u/MashMyTots

Eben had a spa day today💅

I took him to my petco store for the summer package and also a nice deshed and blowout(I work there🤷).

Afterwards, He had his own little shopping spree and was allowed to pick out his own treats, toppers and flavor of food.

This dog is so spoiled and my wallet weeps for me😭

100/10 will absolutely do it again LMFAOOOO.

I'm also adding in his collection of Bandanas.

Eben is a Bandana dog and loves to wear them.

Literal butt wiggles everytime I bring one out.

Eben and I have been learning together for a little over 2 years now, so obviously we both have done alot of work and have been through the trenches, quite literally. From adopting him as my very first dog, going through training with him and then through "mild" apprenticeships myself, we experienced it all together.

However, for a while I kinda backed off of training him. It was just decompression walks, adventures and whatnot. Daily life. I focused on getting more experience with other dogs and work. I didn't really see a difference from him. Just Anticipation.

I already knew Eben was a good dog. He's proved it everyday, but I also knew because I wasn't focused on him like before, He wasn't getting everything He truly needed(Knowing what I know). There was no structure anymore, no actual thinking or continued learning. It was just "go for walk, smell smell smell, pee n poop, smell smell smell, go home." It was endless anticipation of SOMETHING happening and it showed lmao.

So before Eben started displaying unwanted behaviors, as a possibility, I put him back into training as if He wasn't even my dog. Like I was actually being paid to work with him. 110,000% effort. My way, how I felt this specific dog should be trained, the dog infront of me.

Eben : In-Your-Face energy, alert, Impulsive, insane prey drive, pushy(invasive smelling), worships food, Says Hi to every human and then moves along.

A typical "worldly" dog. Not afraid of much, willing to explore but gets overstimulated around dogs that are actively Losing their minds/making a ruckus. He's perfectly fine around calm dogs though, which makes sense, because dogs feed off of energy.

There aren't really many problems with any of that because they're managed properly, in the moment, with continued improvements.

That means my plan should include confidence building, socialization, impulse control, calmness, focus and a no bs approach. I've done all of it, except for Socialization. Living in the country, I don't really have access to other dogs, outside of what I do. That's where the plan falls apart sadly.

Sure, I could use the neighborhood dogs, left outside alone, BUT I would just be making those dogs habits worse. It's a win for me, but a loss for my community, ya know? That's not what I want. I want to IMPROVE the dogs in my community, make them actual valued members of the community instead of nuisances and keep them in their homes where they belong.

Anyways, This video is after a month of putting Eben back into a daily routine. Loose leash walking, proximity, phrases and recall.

Same routine. Twice a day. Everyday.

I started with a 30ft leash, then a 16ft flexi(hands-free), then to a 6ft leash dragging on the ground.

The only thing to add into this would be Distractions. Other dogs, wildlife, people, toys, etc. Probably some more distance as well, within reason and control, but that time will/may come, who knows.

For now, I'm taking all of the success I can and we're both continuing to grow😎

Holy sweet baby gecko meatwad.

I apologize for my outburst.

This is ridiculous.

I'm the only person setting pogs in my store right now.

We lost 3 people, moved people around, hired more, etc.

My new "manager" knows alot about what we have to do, but she hasn't been able to do anything, due to training/transitions throughout the store...i get that part.

But petco....ya'll need to slow down with your ai stuff. Figure it out....

We don't need to refresh every pog, every month, NOR sometimes TWICE a month.

I JUST got caught up from April 27th - May 11th.....And now we have MORE this MONTH?!?!?!

We have over 4 carts of clearance, a U-Boat for a fixture we don't have, 4 packed carts of overstock, 5 packed shelves of overstock, and atleast 3 carts of No Location products.

What are ya'll smoking?

Stop it. Fire these people. See a therapist...

Fill the products that sell, ditch the Human nonsense.

Get back to what the you started as.....this is sad.

All in the name of greed. Pathetic.

****2 days of work WHILE helping customers find stuff, checking people out, cleaning, catching fish, etc.

This is Eben, a 3yr old Apbt mix.

After adopting him, we learned and trained together for 2 years now.

I'm so proud of Eben. He knows many things.

Sit, down, stay, come(also a Whistle), heel, center, spin, paw, pretty(sitting with paws in the air), touch, out, wait, , Ok(release word), get it, leave it, tell me(bark), through(weaving between legs), This way, Go smell and Go Say Hi.

He's been 1000% potty trained and crate trained.

He can ride in a vehicle, be groomed/handled by random people, lives with 2 cats and elderly humans, runs with a bike, walk nice on a leash, ignores loud noises(guns, fieworks, thunder, etc), has house manners, has doorway/gate manners, and much more.

This dog motivated, pushed, and forced me to grow more than any human ever has. Through frustration, tears, regret and financial loss. He was there, always watching and looking for me.

Eben is hands down the best thing to EVER happen to me and I can't praise him enough!