Much Improvement

Shaker was much improved and I have much to report.

We have been working on "Look at that" and "Watch me" all week. I also took high value treats--sausage and cheese to give me extra value. We arrived at Petsmart 45 mins. early so that I could be sure to have time to help Shaker settle into the environment.

He was solid as a rock in the parking lot, so we went into the building. Again solid--no barking. He was listening to my voice and responding to verbal rewards and treats. Great! We walked around the building with all the distractions and smells, and he was listening to me and watching me. He was rewarded with pets, treats and verbal rewards.

We encountered the instructor and her dog. No barking. He started to whine a little bit so we turned around and settled. We walked some more and encountered the instructor's dog again. This time he appropriately greeted him. YEAH!!!

By this time it was time to go to our seats. He got a little agitated but did not bark and accepted the treats as a lure. We went through our paces--"Watch me," "Look", sits, downs, loose leash walking-- all solid.

The only issue we had was when a Boxer came into the store. Boxers are a trigger for him (and a lot of other dogs) because of their upright stance and dead on stare. But even his barking wasn't as intense. He didn't growl just barked. After the episode, he had a hard time for a couple of minutes letting the other puppies in the class look at him. But he settled down and was fine for the last 15 mins of class.

And our exit from class was very successful. We walked out and into the parking lot with out any issues.

At the end of the night I feel very encouraged.