How our training journey with Brodie got started!
We adopted Brodie when he was 7 months old…so he was very much still a puppy. Now, when Dan and I originally started looking for a dog, we planned on adopting a slightly older dog, like 2-4 years old, one that was already trained-or at least out of the puppy stage. But, then I went and I fell in love with an adorable brindle pittie mix…who just happen to still be a puppy. And so puppy training began with our new 7 month old Brodie Boy.
When we first brought him home, he was mostly potty trained…mostly…and he really only knew how to sit (and that was only when he wanted to…). He was crazy, hyper, cuddly, mouthy, and 100000 other things. It was great, but we definitely needed to train him. We started looking into different training options, especially since he was 2 months too old for any puppy training, but very much still a puppy…
Now this was all taking place when COVID was still in full swing. It was December 2020 and many places were only allowing one person to accompany a dog to obedience classes or they were only being held online. So we decided to start off his training on his own. We used YouTube A LOT when we first adopted him (and still do for a lot)! Zak George is our FAVORITE to follow on YouTube! Especially his more recent “Reality Dog Training” series. We also followed a bunch of awesome trainers who post content and training tips on YouTube! Trainers like Southend Dog Training, Say It Once Dog Training, Walking Dog Training, Kane 9 Dog Training, and Rover Rehab! We used different things from each of the trainers we followed and YouTube to add to it.
We used what we learned in the videos to help us potty train him. We brought treats EVERYWHERE with us. Every time he pottied outside, he would get a treat. Eventually we were able to leave them inside and reward after we got back in. And after a few months, we didn’t need to reward at all. He got so good at respecting his space and not pottying there, that he won’t even go on the boat. Although we do occasionally deal with him marking inside places, it’s definitely not often anymore.
Now he has a routine of when he goes and where he goes…yes he has his favorite places to do his business on walks. Always in the same spot…Every. Single. Time! It’s nice that it’s consistent!
Brodie also learned to sit on cue, to lay down, extended stays in both sit and down, to give me his attention when asked (about 90% of the time), sort of learned to leave it, and the beginnings of place (which has since gotten WAY better, but not so much in the early days). Treats were used as positive reinforcement (even though he wasn’t super treat motivated-aka he was allergic to it, but we didn’t know that yet…). We also used toys/games are rewards or motivation to do things, which was a life saver for a lot of things that the treats weren’t helping with.
Crate Training was also super important and helpful to Brodie’s training, especially learning to settle when he needs to. We never-EVER- use it as a punishment. It’s mostly used whenever we leave the house or if he needs cool down time (which is something we are still working towards without him getting stressed). Now we didn’t start out with this. It was about 2 months in to us having Brodie at home when we left him alone and he ate a couple of my Harry Potter books…well he didn’t EAT them, but he did chew them to bits. Then when we were shoveling the driveway after one of the MANY snow storms, he chewed up 2 alarm clocks and a Google Home…so needless to say, if we weren’t watching him, he couldn’t be trusted alone. We got a crate and although he HATED it at first, he eventually learned to love it and now happily goes in when we leave. He sometimes even chills in there when we’re eating (since it’s in the dining room). Crate Games really helped us! Again YouTube for the win with those! We started incorporating them into our regular obedience training every day, which helped him learn that it wasn’t a bad place, but a fun and safe place. (He’s now up to 8 hours in his crate…but don’t worry, that’s only on RARE RARE occasions.)
We used A LOT of what we watched in the Zak George videos and from Instagram, but after about 6 months, we decided that he would benefit from a basic obedience class. Brodie had some minor leash reactivity when we passed other dogs and we thought a group obedience class could help teach him that he can’t play with literally EVERY dog we pass.
We signed up for a 6 week basic obedience class at Paws-itive Experience in Rockaway with Rob. And it was great! In those 6 weeks, we worked on sit, stay, look at me, recall, leash manners, and some basic safety skills. It was an excellent starting point for us and gave up a solid foundation to grow on!
We also learned one of the most important things to help us with Brodie’s training-try to stop the unwanted behavior in it’s tracks before it happens. That way he learns to not do those things…which we’re still working on.
From there we continued everything we learned from our obedience class and all of the trainers we follow on social media. We were doing great for a long time, until some health issues started causing disruptions in his behavior (but more on that in our next training post).
Stay tuned for our next training post with an update to where we are with Brodie’s training and what we are planning to do next!