Who Drago is
As the trainer describes him
Sweet, loving and physically affectionate. It is said in the first clip and the last, and he is repeatedly shown coming in for a rub.
On film
Good boy, Drago. Drago's really loving, you know that? He just loves it.
Good boy, he just loves pets, he loves hugs, come on.
I think I gave him one treat.
Friendly with people, and interested in everyone he sees. No trainer line describes him as reactive to a person or a dog.
A dog who had learned to fight pressure. The early sit standoff is framed by the trainer as a strategy that used to pay, and the handover names the same thing as his core difficulty - better, not gone.
On film
Sit, bud. Nope. This has probably worked for him in the past. Nope. Nope. Nope.
Um, um, he started to try to grind in his old strategy, which used to work for him at some point
had more of a general problem with resisting any kind of pressure actually he still has it to some extent it's it's a lot better um but he tries to escape pressure in the wrong way
And then, by the same trainer's account, unusually sensitive to leash and spatial pressure - a sensitivity he says he built himself. This is the hinge of the case: the same dog is described first as resisting pressure and then as over-responding to it.
On film
heel again good job smarty pants you can see he walks loose leash and he's very sensitive to the leash pressure
Yeah, spatial pressure, he's very sensitive.
I realized that I think part of the problem that he was having was that I think that he's very
Emotional state drives his performance. In a new indoor place the down falls apart and the trainer blames uncertainty, not disobedience; in the last week the trainer reports him scared and too suppressed.
On film
you can see a lot of it has to do with emotional state and he's a little unsure
and um and sometimes with a couple of our other trainers he was a little too suppressed he was
'A weird dog', said with affection at the handover.
Not a ball dog early on; later worked with tug and possession games. The trainer reads the early disinterest as a lack of drive for the ball and says they will work on it.
On film
I think that he doesn't have the drive that I use for the ball.
Park, we're doing some tug, doing some possession games.
As the family describes him
Points
A heavy chewer who destroyed beds and toys.
On film
Well, he's definitely he was definitely a big chewer
Constantly mouthy - 'mouthing is all he did'.
On film
be mouthy if you like are like so when we first got him yeah mouthing is all he did like how i'm
Very anxious: could not stay in his kennel if he heard them, and panicked at a noise.
On film
Yeah, he had a lot of anxiety.
His anxiety was so high, it was ridiculous.
Scared in the car, crouched; calmer in the back seat beside a family member.
On film
back there barking or things like that no but he's just like in a crouch like a scared position
Would not walk - he lay down in the grass.
On film
you know if we walked him he wouldn't walk when we first got him what did he do he would just lay
Stopped toileting in the back yard after a fright in the dark.
On film
But it was like the first time we let him out and it was dark outside.
Too scared to get into the pool (53:08; reported, not quoted here because the cue is conversational fragments).
The program, stage by stage
Intake and pickup, off camera
Intake submitted 12/1/2025 (source: intake); pickup date not stated anywhere.
A nine-month-old shelter terrier mix whose family wanted obedience, a trail-running companion, off-leash running, maybe protection, and a dog a teenager in the house could control (source: intake). He knew only a lured sit. The form describes him as reactive often to everything, nipping any part of a person, biting in play, chewing, barking and jumping (source: intake). The family later say he came from the pound after an earlier placement that returned him, though the line is ambiguous. A staff member collected him from the family; Christian, by the handover trainer's account, had probably done the consultation. None of this is filmed.
On film
standing here yeah my whole hand would be in his mouth okay when i say even when they came and picked him up my fingers just disappeared
christian probably explained some of this stuff yeah but like that's what they do
The first filmed outing: freedom on a 33-foot line, the e-collar introduced, and the sit standoffTurning point
Before 23 December 2025, probably mid-December. watch and its continuation watch.
The earliest footage and the one that defines the case. On a new 33-foot Flexi Giant the trainer gives Drago freedom, introduces the e-collar at a slight level and a new 'ready' play cue. Then a sit becomes a two-minute battle: Drago fights the leash, bites it, and the trainer holds pressure and marks 'nope' dozens of times until he sits. The trainer's own explanation is the case's key idea - the danger is not the fight but which lesson the dog leaves with; if thrashing ends the pressure he learns to thrash. Afterwards he deliberately gives no commands for the rest of the walk so the lesson can settle, and says outright that the hard rep is no reason to drill it. In the continuation a second, shorter standoff follows, the trainer says the old strategy was tried and failed, and Drago is rested because he seems unhappy. The ball does not interest him. He greets passers-by happily and the session ends on a recall.
On film
But yeah, this is a 33-foot Flexi, Flexi Giant.
Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, hey bud, come here, gotta learn to give to
freedom and fun as soon as i put my butt on the ground there right because the opposite lesson that he could learn one that we really don't want him to learn is oh i um i freak out i you know yank and throw and jump all over the place i jump all over him and the pressure goes away
commands on him and try to get him to sit 15 more times because what because it was hard for him that one time that means i should drill it 15 more times no uh no i should not
But he tried his strategy for a second. It didn't work
He's feeling unhappy.
Around Christmas: riding along, and the first downTurning point
23 December 2025 (Josephine's handover) and about 24 December (Lucia's first day).
On 23 December Drago spends a couple of hours riding in the trainer's vehicle while Josephine is handed back, having worked earlier that day. The next filmed outing is very probably the following day, alongside Lucia's first session: Kelton works Drago while another handler walks Lucia, and Lucia keeps trying to get into his face. The plan is to start the down, keep the implied stay in the sit and the recall, and work heel. Recall and sit go well; the heel reps are ragged, and the trainer says the spot was too busy for Drago's stage. By the ducks he raises the e-collar from 20 to about 30-35 because 20 drew no reaction. Then the first down of Drago's life: the trainer catches himself saying 'down' before the dog knows it, stops, lets Drago try different things, and accepts an approximation that Drago plainly disliked. His progress summary that day: let's go and come proficient, the recall still being proofed, sit much better, down needs work.
On film
Yeah, I've had him with me for the last couple of hours riding around.
what Kelton and Drago are up to.
And I'm going to start working with him on the down command.
that wasn't the ideal place for me to start start doing some of these reps is a lot of distractions he came out of kind of nowhere that duck and then lucia coming behind
good job because he didn't seem to care about that at all when i tapped the e-collar on a 20
down down down buddy actually i shouldn't be using the word down here i guess he's never
So we'll do successive approximations with that,
two or three more repetitions of the dam and he's already gotten pretty proficient in let's go
Bass Lake: proofing, 'easy', and the leash that was too much
Between about 24 and 27 December 2025. watch, watch, watch, watch, watch.
A proofing outing at Bass Lake, framed as exposure: Drago 'needs to see' people and dogs. The trainer calls him fluent and plans recall, let's go, 'easy', four or five downs, heels and implied stays, spaced through the walk rather than drilled together. The surviving parts show recalls near other dogs, the 'easy' conditioned relaxer explained (credited to Jay Jack's window theory) and demonstrated with Drago coming in for a rub-down, let's go used as redirection instead of a correction, and one diagnostic moment: Drago keeps breaking the implied stay, and the trainer concludes the heavier 33-foot tape's tension is reading to him as a cue, because he is very sensitive to leash pressure - a sensitivity the trainer says he built by using it. He slackens the line and gets a clean rep. No down or heel rep is in any surviving part.
On film
Hopefully we find some people, and some doggies, if that's the plan.
So we're going to practice, we're going to proof like the recall, proof the let's go,
realized is that you can use in certain circumstances the conditioned relaxer
And you see how he comes in now for a rub down.
Drago. Drago, sit. Sit, bud. Nope. Sit. Good. Sit. Nope. Nope. Good job. That was a nice rep.
And I'm probably going to, it's been a little bit since I did an implied stay back there,
Public places, and the week he became too suppressedTurning point
Late December to early January. watch (uploaded 2026-01-05), watch (2026-01-07); the handover's account of 'the last like five days' and 'the last week'.
Indoors in public. In the first clip the plan for heel is still the prong collar with a little pop plus the e-collar, moving toward the e-collar alone for off-leash heel. Drago walks on a loose leash, is 'very sensitive to the leash pressure', is 'a little unsure', and his down needs many marks; the trainer attributes it to emotional state and wants him comfortable before practising anything. In the second clip it is 'all the flat collar and the flexi', downs still need 'all the way', and Drago jumps into the truck with a running start - a skill the trainer says they had worked on and he now has. Between the two lies what the trainer later tells the family: in the last five days, with him and some other trainers, Drago was a little too suppressed and looked scared, and he switched him to a flat collar the previous week. Which uploads show the fear is not stated, and none of the fourteen clearly does.
On film
and i'm going to proof it with the e-collar and a little pop and prong collar but i'm probably just
make sure he feels comfortable in here first before I practice anything
So this is all the flat collar and the flexi.
the crate you go go home good boy so that was something we had been working on before and he
because like as an example that right there um which i'm happy about this yeah um because i get to see it i had a little bit of an issue with him only in the last like five days
like and you're going to see it in some of the videos that you're going to see where he's kind of like freaking scared he looks scared
right like he's trying to get away from me and i'm like dude right because like the last week i switched him on to like a flat collar
The last days: long line, play, and the instructional video
Early January 2026, days before go-home. watch and watch; order between them unknown.
On a long line at a park Drago plays tug and possession games - the first play that works on film - recalls, heels (once to the wrong side), and needs several 'nope's for both down and sit. The trainer explains heel as a behaviour chain that degrades first with distance. In the instructional video for the family, recorded because he is 'coming home very soon', he wears a flat Kong utility collar with a slip collar as backup; the trainer says he is moving more dogs to flat collars at go-home, shows Drago rolling and playing - 'he hasn't lost any of his personality we haven't suppressed him' - and walks through the four windows, the quadrants in plain English, recall, place and heel. The heel looks off; the trainer blames fifty commands in a row. He says Drago does fine completely off leash and begins a long-line recall demonstration, and the upload ends.
On film
harder skill these are what we call behavioral chains so when we're teaching uh sit or down
boy oh you want to roll you want to roll good boy come on come on so you can see he's a happy boy right um he hasn't lost any of his personality we haven't suppressed him
on a flat collar which I'm going to be transitioning more of our dogs on flat collars when they go home
He's not, you know, on the end of, you know, 50 commands in a row.
Go-home: the family's history, the two systems, and an honest list of what is leftTurning point
About 8-9 January 2026 (inference). watch, 76 minutes, evening.
The handover. The trainer opens by telling the family it is a bad time to learn and a bad time to demo the dog, which is why he records the lesson and builds two playlists on the spot. The family give the history summarised above and their goals: calm on trails and beside them when they stop, no jumping on visitors, staying in an open kennel, calm evenings. The trainer answers each: the cat and the lights in the yard are management; training changes the next time, never now; the two levers are pressure that ends on compliance and an added benefit, which for Drago was rubs and freedom and about one treat. He teaches the four windows with their cues, 'nope' against 'enough' and 'easy', and asking a command before correcting. He volunteers three problems: Drago still escapes pressure the wrong way; in the last days he was too suppressed, hence the flat collar and the retirement of the prong; and one long-line escape to the truck taught him to answer 'come' by running to the truck when it is nearby - 'a mistake on my part'. Place is 'not his most solid command' and the open-kennel stay was never taught. The upload ends mid-sentence.
On film
things one um this is a terrible learning environment for you and for you for you to
that good boy drago he's like who's that sniffy sniff eight months ago he would have been trying to get on top of that kid's head just to give him a hug
But he learned one thing that was a mistake on my part that I did not want him to learn.
And then the, but the prong collar, I think is actually going to be counterproductive
because he don't seem like he's super interested
on all the other ones i didn't work him on place a ton
stay in the kennel unless you lock it yeah um because we didn't teach him to stay in like
Skills
Giving to leash pressure (the sit under pressure)
How it was taught
Hold pressure, mark wrong answers with 'nope', release completely with 'okay' and freedom on the right answer; no further commands afterwards so the lesson can settle. Then, as sensitivity grew, remove tension (slacken the tape), back off physical help, move from prong to flat collar.
On film
Sit Drago sit sit good job
it's gotten pretty proficient in it his sit is much better than it was a little bit ago um
Good job, buddy. He's getting it. Yeah, at that time, I helped him out just a little bit because
Good, nope, there you go, good, sit, good boy, smart boy.
Sometimes I have to move into him a little bit
Down
How it was taught
No cue word until the position exists; let him try things, mark wrong attempts, accept an approximation and release; then successive approximations and 'improve the emotion around it'. Later reps demand the full position ('all the way').
On film
You did good. You did good. That was not perfect, but he tried different things and
But he'll be proficient in it in no time.
All the way. Down. Drago. Down. Nope. Down. All the way. Down. Nope. Nope. Down. Good
Down. Down. Down. All the way, man. Down.
Drago, down.
all the way and i'll point and then if he doesn't do it still then you're gonna have to use pressure
Recall
How it was taught
'Come' on the 33-foot Flexi with release back to freedom; other dogs used as proofing opportunities; the e-collar framed as reinforcing the recall, raised when it drew no reaction.
On film
And he did really good.
Let me get a dog right over here so we can have an opportunity to reinforce his recall.
I'm going to turn up the eco at least a little bit.
so take a few steps backwards, don't just stand there like, Drago, come, that might work, but it probably won't
Because if, like I said, if the truck's not around,
Heel
How it was taught
Heel cue with 'nope' and 'right here', release 'okay'; tool plan from prong-plus-e-collar toward e-collar alone for off-leash; then onto the unlocked Flexi (the procedure later copied for Murphy); leg pat for a clearer entry.
On film
us so not not the best environment for him to learn like to do the heel with where he's at in
good boy so he knows a nice heel good boy nope that's the wrong side over here heel nope
bit of a weird walk but i have other videos where he does much better
to turn the e-color up just slightly good job murphy heal and it's unlocked
Let's go and redirection
How it was taught
'Let's go' with light leash pressure at first; then as a verbal redirection cue. For the family: it keeps the leash a prop and covers what heel and recall do not.
On film
drago let's go let's go good good job that was just a little bit of leash pressure there
birds you can see he wanted to bite that one um the duck but I told him to stop it right I just said hey let's go knock it off right um and that's all I had to do
He can blow right by you in front of you and he didn't do anything wrong because that's all let's go means is go
'Easy' - the conditioned relaxer
How it was taught
Pair the word with a rub-down whenever he comes in; use it to calm, sometimes in place of a correction. For the family: 'enough', physically guide the calm, then 'easy' and a massage.
On film
easy cue and the purpose of it is a conditioned relaxer right so when you
Easy.
that. So enough means chill out. Stop doing that. Let's just be chill. And then you enforce
Implied stay and place
How it was taught
No 'stay' word: a position holds until 'okay'. Breaks marked 'nope' and put back. Tension removed from the lead while the stay is not yet fluent.
On film
Good wait for a second. Nope. Sit good boy
nice do a little implied stay here
on all the other ones i didn't work him on place a ton um probably because you won't have to use
Play
How it was taught
A 'ready' / 'you ready' cue announcing play, borrowed from Jay Jack; play treated as a window of its own in which mouthing is allowed.
On film
oh oh oh buddy out out ready ready ready good boy so ready means like hey we're
may not let it go okay yeah so you kind of got to pry it out because he wants you to throw it
Loading into the truck
How it was taught
Not described beyond 'up' and a running start.
On film
here let's get a running start see if you can get up there
yeah he now likes the car okay
Giving to leash pressure (the sit under pressure)
On film
You give to the least pressure. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Don't fight it. Don't do that.
Because he's used to giving to the leash tension because we've taught him about leash pressure.
we have moved him onto the flat collie for some proofing on the flat.
i have a just a regular slip lead on as a backup
have to really rely on pressure from the flat other than just using it as direction
you can start switching things onto the flat once you have the commands pretty decent
And the shorter leash allows me to have a light, much lighter touch in the heel, which is especially essential for a dog like Drago.
Down
On film
All right, so we've done a total of three repetitions of down now.
we've been practicing down like we like to do at at the kennel when he comes in and out of his area
Not quite. I'm going to make you do it this time.
We're going to get one good down, and then we're going to go on our walk.
And we're not making him stay in the down for very long.
Oh yeah, I forgot to do our down repetition, buddy.
drago down down all the way down
drago down and see that's a very very nice down and i think a lot of it actually is that he's not feeling any aversive
Implied stay and place
On film
I'm going to try it with the tension this time. That's the only difference.
Drago, sit. Nope. Sit. Good. See if he gets it with the sit. Yep, he's doing good with the tension now. Okay, good boy! See, now he's learned it.
I'm going to try out a new glide stay with the down this time with the flexi trick
Lower the criteria.
I went for an implied stay and I messed it up. I could have given him the release cue and enforced it.
or potentially in the down, depending on which one I think is easier for him.
Obviously you can see his implied stays really good
Recall
On film
So I'm using it in tandem with the release as reward, the release to freedom.
i tapped him on the e-collar a few times there not on a super high level just on a low level um i think probably on like a 15 he's fairly sensitive
I'm going to turn the e-collar up just slightly.
I'm gonna proof the recall here. Drago come
Oh yeah, he sees something he's interested in. We're going to do a recall. Drago, come!
That was what you would call an informal recall, because I did not recall him.
Heel
On film
he should be able to come into it on his own and then uh when i say okay go out of it on his own
I won't give him the release this time because I want to make sure that he stays in it even if I stop and restart and that he stays in it when I do turns.
And I'm not blocking the flexi, the flexi is unlocked.
I more want to work on duration a little bit for the heel and make sure that he's fully understanding it.
i think he made some real progress there on the heel
So you can see he's very, very, very clear on what the heel is.
Loading into the truck
On film
There you go. Let me get you up there.
Oh, there you go. Go home.
Play
On film
Oh, we're hunting together now, huh?
I really wanted him to have the pleasure of chasing after them
Implied stay and place
On film
crack the code sit Drago sit there you go it was the leash pressure let's check it out there's no leash pressure
Good boy, we're just gonna use it as an opportunity to proof the implied stay.
Drago, place. Up here, bud. Place. Good. Up, up.
Or just go into a down. Down. All the way, bud. Down. Good boy. Nope.
We use it as a training opportunity.
Recall
On film
because I don't want to poison the recall and make him think that coming back to me causes problems.
Yeah, Drago, come, come, nope, come.
So I used the e-collar once there and he responded perfectly.
drago come nope drago come come the laziest come of all time
is your e-collar not on tight enough or what is it on is it dead
Heel
On film
and then one of the tests i like to use is if they stop when i stop nope almost Drago heel okay
While I started walking he came around the side he came around the back and whipped into the heel
We've been in the keel for about 20 seconds already, maybe a good 30 seconds.
He's waiting for the release keel.
So I want you to note there that's a nice heel entry.
Let's go and redirection
On film
the leash is just a prop in this case it's completely unneeded
Use the redirection cue. Let's go.
'Easy' - the conditioned relaxer
On film
the conditioned relaxer easy i've learned can be used in place of as a substitute for in certain circumstances or instead of the conditioned punisher or the redirection cue let's go
Use the easy cue.
Loading into the truck
On film
I've been trying to teach him to get up in the truck on his own without me having to lift him
Up up, up up.
I don't think it's gonna work good here on the side. So I'm gonna help him out. But I'm gonna make him do half the work.
From the Shorts
Short clips posted from Drago's training. They are undated, so they sit beside the program rather than inside it.
His last week: a flat collar, and 'not suppressed'
Outside a Sheetz, in what the trainer says is Drago's last week before going home, Drago has been moved onto a plain flat collar. The trainer explains that a dog can be unclear not because it feels too little pressure from the collar or leash but because it feels too much, and says he fixed some of Drago's problems just by switching to the flat collar. He calls the down that follows 'very very nice', points to the zoomies Drago gets on the release word, and says: 'He's not suppressed' (not shut down or subdued). Before they go in, Drago is given time outside to explore and relieve himself.
On film
we have moved him onto the flat collie for some proofing on the flat.
sometimes the issue isn't that they're not feeling enough aversive pressure sometimes the issue is they're feeling too much and that's actually causing a lack of clarity in their mind
that i found i can fix by just using flat collar instead
drago down and see that's a very very nice down and i think a lot of it actually is that he's not feeling any aversive
He gets the zoomies when he hears the release command.
So you can see he has a really good attitude. He's very happy to be out with me. He's not suppressed.
So all of his commands have gone splendidly and Drago's going home this upcoming Thursday.
I'm just letting him explore a little bit outside first.
It's always a good idea. They may need to use the bathroom or something like that.
Unsure, not stubborn
When Drago hesitates on a down, the trainer stops to explain his choice. A year ago, he says, he would have said 'nope' (his word for 'wrong') and given the leash a quick tug to make Drago lie down. This time he asked himself whether Drago looked like he was refusing, and decided he did not: he looked unsure of what was going to happen. So instead of correcting him, he gave a little directional help to make it clearer, and Drago lay down right away and was released.
On film
immediately use the condition punisher nope right i would have used nope and i would have popped and uh made him go into the down
did he look like he was willfully non-compliant
that is not what i saw at all to be very frank with you i saw a little bit of like oh what's gonna happen now right that's what i saw
instead is to be more clear
i just gave him a little bit of directional uh uh aid right so i i made it clearer for him i increased clarity that he needed to go into the down and then he was perfectly compliant right away
Putting the leash tension back
Early on, Drago was taught to give in to leash pressure rather than fight it. The trainer later explains that this is why a tight leash during a stay (holding a sit or down until released) confused him: to Drago, tension meant 'move'. Having first taken the tension off until staying was clear to him, the trainer puts it back. Drago holds a down, then a sit after one 'nope', with the leash tight, and the trainer says 'now he's learned it'. His rule for anyone handling a dog: being clear is your job, not the dog's.
On film
You give to the least pressure. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Don't fight it. Don't do that.
I'm going to try it with the tension this time. That's the only difference.
Because he's used to giving to the leash tension because we've taught him about leash pressure.
and the problem that developed is that because he's used to that he's getting a mixed message
it doesn't matter what you think you're doing it matters what the dog thinks you're doing
Not the dog's job. That's your job.
i took the leash pressure off him or the tension off the leash um first and then once i did that a few times oh now it becomes very clear to him that he's supposed to stay and then try it again with the tension which i just did and he got it perfectly
Drago, sit. Nope. Sit. Good. See if he gets it with the sit. Yep, he's doing good with the tension now. Okay, good boy! See, now he's learned it.
When a rep goes wrong, make it easier
On a trail at dusk the trainer plans his last few repetitions out loud and says he will 'read where he's at': if Drago struggles with the down, he won't also ask him to stay in it. Then he does ask, Drago breaks, and the trainer says so on camera: he should have given the release word and taken one clean repetition, and now Drago is confused. After a few more cues Drago lies down and is released: 'That's what should have happened the first time.' In another clip, when a sit-stay keeps failing, his answer is three words: 'Lower the criteria.'
On film
I'll just read where he's at if I see he's kind of struggling a little bit with the down then I I won't push the implied
I went for an implied stay and I messed it up. I could have given him the release cue and enforced it.
I could have gotten a clean rep. Down. Down. Now he's confused.
That's what should have happened the first time.
sit do one implied stay here nope
Lower the criteria.
Don't let the leash snap back on 'okay'
A tip for owners who use a retractable leash. The trainer says Drago's stays are excellent when there is no tension on the leash. He used to unwind the tape by hand for a stay and then let it go when he said the release word 'okay'; the tape snaps back and jolts the dog. That, he says, spoils the release: the dog may start breaking the stay in anticipation, or come to expect something unpleasant when he hears 'okay', which should mean free time. He now does stays with the tension on instead.
On film
Drago his implied stays freaking amazing if there's no tension on the leash
you have to make sure that when you say okay you don't just let the tension on the flexi go
when it winds back up real fast it retracts it's going to pop in
i used to do that all the time and because i thought it'll make it easier for the dogs then i realized no just do it with the tension
they get a pop and then that poisons the okay cue so then instead of thinking okay means yay find your own fun time
you'll mess up the okay queue completely and they'll start thinking that okay means they're going to get punished
Treats for a dog who was nervous coming back
At a park the trainer says he is doing something he doesn't always do: giving Drago tiny pieces of mini pepperoni when he comes back, as well as the usual reward of being released to go free. His reason is that Drago is sometimes a little nervous when returning to him, and he says the food is helping with that. He introduces 'yes' as a word that means a treat is coming, different from 'okay', which only releases. He adds that he still uses the e-collar at a low level on the recall, because Drago is fairly sensitive.
On film
doing something that i don't always do which is with drago i'm using a little bit of food rewards
reason being because sometimes he has a little bit of nervousness when he's coming back to me
So I'm using it in tandem with the release as reward, the release to freedom.
So that is helping to eliminate some of his nervousness.
he sits i give the reward marker yes okay good boy
which marks that you give some kind of like tangible thing right there, not just a release.
A heel he walks into and out of himself
The trainer's goal for the heel (walking in position beside him) is that Drago comes into it on his own and, on 'okay', leaves it on his own, without the leash doing the work. On a short leash he uses 'a much lighter touch', which he calls especially essential for Drago, and keeps walking through stops and turns without releasing him, because Drago had got used to being released whenever the trainer stopped. On the retractable leash, left unlocked, a correction comes from the e-collar rather than the leash, which he calls 'simulated off-leash'. He saves heel practice for quiet stretches, so that it stays clear.
On film
he should be able to come into it on his own and then uh when i say okay go out of it on his own
without me having to use leaf pressure that's what the the goal is here
And the shorter leash allows me to have a light, much lighter touch in the heel, which is especially essential for a dog like Drago.
So he's used to getting the release once I stop, which is why I have to like start and stop so that he knows he's not released yet.
because that way we don't need to use the flexi to correct we can use the e collar to correct non-compliance
together with the e-collar to have something that's like simulated off-leash uh for the dog
And then when there's low traffic and there's not a lot of distractions,
So I want to be able to ensure clarity, and if there's too much distraction, that's going to be difficult for him.
Counting the first downs
In one clip the trainer celebrates: 'Third repetition of all time, ever. That is a smart dog.' The next part of the same series tallies 'three repetitions of down now', and he says Drago 'did great on down for his first few repetitions of it ever'. Because Drago 'did not enjoy' his first heel of the session, the trainer does just one more before finishing. At the end Drago still needs a hand getting up into his crate in the vehicle.
On film
Okay. You did it, buddy. Third repetition of all time, ever. That is a smart dog right there.
All right, so we've done a total of three repetitions of down now.
She did not enjoy that much, so we'll probably do one more rep of heel.
that was perfect definitely did great on down for his first few repetitions of it ever so i'm happy
There you go. Let me get you up there.
Free time is part of the outing
Much of each outing is Drago's own time. The trainer lets him sniff and roam on the retractable leash because 'he's been enjoying himself', waits until Drago is 'in a good emotional place' before asking for a heel, and afterwards takes him to smell flowers. In the woods he joins in when Drago spots squirrels ('we're hunting together now') and turns back at barbed wire so neither of them gets hurt. The state he wants for training, in his words: 'ears up, curious, looking around.'
On film
And so I'm just going to let him have freedom for a little bit here.
He's been enjoying himself.
As soon as I feel like he's in a good emotional place to try one to do one
let's go smell flowers
Oh, we're hunting together now, huh?
I don't want either of us to get hurt, so I'll probably abandon those squirrels for now.
See ears up, curious, looking around. That's the kind of state we want for training.
The go-home demonstration, part 2
Part 2 of the instructional video made for Drago's family is a short run-through with little talk: a down (about twenty seconds pass between the cue and the release), several recalls, two more downs and a heel. The trainer sums it up to camera: 'You can see a recall. You can see a down. You can see a heel.'
On film
I'm gonna do a down with Drago. Come on!
Drago down!
Okay! Okay! Good boy!
Drago! Drago! Come!
You can see a recall. You can see a down. You can see a heel.
The stay was fine; the leash was the problem
The trainer says he has 'cracked the code' on Drago's stay (a sit that holds until he is released, with no separate 'stay' word): the trouble had been the pressure on the leash. With no tension on it, Drago held the sit while the trainer added distance, time and distractions, and got up only on the release word. The trainer concludes the stay was 'way more advanced' than he thought. In another clip he eases off mid-rep and says Drago is very sensitive to the leash.
On film
crack the code sit Drago sit there you go it was the leash pressure let's check it out there's no leash pressure
distance duration and lots of distraction he does it easily okay good boy responsive to the release queue really great
apparently his implied stay is way more advanced than i thought it was i was just being dumb
Oh, is that a little bit much? Sorry, buddy. He's very sensitive to the leash.
That last nope was unnecessary.
Not calling him when he's coming back anyway
At a park with ducks and water, Drago is called away from the water and praised, then let go to run. The trainer explains that when he gets close he will not call Drago back; he stops, then walks the other way and lets Drago catch up on his own, because he does not want Drago to think that coming back to him causes problems. The trainer then gets a down he calls clean on the word alone.
On film
you think about going in the water buddy you shouldn't do that Drago let's go Drago come come
now when i get back close to him i'm not going to recall him he's going to let it happen naturally
eventually i'm going the other direction he'll catch back up to me
because I don't want to poison the recall and make him think that coming back to me causes problems.
Drago. Down. He went right nicely into a clean down with with the verbal cue
'Easy': a word for calm, and for a rub-down
The trainer explains that the word 'easy' can sometimes be used instead of 'nope' or 'let's go': when Drago is very interested in something and only needs to settle, he says 'easy' rather than redirect him. The same word now calls Drago in for a rub-down, which the trainer says he likes. At the end of an outing Drago comes in for hugs to a soft, repeated 'easy', and when a cyclist passes his ears go up and the trainer carries on.
On film
the conditioned relaxer easy i've learned can be used in place of as a substitute for in certain circumstances or instead of the conditioned punisher or the redirection cue let's go
as an example say he is really interested in something and i just need him to kind of like chill out easy easy Drago easy good boy
instead I'm using the condition relaxer easy for him to come for us to do a rub down do a massage and that's on cue now and he likes it
You want hugs? Easy. Good. Easy, buddy. Easy. Oh, he loves the hugs.
Oh there goes bike guy again. You watching bike guy? Is that why your ears went up huh? He's good. Easy.
How the trainer checks a heel
The trainer names his tests out loud. One is whether the dog stops when he stops: a stop that is only 'almost' is marked and redone, and a rep counts when Drago stops as the trainer stops. He also works sharp turns in place and, on a retractable leash left unlocked, points out that Drago follows through a turn on a loose leash. After the release word Drago goes off to enjoy his freedom.
On film
and then one of the tests i like to use is if they stop when i stop nope almost Drago heel okay
heel nope come on heel nope heel okay good boy good job dude all right so he stopped when i stopped that was the criteria for that rep
Drago Drago heal that's much nicer than before turn
heel make a turn he's following me real nice in the turn is again with loose leash flexi is not locked stop okay good
Now he takes the freedom.
Getting into the truck on his own
The trainer says he has been teaching Drago to get into the truck without being lifted, on 'up up', and that it has worked at the back of the truck where Drago normally rides. Here he tries a harder spot, a crate on the side of the truck. Drago can't make it alone, so the trainer helps but makes him 'do half the work': Drago gets halfway and is helped the rest of the way in.
On film
I've been trying to teach him to get up in the truck on his own without me having to lift him
it's the one on the side of the truck instead of in the back
I've been able to get him to jump up there
I don't think it's gonna work good here on the side. So I'm gonna help him out. But I'm gonna make him do half the work.
There we go. He went halfway. I'm going to help him the rest of the way. Good boy.
Out in public: a Sheetz and an automatic door
The trainer films outside a Sheetz and takes Drago into the store, saying openly that Drago is not a service dog. At another public place he uses a door that opens automatically as a test of the stay: one 'nope' and a repeat of the sit, then the release, and 'that looks good'.
On film
about like probably five or six videos out here at sheets
i'm gonna take him to sheets he's not a service dog
or that opens automatically, so we're gonna try that real quick.
Good boy, we're just gonna use it as an opportunity to proof the implied stay.
Nope. Sit.
Good boy, that looks good.
How the method adapted
Drago's case is one trainer adjusting pressure downward over five weeks on a dog he read first as a fighter and later as over-sensitive. Every adaptation below is a step away from pressure. Whether the first steps caused the need for the last ones is the question the trainer himself half-raises.
After the hardest rep, no more reps. The standoff was followed by a walk with no commands at all.
Stated: the dog needs time to put the lesson together, and difficulty is not a reason to drill.
On film
and the reason for that is because the last thing I want to do is overwhelm him
Because I don't want to get generalized suppression.
Rest when he is unhappy. After the second standoff Drago is read as unhappy, allowed to lead and rested.
Mood tracked as a result in itself.
On film
I'm going to let him rest a little longer.
The cue word withheld until the behaviour exists; an approximation accepted.
He had never done a down, and the trainer catches himself naming it.
On film
and we'll make it look a little happier, make it look nicer,
Tension taken off the lead. The heavier 33-foot tape was judged to be cueing him out of the stay.
On film
Good job, buddy. He's getting it. Yeah, at that time, I helped him out just a little bit because
Comfort before practice in a new place.
Unsure in an indoor public space; the down failure was attributed to that.
On film
make sure he feels comfortable in here first before I practice anything
Prong retired, flat collar in. The biggest change, made in the last week because he was too suppressed.
Stated at handover: where he is now, a prong would be counterproductive; a flat collar will do better. The same move is then generalised as a policy ('transitioning more of our dogs on flat collars') and repeated on Murphy.
On film
So we used a prong collar, you'll see, for a lot of his training.
I think a flat collar, he'll do way better.
Again, I have the same thing that I did with Drago. I have Murphy on a flat right now with a backup
Softer words in place of 'nope': 'easy' and 'let's go'.
Stated: they narrow the jobs the conditioned punisher has to do.
On film
very very useful because it narrows the kinds of things that you need to use the
Rubs and freedom instead of food.
House preference; the release doubles as the reward. The family's form listed food first.
On film
it's also the reward. So I don't have to give him treats.
He loves a good rub.
A pressure ceiling written into the handover for this dog specifically.
Too much makes Drago shut down and walk on eggshells.
On film
him to do it right um as long as it's not like freaking like right not that that doesn't need
to happen especially not with drago um that will just make him go and shut down and start walking
No demonstration on a tired dog at handover.
Pressing him for a demo would look bad and teach nothing; the videos show the commands.
On film
I'm okay with that.
What the family was told
Learn from the recordings, not the handover
when it's a topic that's unfamiliar to you so i started doing that for all of mine i record them
like look this isn't a finished product yeah exactly right because he's a dog not a robot
The four windows and their cues
So there's something called window theory. There are four different contexts that cover the entirety of your dog's life.
people that contact me after their dog goes home the problems they're having are not obedience
cues are more important than the commands okay it's like i'd rather my dog know okay and nope
'Nope', 'enough' and 'easy' are three different words
So that is different than telling him no. OK. That's the main thing I want to put out there.
go fudge because it predicts that something bad is going to happen. Right. Like he's going
Ask a command before you correct
or they'll just say no. And then it's like, what is the dog? Yeah. What does the dog learn from that? Like nothing. Right. So instead you might give him a command.
Maintaining commands: pressure off on compliance, freedom as the reward
will make him very likely to just do it again the next time without me having to add any pressure in the first place so he learns how to escape the pressure and then he learns how to avoid the pressure the next time
he's back to sniffing maybe he goes to you guys and now like okay what's the reward the reward is liberty freedom right
Management is not training (the cat, the dark yard, the crate)
and this isn't entirely wrong.
time right so it's never training is never about getting them to do it now
Yeah, and that's more of a management problem.
Equipment
although the prom collar can be helpful in transition phase I'm coming to find that a
And I'm going to give you an e-collar.
Kennel and place
to the first time the first few times you want to go put him in the kennel leash him up and put him in the kennel with the leash
Because what are you doing?
Heel is for crowded trails; let's go for everything else
What's the point of it, going out on a walk, if you're just going to make him walk here the whole time?
the problem is if you don't have a command like let's go the only control that you have is either
Use only the pressure he needs
to happen especially not with drago um that will just make him go and shut down and start walking
In the family's own words
Why they hired a trainer, and what they fear undoing.
On film
Obviously, this is not my area of expertise, which is why we paid somebody.
So, I don't want to undo all you guys' hard work.
The picture they want: a dog that stays calm beside a runner who has stopped.
On film
like I say, after I run, I lay down, and I sit down, and I stretch,
The kennel: they want him to stay put without locking it.
On film
I don't necessarily want to have to lock the kennel.
What they no longer worry about.
On film
really too concerned about the barking because if we let him outside if we weren't with him he would
Outcomes
What the trainers reported
Night and day: the dog who would have climbed on a passing child now sniffs him.
The trainer, at go-home
On film
We, I spent time on that is, is just, um, this is night and day.
Taken into Sheetz, Tractor Supply and Cabela's / Bass Pro, and 'he does fine'.
The trainer, at go-home
On film
I've taken him into Cabela's, like Bass Pro Shop.
So, and he does fine.
Does fine completely off leash.
The trainer, instructional video
On film
He's also, he does just fine completely off-leash.
Happy and unsuppressed, very comfortable in free time.
The trainer, instructional video - in the same week he tells the family Drago had been too suppressed
On film
So Drago is very comfortable in find-your-own-fun now.
No longer worried about barking at dogs or pulling away when dogs pass.
The family, at go-home
On film
how like that's one of the things yeah um but now i'm not worried about him you know barking at dogs
What the footage shows
A two-minute pressure standoff over a sit, ending in the sit and a release, followed by a walk with no commands - the clearest single event in the file.
On film
Sit Drago sit sit good job
The first down, obtained as an approximation the dog disliked.
On film
because obviously he didn't like that very much.
Recalls completed near other dogs, ducks and people in several venues, with marks.
On film
Drago, come! Come! Come! Come, bud, come!
Alright, that was right.
Downs in public places and on a long line, every time with repeated 'nope' and 'all the way'. The down never appears clean on a single cue in the fourteen recordings.
On film
drago come come good drago down drago down so this is a big distraction for him nope down
Nope.
Tug and possession play by the last days, where the ball had failed at the start.
On film
Park, we're doing some tug, doing some possession games.
At the handover he sits unasked and downs amid the excitement of the family's arrival, by the trainer's description.
On film
like yeah your name means like law he just sat down without anybody telling him to yeah he's a
Drago Drago there you go down Drago down good boy yeah he does well even with a lot of excitement and
The ideas Drago's case runs on
- 'Easy': the conditioned relaxer
- Attitude is the leading indicator
- Close the other door: the escape hatch
- Cue the trigger, correct the command
- Don't heel grind
- Drilling is what represses a dog
- If it works, it stays: the strategy has to stop paying
- Pick the place for what it contains - life is the training ground
- Pressure, release, reward
- Raise the criterion in steps
- Release to freedom
- The camera is part of the method
- The four behavioural levers
- The four windows, and calm liberty
- The gear list, and the reasons for each piece