due to the practice that we had done, the risk assessment of the situation, and the safety protocols that we had set up.
💖 And the dog … well he just came along for the ride and had great fun! 💖Here are my top tips:
🐾 Risk assess where you go. Think about roads, other dogs, fences, people. What happens if you can't get your dog back? Should you use a long line?
🐾 Choose the right environment for your level of training. If you have a dog trained to level 5, and the beach is a level 10 environment, you will be setting yourself up to fail.
🐾 Don't forget your reinforcement - whatever your dog loves, and be generous in that conversation with your dog.
🐾 Don't change your behaviour. If you don't feel safe in the environment, you are likely to change what you do which will be difficult for your dog, and may mean they are more reluctant or unable to come back to you. If you don't feel safe, then you need to choose another place.
👉 I could go on, but if you have any specific questions, just pop me a message to [email protected] and I will do my best to answer.
