Murley | Cane Corso | Van Nuys, CA

Meet Murley! A 6 month old Cane Corso from Van Nuys, California, here to attend our two week Board and Train program. Murley is a sweet pup who enjoys his time around his humans being a comfort magnet each time he is around you. Murley is also well behaved around kids. Murley has some habits that need to be changed such as lunging on leash, jumping, and a proper obedience structure. Over the next two week I will create tasks and situations to challenge Murley into becoming a more obedient dog for his owners. We will go on trips to shopping centers, parks and other locations to help build a confidence in Murley to help him understand everything he will experience in his life is normal and neutral. Check out his progress with me as a dog trainer!

Pupdate 3/26/2023

Today is the first day I met Murley and took my time to get to know him by taking him for a walk once I picked him up. He went into my car without too much issue and we headed back to Fullerton to another park for more training. Murley was very excited once we got there and started to lunge and pull away from me. I was patient with him and took the time to teach Murley his heel obedience command. He started to pick this up and started to figure out where on my left hand side he should place himself while walking.

After we found a table to work on his place obedience command. The goal was to have Murley get on top and get off immediately, as he placed himself on top we took one picture and I asked that Murley get off and he did. I will keep his place command on a place pad or something elevated that isn't a table.

Once we arrived at my house Murley was fine going into my house and meeting my family member who he let pet him. I walked into my room and my personal dog Hunter was in his crate and Murley had no interest in being in the same room. I had Murley take a break and walk around my house for a moment. After I had Murley try to go into his crate but he resisted and kept running away from the crate. I took the time to try different things to motivate Murley to go into the crate and what helped was some treats and food. Once he saw food in the crate Murley started to smile and was confused about going in. After a while he finally stepped in and settled without crying in the crate.

Pupdate 3/27/2023

Today I took Murley to a park in Anaheim, CA to work on his obedience around the other trainers from offleash. Murley had a lot of energy in the morning so we went for a walk around the park before going near a rock to work on Murley's place obedience command.

While practicing Murley had moment's where he didn't want to follow through and stopped himself from getting on the rock. I redirect him with the e-collar on low settings to have Murley acknowledge I'm speaking to him. If Murley doesn't listen the first time to his obedience command the second time I ask for his command I administer the remote. This helps Murley follow through with his obedience and understand what I am asking of him. Murley does still need some time before figuring out completely what the stimulation feel means. We practiced this for about 10 - 15 minutes before socializing with Murley around Oso.

Oso is the chocolate lab in the picture above who helped Murley conquer one of his fears. Murley would always keep looking away from Oso anytime he was placed next to him. He would also move away from Oso or any other dog when they would approach him. I would keep Murley in a sit and whenever he would look at Oso I would praise and pet Murley to indicate that's good behavior that will be rewarded. Murley eventually had the courage to sniff Oso for a second and I praise that as well. After a short moment I was able to leave Murley next to Oso without an issue, even having Murley laying down next to him.

Murley had no issue sleeping in the crate but did take his time eating his food. He will wait a specific amount of time before eating even if it's left in the crate with him.

Murley didn't eat in the evening but his food will be left out for him in case he decides to eat late at night.

Pupdate 3/28/2023

Murley ate his food last night as well as his meal this morning with no issue. Murley was very excited coming out of the crate so he peed. It was easily cleanable and shortly after I took Murley for his morning walk and he continued to go potty outside. When we returned home we practiced obedience training in my backyard focusing on Murley's recall. Murley did really well learning this command and not making an issue when performing the full task.

After Murley ate and took a break we continued more training inside the house. We focused on conditioning Murley's door manners since Murley has a habit of wanting to run through a door to go for his walk. The first day he would be right up against the door ready to go in. In the video above is the progress so far since his first day here.

I ask Murley for a sit before opening the door. The goal is to micro manage movements as the door is opening or opened entirely. Murley only broke his position once and was redirected back into a sit. When Murley listens I will praise him verbally and continue the practice without showing too much emotion for listening correctly. When I walk in and out of the door I will close it then following up I will break Murley and praise him.

Murley has shown improvement but still needs more practice so we will continue to always stop and do obedience right before passing any door. Murley was socializing with Hunter today but was nervous at first when Hunter would sniff him. Murley allowed Hunter to smell him but would keep looking away or would just stay in a sit near me. After a while Murley started to walk around but stayed away from Hunter instead of trying to play. I will socialize them more and have them walk together to see if this will motivate Murley to want to play with Hunter.

Pupdate 3/29/2023

This morning it was raining so we only went outside to use the restroom and did most of our training inside until the sun came out. Around 2:00 PM it started to clear with the rain and I was able to take Murley out to a park near my house.

Murley and I had a basketball court to ourselves that we used to practice our obedience. We started off walking around working on heeling. Murley has improved on following my direction but does have moments when turning he will stay distracted looking at something behind me. I will redirect him with the remote on low level settings and he will listen but also try to scratch and take the collar off as he walks towards me.

After we worked on his place command and improved on being able to identify each time I ask for his place when asked. While practicing Murley stopped himself from getting up and was redirected with the low level settings of his e-collar. Murley follows through and I ask him for his recall after. For Murley's recall I first ask Murley for the word to come and once he walks around me Ill follow up with a sit. I'll continue to practice this and will keep this fun for Murley since he's doing very well so far learning a new task a day. Murley is still getting used the e-collar but is managing just fine when it comes to completing his tasks.

Pupdate 3/30/2023

This morning it was raining so I kept the dogs inside most of the morning until it started to clear. Once it cleared up I took Murley to the local pet store here in Fullerton.

Murley seems to get excited once he notices he's somewhere new. As soon as we got to the sliding doors Murley started to overstimulate so I had to start obedience outside before going inside the store.

After a short 10 minutes of training outside we walked up again to the sliding door and Murley was able to keep his sit until he was given his break. Murley seemed very excited walking around but would get to a point of breaking his heel. I would redirect Murley and he was able to maintain his heel and we were continuing our training around the store. One of the store managers wanted to say hi to Murley, so with my permission I let her. Murley was breaking his sit when being greeted so he was redirected each time but would actually maintain his sit after being redirected. Murley kept getting petted by her and she was amazed at how Murley was able to correct himself and keep himself accountable for me. Three of the store employees came up to us as well to say hi but none of them wanted to pet Murley. During this moment I noticed Murley had no issue with the girls around us and kept his composure.

We continued to walk around the store and go into a sit while I shopped around and grabbed items from the shelves. There were moments when random noises would be heard and Murley would always tuck his head down or even look towards the top of shelves to see what made the noise. Murley would be curious and look around but would keep his extended sit. Once we were done we headed back home for more socializing with Hunter. I let the dogs out in the backyard again today and Murley had more interest in Hunter but anytime Hunter would approach him Murley would seem timid again. They are walking around each other more and still smelling each other at times. I will monitor them to see if they can end up playing together since Murley has been smelling Hunter more.

Pupdate 3/31/2023

This morning I took Murley to walk around downtown Fullerton for some obedience training. When we first arrived I found an area next to the Main Street to have Murley hear all the car noises as we practiced recall. The closer we were to the Main Street it seemed as if Murley would seem timid or uneasy walking behind me. I continue to use the remote to e-collar and have Murley keep his attention back on me.

In the video above Murley does most of his recalls accurately besides one. He stops and checks out the Main Street and shortly after I redirect him and he fixes his position. We continued to practice this before walking down the street towards the downtown area. Murley was fine walking on the side of the street where he could see the cars coming towards use but if we walked the opposite direction the noises of cars coming behind him would startle him at times. Murley doesn't run away but will often look back to see what the noise was. As we kept walking I would redirect him and praise him for keeping a steady pace instead of turning his neck to look back.

We found an open area behind some of the businesses and practiced Murley's extended sit. Murley would still get up from me walking away from him but once he was redirected back into his sit he would maintain it for longer. Murley went into a down while I walked around him and I redirected him back into his sit. Murley kept his position until I gave him the break command and praise him with a lot of love. We continue our walk around downtown Fullerton with no issue while heading back to the car.

Pupdate 4/1/2023

Today I took Hunter and Murley for a walk together in the morning. Murley was fine for most of the walk but when Hunter would travel far in front of him Murley would try to lunge and catch up. I would redirect Murley to stay in a heel and he would listen and leave Hunter be. I would practice having Hunter go away from us to see if Murley would try to follow and keep up. At times Murley did well but would still try to follow Hunter at times. I will continue to practice this to keep Murley in a heel regardless if dogs run ahead of us.

I had family and some guests over today so I had Murley in the front of my house and practiced more obedience training. I had my brother pet Murley on leash since Murley has a habit of jumping and being overly excited when it comes to saying hi. When Murley is inside he's neutral with anyone he recognizes but outside he treats everyone the same and wants to play with them

In the video above I have my brother talk to Murley with his baby voice trying to instigate the behavior Murley always displays. Murley gets up from his sit making his way to my brother. I redirect Murley and we practice again making sure Murley keeps his sit without moving. He follows through with letting him say hi and I break Murley immediately with praise. We continued to do this before practicing confidence building with a soccer ball. Murley is timid for very random things and one thing I noticed yesterday is that Murley is scared of soccer balls. My brother had accidentally kicked a ball towards us and Murley tried to run away. In the video we are being very patient and slowly kicking the ball without being too energetic with it. Murley was calm letting us play for a moment but we will continue to practice this around him to bring his confidence up.

Pupdate 4/2/2023

This morning I took Murley to a park in Placentia to work on leash dragging obedience. Murley did very well walking with me and keeping a pace but when we passed by ducks and geese by the pond Murley started to get distracted and couldn't keep his attention off of them. I grabbed the leash and had Murley distant from the ducks and geese and started practicing obedience. We only worked on heeling near the birds to desensitize Murley and have more confidence to be near them. We were able to stay distant but the closer we kept getting Murley would overreact and try to lunge around me to get away. I continued the walk but I will take Murley to more parks that have birds walking around to build his confidence up.

As we continued our walk once the birds were out of our sight Murley settled and stayed in his heel. We had no issues passing by people walking, even if they had dogs with them as well. If we had to let people pass by us depending on the area of the park I would ask Murley to go into a sit and people would pass by with Murley unbothered. We found a small area of grass and I had Murley go into a down for an extended amount of time. Murley would hold his down for about one minute then I would break him with praise. We did this for a while and had no issues until a couple came towards me and Murley became alert and got up. I had redirected Murley back into a down and he listened. I was able to have a conversation with the couple after and Murley remained in his down until they left.

Hunter and Murley have started to play more. Murley will attempt to lay on Hunter's paws after playing together as well.

Pupdate 4/3/2023

This morning I took Murley to a park in Santa Ana to work on more leash dragging obedience to offleash obedience. We focused on extended sit and down in the beginning when we first arrived at the park. Murley had some moments where he would break from his down but he was always redirected any time he got up. Once he was redirected Murley was able to hold his position for longer until he was given his break. I don't need to hold onto the leash any longer when walking away and Murley will keep his position rather than getting up the moment the leash goes on the ground.

We walked around the park and I had taken the leash off of Murley's collar to work on offleash heeling. Murley did really well practicing at a park keeping his heel but he does seem to notice random smells along the ground. Any time he keeps his head too low ill redirect him with his heel to maintain his position better rather than walking with his head down. I will continue to work on this offleash so Murley doesn't have the habit of getting distracted.

While at the park we practiced greeting manners with a friend of ours. When Murley is in a sit he can still be overly excited when being approached. When I had Murley get greeted in a down position he did better when staying calm. We will continue to practice this as well.

Pupdate 4/4/2023

This morning I took Hunter and Murley on a walk together both offleash. While walking with Hunter Murley tried to be in front of us at times so he was redirected any time we were walking. Murley would listen and we were able to finish the majority of the walk with both of the dogs in a heel.

After letting the dogs play it was feeding time for the both of them. I had Murley go into a sit while waiting for his food. Murley does very well waiting for his food and has good patience when it comes to eating. I haven't had too much issue besides the first night, I had asked Murley for a off to see if he understood but ignored me. He was redirected and ever since then he's been patient when it comes to his food.

I took Murley with me to pick up my little brother from school. We arrived 30 minutes early so we had plenty of time to practice obedience. I had Murley practice his extended downs in the field next to the school. Murley had no issue keeping his extended down and afterwards we stayed next to a playground to see how Murley would be next to children. Murley was doing well watching families pass by with their kids or by themselves. As Murley was laying on a bench he would watch the kids play and I would praise him for behaving and letting kids run around. Any time he seemed overly excited I would still ask him for his off obedience command and he would relax and settle.

Pupate 4/5/2023

In the morning I took Murley to a park in Cerritos that has ducks and geese. Murley has a strong habit to run away from these specific animals. When we first arrived I had no issue walking Murley around the park until he saw the birds from a distance. The closer we got it was clear Murley started to get uneasy and wanted to break his heel and run away. I took my time with him and after repetitive redirections with the e-collar Murley started to slowly settle and walk confidently. Murley was still timid but was willing to turn with me and heel at times. I kept this going and kept myself confident as well without changing too much emotion from the situation. At one point he leans on me very directly when he's closest to the birds. I give him some pressure with my leg to assist him off and Murley follows through with his sit and we continue to train. I will continue to heel him by birds when the opportunity arises.

Soon after we went to the local Home Depot by my house to work on greeting manners. We first walked around and I noticed Murley had no issue being inside the store and following commands. Some people were commenting as I passed by them that Murley was such a calm dog. A man stopped us in our tracks and wanted to say hi. I acknowledged to the man Murley is in training so I had to put Murley into a sit or down before letting a person come up to him. Murley got excited as usual but once redirected he was calm enough to let the man greet him. We continued to talk and I asked Murley to go into a down which he did. We left the store with a lot of people commenting on what a nice dog Murley seems to be.

Murley and Hunter have been playing more often but it lasts about 10 - 20 minutes before they tire each other out.

Pupdate 4/6/2023

In the morning I took Hunter and Murley for a walk together at Hillcrest Park. I had both of them walk offleash together instead of being in a neighborhood. Murley had no issue keeping a pace with Hunter and I, even going potty together at the same time and sitting while I picked up their mess. I'll continue the walk asking both of the dogs for a heel and they both follow through. We passed by some people with dogs and they started to bark at us. I asked both of the dogs for an off and ignored the dogs barking at us and we continued our walk.

Once we got home I had Hunter put away in his crate and worked more on Murley's crate manners. The first time Murley went into the crate in my house he rebelled and tried to do anything to not go in. Now I can ask for different obedient commands, even his recall from the crate. I noticed at times in the morning when I wake up Murley will be patient until we go out for a walk. Other mornings he will let out a little yelp or cry but it's a very low tone. Murley will still sometimes let out small cries if I take Hunter out to train one on one but he will settle after 5 minutes or so. After exercise and obedience training if Murley needs to be situated in the crate he shows good confidence being inside.

Pupdate 4/7/2023

Today I took Murley to Huntington Beach, CA to work on his obedience. Today was busy and had more foot traffic than most places we've been to. When I got to the walkway along the beach Murley started to become uneasy and started to make training somewhat difficult. When practicing every one of his obedience commands he had his attention everywhere at times trying to figure out where certain noises were coming from. We eventually took a break and once I sat down and had Murley lay down for a while he seemed to get better and settle but throughout the visit he would stress poop about every hour or so.

After our break we started to train and Murley seemed more confident to continue walking around. While practicing an extended down a man on a bike hit a sewer cover which made a noise and alarmed Murley to get up. He was redirected and we continued our training as if nothing happened to keep Murley neutral and confident. We continued to walk around the walkway and Murley was fine letting people and dogs pass by. We had a couple guests who wanted to say hi to Murley. Murley did fine with his greeting manners not jumping or getting overly excited.

We walked up the Main Street with a friend of ours with her dog and Murley did well walking together. Some kids passed by us from behind with skateboards and Murley did his best not to run away, even though he was alert he kept his heel and looked at me for confirmation. I praised him and we ended up taking another break by a Baskin Robbins. As we sat down people passed by even with dogs and Murley didn't mind keeping his extended down.

I noticed around so much traffic Murley has to take time to adjust compared to a low traffic area. Murley shows confidence with most of his surroundings but does need more attention and direction when it comes to a place with too many people. I took one last final walk by myself around the walkway before leaving to see if Murley was ok and he seemed to be fine at the end of our trip compared to the beginning.

Pupdate 4/8/2023

Today is Murley's last day of obedience training so I woke up earlier than usual to walk Hunter and Murley together at Hillcrest. They did well together for most of the walk but at times Murley tried to stay ahead of us but I redirected him as usual and he would listen. On our walks it seems Murley has attention on Hunter and whatever Hunter does Murley will follow and repeat.

Once we were home I let the dogs play as usual, recording today's playtime. In the video above is the first day Murley came over and was introduced to Hunter. The rest of the video is the same play style they are used to with each other everyday. They sound rough and it might seem they are being physical but it's very normal between these two dogs. Hunter is well aware enough to correct Murley if he needs it at some point when they play. Murley will learn and continue to play with Hunter without trying to repeat the previous mistakes. Murley has a habit of sliding on his paws so I would keep them outside playing rather than inside. After they play both of them will end up going back to my room and fall asleep on the floor.

Murley has finished his 2 Week Board and Train program improving and having the ability to learn something new everyday. Murley is ready to go back home to his owner's and be a well mannered dog!

Murley | Cane Corso | Van Nuys, CA | In - Training

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