Hannah and Ivy

Training young service animals requires repetition and exposure to many different environments. That means we each work with our pups a minimum of two hours a day to reinforce skills learned in the last training session.

For Ivy, that meant a lot of walking! We were careful to avoid other animals and places they might be. The pups have one more set of shots to go before parks are safe.  We stuck with sidewalks.

After the initial temper tantrums on Monday, Ivy has done an incredible job on the leash! She only needs tiny corrections and stays close to me for the entire trek!

I decided to add some distractions this time around. That way, I can let the trainer know if she has any fears or hesitations at this point.

While motorcycles and horns turned her head, she didn’t jump or show signs of distress. People on bikes also interested her, but she didn’t break stride. We even had a skateboarder roll by with only a mild hesitation to continue.

I thought crossing a busy street would be a problem,  but she quickly learned to sit and wait at intersections until we were ready to cross.

We went further than I planned, so a rest was in order before heading home. She laid quietly at my feet the whole time.

Surprisingly,  there was only one sound that seemed to bother her… electric vehicles. They do have a bit of a high-pitched hum. Maybe that was the issue? Her reaction wasn’t terrible, though. She just whined a bit.

I’m sure the trainer will have some helpful tips for helping her ignore that sound eventually.

Written by Carrie Jaramillo