07/19/2026
Scooby is one of our private lessons clients in New Braunfels.
This is private lesson number 4.
So far we have covered a sit-stay, down-stay, place, name recognition, recall, threshold manners, loose leash walking skills, the art of tug-o-war, being polite around the baby, being neutral to dog, cats, squirrels on walks, and now we are increasing the criteria.
In this video you’ll see that Scooby wants to walk next to the stroller. He would bob and weave and this can get messy when there is a baby riding in there. We’ve worked on loose leash walking, but now he needs to be in a closer heel and the picture has changed. The stroller is new and he doesn’t understand the rules in this context yet, so you’ll see we very gently explain the new rules and give very clear boundaries and direction.
It’s important to prepare your dogs for situations before you place them directly into it. In this case, we took an empty stroller for a walk. I joked about how people would think we were goofy, and then lo and behold a neighbor walks by and comments on how “we’ve lost the baby!”
It was a funny interaction that led to the inevitable request to pet Scooby. While Scooby is a friendly dog, he’s a little too friendly and he is working on being neutral in the presence of strangers. Allowing the kid to pet him wouldn’t be dangerous, but in this case it would hinder his progress. You’ll hear me kindly explain why she cannot pet him and they were very respectful about it and went about their day.
It sucks to tell someone no, but we gotta do what’s best for the dog.
At the end of this video you will see that Scooby needs very little redirection and he’s starting to get the idea. He’s calm, engaged and matching pace with his handler.
Keep in mind we only worked on leash walking skills for about 15 minutes on this day.
Absolutely beautiful progress, but we aren’t finished yet!
We will be back in a few weeks to check in and see what kind of progress they’ve made 🖤
I’d also like to give a little shout out to these clients. They’ve gone above and beyond putting in the work all while managing a new baby in the home. The progress they’ve ma
