Dog Training Austin – Just Try To Make Me Walk Great Pyrenees

Client’s Name: Mary

Dog’s Name: “Bella” (Bella-Bear or Bellaboo, or Big Girl).

City: Kyle, TX 78640

Breed: Purebred/Family Breeder Great Pyrenees

Likes: Running and playing with Mary and her grandchild and anyone really — loads of friends and relatives.

Best love to play with other dogs: Best dog pals are:

1. Hunter (110 lb out-of-control, wild lab – like a brother to me.)
2. Desmond: Small (10 lbs?) dachshund that is Mary’s son’s dog. My “other” brother – LOVE to run and play and hang out with him too.

Favorite games are Chase/Tag, Fetch and Tug.

Pet-Peeves:

1. Mary FEEDS the wild birds at the big tree in my yard: Just nuts. Then I have to bark and chase them off. (Sigh.)
2. Going “out”, especially “on leash“. Once I’m in the truck and we’re committed to “going somewhere”, okay, fine. But gosh, I can be just minding my own business, relaxing and hanging out, and here she comes with that darned leash. If any of my other dog pals are with me, then it is more exciting and I don’t have too much problem with it really. I’m even okay going to the Doctor’s office some times. But enough is enough already!

Favorite Toy: My real stick, Tug toys, fetch balls and Chuck-it stick. Once in a while I also like to tear up a stuffed toy; paper wads are fun too. Once they’re torn up though, I’m done with them.

Favorite Treat: Cheese (cheddar), Bacon Beggin strips, Ice cubes in the summer too.

Favorite Walk: Huh? Hey, I’m a home-body; LOVE my yard and the house too. Once in a while, the park is okay. But walks and checking out new places are really just not my “thing”. Sorry, Pal.

Best Trick:

1. Like to play “Tag, You‘re It” with Mary’s grand-daughter and others. Up until recently, I used to jump up in the air sometimes to catch a ball, like a Border Collie. I think I’ve gotten too big (and maybe a bit lazy!) now.
2. I have these bells I ring at the back door whenever I want to go outside and the humans come along and open the door for me. Well, since the humans come along anyway when I ring the bell, sometimes I turn sideways instead to face the Kitchen/Pantry, then ask for a treat/food! Pretty nifty, huh? (Who’s training who now? Ha!)

Arrival Story: My Mom and Dad are from Georgia from a place called Llamaland, but my Mom lives with a really nice family in northern Georgia where I was born. I have five other sisters and brothers. When I was exactly 3 months old, Mike took me and one of my sisters to meet Mary in Louisiana so she could take one of us to her home in Texas. Apparently she originally wanted my sister, but when we met, we were instantly crazy about each other. I felt very safe with her and liked her a lot. It was a long car-trip to Texas, but when I saw my yard and house, and Mary was there too, wow – I was in love. She played with me; I learned a lot of new games and manners too. And she took a lot of pictures of me; says I’m “photogenic” whatever that is. And there was this other little animal there called a “cat”: Strange creature. To this day, I’ve tried and tried to “play” with her, but she’s really kind of stuck-up. But, she’s part of the “family” so I guard her too.

Why Training / Sit Means Sit:

1. Mary still wants me to learn things and thinks I have to go out on “walks” and to various places with her. But, I just don’t want to. I’m quite content and happy here in my own house and yard. WHAT the heck is her problem anyway?!?
2. I’ve recently learned to bark — all by myself! Now, I LOVE to bark – sometimes, just to hear my own voice! But Mary says I bark “too much” or “too long” and she tries to cut me off. What gives here? I do stop most of the time when she tells me to, but usually go right back to it a few seconds/minutes later — It is just too cool, barking is!She also tries to get me to fetch or play or do other things instead, but she just doesn’t get it I guess: This is my new obsession!
3. From Mary: I have tried a few other training “methods” (on my own, with books and videos – plus 3 brief sessions with another Trainer months ago), but they don’t stick. I’ve been looking for something very positive. From early March to mid June, I went through some stress and changes in our lives plus a long illness, during which Bella was a bit more on her own (not ignored, but I was not working with her like before). During this same time, she became more independent and more into her adult Pyrenees traits. I’ve only recently started working with her again and been trying to find a Trainer/method that will stick and work — for both of us! I saw Sit Means Sit videos on-line and was impressed.
4. You’ve (Troy the trainer) now witnessed her problem with going outside to the front yard to go somewhere on leash, which is just crazy — and I’ve tried many things to get her over this. Sometimes I get lucky and she’s fine; most of the time, not. Secondly, I now HAVE to travel and take her with me — trips to Dallas and back (and elsewhere in future). And this means apartment-life for our stays in Dallas. There, she will need to go out for walks and potty 2-3 times a day on leash and be able to go up and down a long flight of stairs each time – and without pulling me down the stairs too fast. (I have ankle-troubles; I can go up fast but can’t go down hills/stairs quickly). Thirdly, her new obsession of barking too long at something/nothing needs to be addressed.Also, at some point, I would love to have her do a bit of Therapy Dog work as her disposition is so sweet and gentle. She would be perfect for this type of “work”. But I also know it is a long road of training for this and feel I really messed up and may have blown it during recent months when I was not continuing to work with her to get her fully trained before she reached adulthood. (She’s now a year and 7 months)

Motto: “Stubborn Means Stubborn!”