Who Wrigley is
As the trainers describe her
A returning dog, boarding, who already knows her commands; the trainer has worked her before, a long time ago. The job is maintenance: keep her skills tight.
On film
does know the commands already, she's just with us for boarding, so we're going to make
It's been a long time since I've trained with her.
No reactivity to dogs or people at all, by the trainer's statement; what she wants is the ball and wildlife. On film she walks straight past a dog he had expected to test her.
On film
good habit and in this case Wrigley has zero reactivity towards dogs or people
none at all the only thing she wants to do is chase the ball and chase wildlife
dog. I was not expecting that. She just walked right by him.
High energy, loves fetch and water, and is quick: praised as smart and as having figured the down out 'so fast'. A spaniel, by the trainer's passing remark.
On film
Wrigley's got lots of energy
You like the water, mama? Yeah? Good girl. She has a spaniel after all.
Good girl, you figured it out so fast
Two habits the trainer is working on: bolting through anything that opens (crate, car, gate, door), and a recall that comes most of the way back and then turns to sniff.
On film
of bolting. No, she has a bad habit of bolting out of the car or the gate or the crate or
Cause I can see that she has a little bit of a tendency
to like kind of come most of the way back.
The program, stage by stage
A long walk: crate manners, the working level, and a recall that must finish
Uploaded 2026-03-13.
At the crate she bursts out, so she is put back until she waits. At a lake park the trainer finds her e-collar working level by tapping low and raising it until she notices, then sets it slightly above that to negatively reinforce the recall, which he names as the week's focus. He lets her get distracted on purpose; when she blows him off he uses the stim and judges it enough for escape and maybe avoidance; later she 'thought about it again, but she remembered what happened last time'. Heel is proofed with pace changes and heel entries, with a tap when she forges. A passing dog does not interest her. He sets out a default: freedom to sniff, but come into heel when passing people or dogs - and explains that for her, a non-reactive dog, a wildlife chase would get an aversive without a recall, whereas with a reactive dog he would not band-aid the problem with obedience. Late in the walk he calls one recall incomplete and says it has to be negatively reinforced. At the end he tries a down and finds she does not have one.
On film
So if she tries to bust out, I'm just going to make sure she goes back in until she waits.
so i'm gonna make sure she gets nice and distracted and then practice her recall
She thought about it again, but she remembered what happened last time.
That was not a recall. She did not come all the way back.
Wait for the release, then run; and a down she learns fastTurning point
Uploaded 2026-03-15; probably the next day.
The trainer names the stay's main work: breaking her habit of bolting whenever something opens, and recall off leash. She must wait at the crate until 'okay'. Released, she runs to sniff and answers a recall he calls a very nice response. Heel takes leash help and markers. Down, absent the previous session, is now taken on cue with a few 'nope' repeats, and he alternates it with sit to keep the two distinct. She recalls away from the truck and loads up.
On film
No, I haven't said okay. Okay, so I want her to wait until I say her release command for her to get out of the crate
Come it's a very nice response to the recall. That's what we want to see right there.
distinguish between the sit and the down
Let's see if she recalls away from the truck.
Skills
Recall (off leash, under distraction)
How it was taught
Find the working level; set slightly above it; let her get distracted; call; if she blows him off, negatively reinforce with the collar. Check-ins between recalls keep her close. An incomplete recall is named as one to reinforce.
On film
so I'm just gonna tap it super low here see if I can figure out my working level
so I did use the stem there and it looked like it was high enough to produce escape and maybe
she wants to keep sniffing because that's been her main problem
So that was not a recall, just to check in. Kind of keep her bubbled.
Waiting at the crate or door
How it was taught
Block and put her back in until she waits; release only on the release word.
On film
Let's get some crate roll manners here, because Wrigley has a bad habit of busting out of the crate for the course.
she's not supposed to just fly out of there, she's got to wait.
Okay, and she's off
Heel
How it was taught
Fast-slow pace changes, heel entries, a collar tap when she forges; in the second session, leash help and 'eh-eh'/'nope'.
On film
good girl it's nice she kind of naturally just goes right into the heel
She figured it out that last time.
She just got a little tap on the e-collar there. Good girl, because she did
Let me help you out with the leash.
Down
How it was taught
The teaching itself is not on film; the second session shows cue, marker, praise, and sit-down alternation.
On film
Down. You don't know down.
Good girl, you figured it out so fast
How the method adapted
The adaptations are all consequences of one fact the trainer states: she is not reactive. That decides how a chase is handled, what the default heel is for, and why pressure on the recall is appropriate.
Distraction is sought, not avoided: he wants her to blow him off so the recall can be reinforced.
Stated: proofing the recall is the week's main focus.
On film
hopefully she blows me off when she sees something interesting
Hopefully there's a squirrel or some other wildlife
A wildlife chase is to be punished without a recall, so the recall is not what gets reinforced at that moment - a rule he limits explicitly to a non-reactive dog.
Stated: she has zero reactivity; for a reactive dog he would not cover the issue with obedience but find and address it.
On film
So if she does chase wildlife, I'm just going to stem it, um, without giving a recall.
But if she was reactive or something like that, then I would, I would let her out and let her
I don't want, um, I don't want to just band-aid over that kind of thing with
obedience. I want to find out and then be able to address the issue.
Freedom to sniff everything, with a conditioned default of coming into heel when people or dogs pass.
Stated: it is a good habit, and repetition conditions it.
On film
give them all the freedom in the world.
But it's never a bad idea to have a default reaction
to come find you and go into a heel while we walk by people
Outcomes
What the trainers reported
Loose-leash walking has been maintained really well.
The trainer, first session
On film
the loose leash walking has has been maintained really, really well.
No problems on the recall so far, and she is getting better at the heel.
The trainer, first session
On film
Yeah, I haven't seen any problems on the recall
she's getting better at it
She figured the down out fast.
The trainer, second session
On film
Good girl, you figured it out so fast
What the footage shows
No audiovisual review.