From our trainer, Andrew, who is working with Wounded Warrior, Jesse, and his dog, Rocco. Andrew has very innovative ways of teaching different commands – that’s why I love ALL our trainers – they all have their own styles and as long as they get to the Public Access Test point safely and efficiently, I encourage them to use their extensive knowledge.

“We initially began with basic obedience, making it fun, using food as lures, and properly exercising the command gestures. Jesse learned that “wait” means if there are no further commands given after wait, then the dog can get up and be free; but “stay” means to stay put no matter what. I also showed him some puppy push-ups to help make “sit” and “down” less monotonous, and showed him “take it”, which is the act of the person throwing a food reward for the dog then commanding the dog back to a “sit” position in front of him after saying “come” so as to receive a reward. This game is a variation of the “come” command. Another one we worked on was to walk the dog around nonchalantly on his leash – then Jesse calls Rocco to Jesse randomly and excitedly whenever Jesse feels so inclined. We also worked on patience and staying still while putting on the leash and the vest.”