One of the difficulties encountered when working with an abused dog is that they are often on high alert the majority of the time. In an effort to work some calm into Charlie's life, we have been working on shaping a "relax" behavior. There is some significant evidence that the emotional state associated with a learned behavior carries over into new environments. Right now, we practice the relax behavior only in calm, often boring environments. The goal is to put the behavior on cue then very slowly increase the level of distractions. This is what we should do with every behavior. In this case, in order to maintain a true level of relaxation, care needs to be taken so that the behavior does not become associated with anything that makes Charlie anxious. Today, we added a human sitting quietly, another trained dog in a down stay, and a trained cat in a sit stay to the practice session. Once we are able to place the behavior on cue with distractions inside the house, we’ll move to the back porch, then the back yard, then the driveway, etc. Once we move outside, careful attention will be paid to any potential environmental triggers. Below, find the video of Charlie working on his relax behavior with the added distractions.

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