Ozzie | German Shepherd | Pasadena, CA | In - Training
- cristianoffleash
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 8 hours ago
Meet Ozzie! Ozzie is a 1-year-old German Shepherd from Pasadena, CA, who has joined us for our two-week Board & Train program. He arrives with a basic understanding of obedience commands but struggles to stay focused—especially in outdoor environments where distractions are everywhere. Ozzie is a sweet, maturing pup, but he’s beginning to show some behavioral challenges that need to be addressed, including leash pulling, jumping on people, and typical puppy antics that have become more persistent. He’s also earned a reputation as a bit of an escape artist when placed in his crate, so we’ll be working to curb that behavior and ensure he’s safely and comfortably contained when needed. Over the next 14 days, our focus will be on strengthening Ozzie’s obedience, building his confidence, reinforcing discipline, and refining his manners—both on and off leash. We’re excited to help him become the well-behaved companion we know he can be. Stay tuned to watch his transformation unfold!
Pupdate 4/12/2025
Today I had the pleasure of meeting Ozzie for the first time. He arrived full of energy and excitement. Once his owner left, we took a walk around the park to get to know each other and start building our bond. I began engaging with him right away by asking for some basic obedience, but he was too distracted by his surroundings to respond consistently—which is totally expected during a first session in a stimulating environment.
We made our way over to a set of tables and benches, where I introduced him to the “place” command. During this exercise, he began to show more focus and started responding to his name and commands more attentively. After wrapping up our time at the park, we headed back to my home so Ozzie could begin adjusting to a new environment.
Ozzie entered the house with ease and confidently walked into my side of the home, where he met my dogs, Hunter and Stevie. He calmly approached both of their crates to sniff and investigate. Thankfully, both of my dogs remained relaxed, allowing for a smooth introduction. We then spent some time in the backyard, letting Ozzie explore and decompress before placing him in a crate to settle down. Initially, he was calm in the crate, but when I stepped out of sight, he started pawing at the door for about a minute. He quickly settled down and stayed quiet while I remained in the room.
Later, I introduced him to Stevie, who is one of the best dogs for positive social interactions thanks to her joyful and playful demeanor. Ozzie was very interested in her and followed her around, sniffing as dogs naturally do. Eventually, the two began to chase each other and even played with a tennis ball in my room, getting along without any issues.
We then shifted our focus back to Ozzie’s obedience training. Since he has a hard time acknowledging commands outdoors, we began working on leash pressure to build a foundation for his e-collar training. We practiced walking back and forth, emphasizing a proper heel position. I also reintroduced the place mat to continue reinforcing the “place” command. Ozzie is progressing well so far! I’ll continue monitoring and guiding his development each day as his dedicated trainer.
Pupdate 4/13/2025
This morning, we woke up bright and early to take a walk around the neighborhood with Hunter, which went smoothly. When we returned home, I allowed Hunter and Ozzie the chance to interact and smell each other. Hunter kept a respectful distance and seemed to calmly acknowledge Ozzie's presence. As usual, Ozzie approached Hunter from behind to sniff him, but after a moment, he became overly fixated and began barking. Hunter chose to ignore this behavior, and I redirected Ozzie using obedience commands to shift his focus back to me. This helped prevent Ozzie from acting on his impulse to engage Hunter in play. I plan to continue offering them more opportunities to be around each other in a calm setting, in hopes that they’ll eventually feel comfortable enough to play together appropriately.
Later in the day, we focused on door manners to reinforce boundaries and prevent Ozzie from bolting out of the house. In the video above, we worked specifically with the side gate. The pathway leading to the front yard is narrow, which makes it easier to quickly grab his leash if needed.
During the session, Ozzie was quite impulsive, but we worked through it by repeating the exercise multiple times. Each time he successfully held his position, I would close the gate and say “break” to release him, followed by praise to help him associate the command with success. As he began to understand the exercise, I gradually increased the distance between us. However, this made him a bit nervous, and he would sometimes break position to come toward me. When this happened, I calmly redirected him back to his place pad and continued the training.
By the end of the session, we made significant progress. I was able to walk all the way toward the front of the house before releasing him with a “break” to end the session on a positive note.
We spent the rest of the day training in the front yard, reinforcing commands and building consistency. I’ve begun introducing the “down” command more frequently, and Ozzie has been responding well. Since he’s catching on quickly, we’re now focusing on refining and strengthening that behavior through repetition and consistency.
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