How To Stop Dogs From Pulling Their Leash | Dog Nation Episode 1 - Part 3

Summary

In this heartwarming video, Fergus, a Golden Retriever and burn survivor, is on a journey to become a therapy dog with the help of his owners, Angel and Victor. Despite his challenging past, Fergus shows incredible resilience and progress in overcoming leash aggression through training. With expert guidance, Fergus learns to interact calmly with other dogs and eventually succeeds in a gauntlet of sensory distractions. His potential as a therapy dog is evident as he brings joy and calmness to burn survivors, showcasing the power of unconditional love and healing.

Takeaways

• 🐾 Fergus is a Golden Retriever who survived severe burns and is being trained to become a therapy dog.
• 🔥 Fergus was found roaming the streets, severely burned by a chemical substance, and was nursed back to health.
• ❤️ The owners, Angel and Victor, have a strong emotional connection with Fergus and a vision for him to help others as a therapy dog.
• 💢 Fergus exhibits aggressive behavior on a leash, especially around other dogs, which is a major obstacle for his therapy dog certification.
• 👍 Expert intervention is sought to help Fergus overcome his leash aggression, teaching Angel and Victor how to control him effectively.
• 📚 The training involves techniques such as using a leash to guide Fergus rather than allowing him to lead, which changes his behavior.
• 👥 Fergus is introduced to a pack of dogs and neighborhood dog walkers to test and improve his reactions in a group setting.
• 🏆 The goal is for Fergus to pass a certification test to become an official therapy dog, which requires mastering his leash aggression.
• 🐾🌳 At the Dog Psychology Center, Fergus and his owners are challenged with an obstacle course involving various animal smells to test his focus and calmness.
• 🎉 After successfully navigating the gauntlet, Fergus is invited to the USC Burn Center to interact with patients, showing his potential as a therapy dog.
• 🌟 Fergus' interactions with burn survivors are heartwarming, demonstrating the therapeutic effect he has on people who have experienced trauma.

Q & A

What is the main issue Fergus, the Golden Retriever, is facing?

Fergus is struggling with leash aggression, especially when encountering other dogs during walks.

How was Fergus found and what were his initial conditions?

Fergus was found roaming the streets severely burned, with a chemical like battery acid, and had a large open wound down his back, barely hanging on to life.

What is the ultimate goal for Fergus and his owners?

The owners aim to have Fergus become a certified therapy dog to help others who have suffered burns and trauma.

What method was suggested to help control Fergus's leash aggression?

The method suggested was to use a leash that encourages Fergus to follow rather than lead, and to maintain a follower state to change his behavior.

What was the immediate effect of implementing the new leash technique on Fergus?

The new leash technique resulted in Fergus showing a different, calmer behavior and not pulling as aggressively.

What was the purpose of the 'Gauntlet' test at the Dog Psychology Center?

The 'Gauntlet' test was designed to challenge Fergus with various animal smells to see if he could stay calm and focused despite distractions.

How did Fergus perform during the 'Gauntlet' test?

Fergus navigated the 'Gauntlet' well, showing that he could stay calm and focused despite the various animal smells and distractions.

What was the final step for Fergus before becoming a certified therapy dog?

The final step was for Fergus to interact with actual burn center patients to demonstrate his ability to provide comfort and therapy.

How did the patients at the burn center react to Fergus?

The patients lit up and felt a sense of calm and comfort when interacting with Fergus, showing a positive response to his presence.

What qualities does Fergus embody that make him suitable as a therapy dog?

Fergus exhibits empathy, confidence, compassion, calmness, and the ability to connect with people who have undergone adversity.

What was the overall outcome of the video and Fergus's journey?

The video concluded with Fergus successfully demonstrating his potential as a therapy dog, gaining the confidence of his owners, and positively impacting the lives of burn survivors.

Outlines

00:00

🐕 Fergus' Leash Aggression Challenge

The video script introduces Fergus, a Golden Retriever and burn survivor, who is being trained to become a therapy dog. Despite his traumatic past, Fergus displays aggression on a leash when encountering other dogs. The goal of the training is to help Fergus overcome this behavior so he can fulfill his potential as a therapy dog for burn and trauma survivors. The trainers, Angel and Victor, learn how to manage Fergus's leash aggression by using a higher leash position to keep him in a follower state, which changes his behavior significantly.

05:00

👣 Training Fergus with a Dog Pack

The script continues with Fergus's training, as he is introduced to a pack of dogs under the supervision of a neighborhood dog walker. The aim is to understand the source of Fergus's aggression and to practice controlling it in a group setting. The trainers learn to keep Fergus calm and focused, avoiding direct interaction with other dogs and maintaining a respectful distance. The session is successful, with Fergus showing improvement and relaxation, indicating that he is ready for further challenges.

10:00

🏆 Fergus' Gauntlet of Sensory Challenges

Fergus faces a gauntlet of sensory challenges at the Dog Psychology Center, designed to test his ability to stay calm amidst various animal smells that could cause distractions. The trainers, Angel and Victor, guide Fergus through the gauntlet, which includes encounters with dogs, a pony, a llama, and a donkey. Fergus successfully navigates the challenges, showing remarkable progress in his behavior and indicating that he is ready to become a certified therapy dog.

15:00

🤗 Fergus' First Interaction with Patients

The final part of the script describes Fergus's first interaction with actual patients at the USC Burn Center. The patients share their experiences with burns and the comfort dogs provided during their recovery. Fergus's presence brings joy and calmness to the patients, demonstrating his potential as a therapy dog. The trainers and the patients are all impressed with Fergus's ability to empathize and provide comfort, marking a successful transformation from a problem dog with leash aggression to a compassionate therapy dog.

Keywords

💡Golden Retriever

Golden Retrievers are a popular breed of dog known for their friendly and intelligent nature. In the video, Fergus is a Golden Retriever who has a significant role as a burn survivor and a therapy dog in training. His breed's characteristics are important as they contribute to his potential to provide comfort and companionship to others.

💡Burn Survivor

A burn survivor is someone who has endured and is recovering from severe burns. Fergus is described as a burn survivor, highlighting his past trauma and the resilience he has shown in overcoming his injuries. This aspect of his story is crucial to the video's theme of healing and helping others.

💡Therapy Dog

A therapy dog is a specific type of animal assistant that has been trained to provide comfort, affection, and therapy to people in need. The video's main theme revolves around Fergus becoming a therapy dog to support burn and trauma survivors, emphasizing the emotional and psychological benefits they offer.

💡Leash Aggression

Leash aggression refers to a dog's aggressive behavior when on a leash, often triggered by the presence of other dogs or stimuli. Fergus's leash aggression is a central issue in the video, as it must be addressed for him to become a certified therapy dog and safely interact with others.

💡Behavior Problem

A behavior problem in dogs refers to any action or pattern that is undesirable or problematic in a domestic setting. Fergus's aggression on the leash is a behavior problem that the video aims to resolve, as it hinders his ability to serve as a therapy dog effectively.

💡Certification Test

A certification test is a formal assessment that determines if an individual or animal meets specific standards or qualifications. Fergus must pass a certification test to become a therapy dog, which is a key goal in the video and a measure of his progress and suitability for the role.

💡Dog Psychology Center

The Dog Psychology Center is a facility or program that focuses on understanding and improving canine behavior through psychological methods. In the video, the center is presented as a place where Fergus and his owners receive training and guidance to overcome his leash aggression.

💡Unconditional Love

Unconditional love is a term used to describe love that is given without any conditions or limitations. The video emphasizes the unconditional love that therapy dogs like Fergus provide to their human companions, which is particularly important for individuals who have experienced trauma or burn injuries.

💡Empathize

To empathize means to understand and share the feelings of another. Fergus's own experiences as a burn survivor are believed to help him empathize with the burn victims he will encounter as a therapy dog, creating a strong emotional bond and providing comfort.

💡Pack Walk

A pack walk refers to a group of dogs walking together, often under the supervision of a single handler or group of handlers. In the video, Fergus's ability to participate in a pack walk is a significant milestone in his training, demonstrating his improved behavior and readiness to interact with other dogs and humans.

💡Gauntlet

A gauntlet is a challenge or a series of obstacles designed to test one's abilities. The 'Gauntlet' in the video is a test for Fergus involving various animal smells meant to distract him, assessing his focus and behavior under pressure, which is essential for his role as a therapy dog.

Highlights

Fergus, a Golden Retriever, is a burn survivor with aspirations to become a therapy dog.

Fergus was found roaming the streets severely burned, barely alive, and nursed back to health.

Despite his traumatic past, Fergus is incredibly friendly and shows no distrust towards humans.

Fergus's owners, Angel and Victor, aim to have him certified as a therapy dog to help others with burn and trauma experiences.

Fergus exhibits aggressive behavior on a leash, especially around other dogs, which poses a significant challenge.

The trainers demonstrate how to use a leash to change Fergus's behavior, teaching him to follow rather than lead.

Fergus's leash aggression is a barrier to becoming a certified therapy dog, requiring immediate attention.

A pack walk with neighborhood dogs tests Fergus's ability to remain calm and controlled around other dogs.

Fergus shows remarkable progress in controlling his aggression during the pack walk, surprising the trainers.

The trainers emphasize the importance of maintaining calm and not exciting the dog during interactions with others.

Fergus's owners are guided to practice new techniques to manage his leash aggression.

A visit to the Dog Psychology Center introduces Fergus to various animal smells as a distraction challenge.

Fergus successfully navigates the gauntlet of animal smells, showcasing his improved focus and calmness.

Fergus's progress is celebrated with a reward of free playtime, indicating his readiness for therapy dog certification.

Fergus's first interaction with burn center patients is a heartwarming success, highlighting his potential as a therapy dog.

Patients share their experiences with burn recovery, emphasizing the therapeutic value of unconditional love from dogs.

Fergus's owners express their excitement and gratitude for the transformation in his behavior and future as a therapy dog.

The video concludes with a call to action for viewers to join the mission of fostering better humans and a better planet.

Transcripts

come on

Fergus come on Fergus come here

come so now let's let's come over I'm

going to do it again I need to show

Angel and Victor how to bring Fergus out

of the house

[Music]

properly but now I'm heading out on my

own to the home of our problem case

Fergus a Golden Retriever with an

incredible story he's a burn Survivor

whose owner hope can become a therapy

dog but Fergus will need to overcome a

major Behavior problem I'm angel I'm

Victor and our dog is Fergus he is a

golden retriever that is about 2 and a

half years old Fergus was found roaming

the streets when he was found he was

completely burned from the back portion

of his head all the way down practically

to his tail he was burned with some type

of uh chemical like battery acid and he

had a large open streak down his back

that was oozing he was barely hanging on

he was very weak very tired um and

really near death and so he was nursed

back to health and uh that's where we

first met him I just felt a connection

to him he just melted my

heart and I was really overwhelmed by

how friendly he was how he came right up

to us to greet us to see us no distrust

whatsoever it was just the opposite of

what you would think would happen with a

dog that's gone through what he's gone

through when we applied to adopt Fergus

we wanted Fergus to become a therapy dog

to help those who had also suffered burn

and Trauma we just feel that that's a

calling for us and for Fergus but he's

got one little issue he's aggressive on

leash

when we're out on a walk with Fergus and

he sees another dog he lunges and he

ferociously barks at them many times I

feel like he's going to pull my arm out

of the socket he could break free and

try to attack another dog which is

dangerous obviously for him he could get

hit by a car crossing the street the

other dog could attack him it's a very

dangerous situation Fergus come on our

main go for Fergus right now is to to

stop being leash

aggressive frankly I'm worried because I

don't think Fergus will pass his

certification test to be a therapy

dog Fergus will never become the therapy

dog his owners want him to be unless we

solve his leash aggression so I need to

see him and his owners in action around

other dogs show me your normal what you

do how you do it I bring I bring him to

the door and then put him on his leash

okay okay come on here we go okay so

here here I want you to see something

with me see how he's already pulling yes

and as you see he's already excited he's

on alert of course he is so

we come on

Fus come on Fus come

here so now let's let's come over I'm

going to do it again I need to show

Angel and Victor how to bring Fergus out

of the house properly starting with

showing them how Al leash can help

change his behavior he needs to follow

rather than lead

change take that off take that

off so from here we make the step and we

keep him in a follower

state so now he's not in front look

that's

amazing so now that he's in a follower

State he's going to give you a different

Behavior oh you've got to be kid coming

back come here around giv

distance so we're we're saying we can

walk around you but we're going to give

you distance therefore we are respecting

your space now they're looking at each

other so then you snap them out of them

when I saw Caesar control Fergus the way

he did as quickly as he did it was like

witnessing a miracle because it happened

so fast when when you leash is in the

bottom you put him in a pulling State

therefore he's going to go in front so

if a dog is pulling you you can only

pull back that's Tru this is brakes or

slow down okay this is speed that's how

we have to look at it this is brakes

yeah this is the brakes that's why in

the dog show they put it here yes I've

shown Angel and Victor that by placing

ferus leash higher on the neck they'll

have a much easier time keeping him come

around other dogs now I want to take the

next step and see if he can become calm

with an entire pack of dogs with the

neighborhood dog walker I'm going to

join in so watch okay is that okay oh my

God oh my

God all right we're going to go for a

for a pack walk all right hey yeah so

the the conversation is is normal

they're bark but we're we're we're

controlling it now we're going to join

the pack walk

I'm working with Fergus a dog with an

amazing story after surviving from

horrific Burns Fergus is now a candidate

to become a therapy dog for other burnt

survivors but Fergus won't get the

certification he needs unless his owners

get his leash aggression under control

so I'm joining some neighborhood dog

walkers to find out where all that

aggression is coming com

from

take and remember the growling is normal

yeah cuz they don't know each other

right so they're talking and plus

they're in a pack yeah okay so it's

going to be a completely different

reaction when they're in a pack they

when when they by themselves we're going

to turn around as a

U-turn is that okay yeah just slow the

pace cuz you're a dog walker Pace yeah

SL slow down all right you're

Turing short nothing

okay okay sure okay no no no what don't

start going okay just calm asserted okay

no don't say it oh because okay see that

creates

excitement you're right you're right oh

you can go on the

sidewalk

okay can I tell him good boy no no just

bre you're not passing yet don't say

good boy when they're next to the dog

cuz then they got to get excited right

once he passes right pay

and the accomplishment don't pay halfway

stop right here make a left now she's

going to walk around you hold on you

guys should stay right

there don't look at the dog feel

it it's like music you got to feel it oh

right so don't look at him you think

that you're not

singing there you go turn around your

turn Fergus with the leash held it in

the proper way he did absolutely

fabulous and I just felt his body

relaxed because I

relaxed so I'm going to I'm going to do

something that he's ready but not you

okay

look this is intimate space Oh my God

keep it right

there this is good this is good there

you go so I'm saying we're going to go

in the middle of the hurricane and

you're going to surrender and trust me

all right that's fantastic can we do

another pack walk so now now Mr Victor

is right there with you guys do you guys

begin wait there you

go oh my God it's like he's not even

paying

attention it was a big deal to walk

Fergus in that new way with that new

confidence and feeling relaxed on my

side and to see how he responded to dogs

around him it it was a new experience

that I was having a great time with and

I could tell he was really enjoying at

the same time right there see keep him

focused that's it this was a great first

step for Angel and Victor but it's just

the beginning they still need a lot more

practice if Fergus is ever going to

become a certified therapy dog what I

want to continue with you is to bring

you to the dog Psychology Center we can

do this not only with dogs you know with

other species llamas and goats and

different destructions no matter what

species it is what situation it is

follow me see you at

theology byee Fergus is a burn Survivor

and a therapy dog in training but he

won't pass his certification unless

owners Angel and Victor get his leash

aggression under control they want him

to be certified so he can continue a

greater mission to help others we have a

obstacle course for

you this is your test

previously Angel and Victor learned to

guide Fergus around the neighborhood dog

pack now I am putting their leadership

skills to the test by challenging Fergus

with many different types of animal

smells that can cause a distraction you

want to guide the dog not be pulled by

the dog cuz you're about to guide it to

four different smells okay a go to him

is a smell and then the next is a pony

then you have a llama and then you have

a a donkey each one of this species has

his own

smell so you're going to help him go

through the smell on the other side you

have dogs so what you're saying no

matter what the specie is I want you to

pay attention to

me I am feeling Panic this is going to

be a

disaster all right let's do it Cal

assertive don't look at the dog feel it

come

on you see how he became alert about it

yeah yeah

yeah watch out with the

[Music]

donkey I'm a my dog Psychology Center

working with Angel Victor and their dog

Fergus Fergus is a great C candidate to

become a therapy dog but first must

overcome his leash aggression issues

right now I'm putting him to a difficult

test a gauntlet of sensus from all my

animals I am feeling Panic this is going

to be a

disaster you see how he became alert

about it yeah yeah

yeah watch out with the

donkey turn around now now Mercer start

walking next to him so now they're going

to join you in a pack walk okay okay

just next to him this is the mental

challenge this is more staying focused

on staying

calm come on the whole group yeah now

the people that pass by yeah you can

give space very

good and he's enjoying well he's part of

an

activity now stop right

here bring him

in so good there you go good so now

you're surrounded by all of this dogs

The Gauntlet as we call it I thought

would be very challenging uh for Fergus

and I was amazed at how well he

navigated it and for me the biggest Joy

was to see how much fun Fergus really

had going through the gauntlet this is

going to be the reward we can let the

leash

go come on let's go on the big side come

on

[Laughter]

oh even though it's Fergus that gets to

run around and have all the fun this is

just as much of a celebration for Victor

and Angel but you see how we connected

it first you do this for me on the leash

and now I then I'm going yeah so first

discipline this is affection yes I'm to

C after surviving the gauntlet of dogs

and farm animals I am 150% convinced

that Fergus will now be a therapy dog

and I'm so happy about it I really am

thank you so much oh this has been just

amazing I just can't thank you enough

Fergus our problem dog with Lee

aggression has come a long way since I

first met with his owners he's a burned

Survivor and his owners want him to be a

certified therapy dog today the USC Burn

Center has invited him to come and meet

some of their patients hi Fergus hi

everybody

hi hi everybody hi

Caesar I'd like to introduce you to burn

survivors this is Karen hi Karen

pleasure Cesar nice to meet you and

Carmen car nice to meet you pleasure to

meet you growing up I got burned when I

was 2 years old and so I had surgeries

up until the age of 19 and it's really

tough as a kid you get stared out a lot

you get teased and the wonderful thing

about the dog is they love you they

don't care what you look like right you

know it's unconditional and so coming

out of surgeries and whatnot and going

home to the dog was

best therapy ever I will never forget um

before my accident um my son's Nana had

just got a little and then like a month

or two later my accident happened I was

here for 6 months in the hospital I fin

made it home and so I look completely

different and the dog was working then

he climbed the to like L and the look in

his eyes I mean he seriously Rec he knew

he knew exactly who I was I've never had

a connection like that with jie oh my

gosh well that's pretty amazing this

time Caesar I'd like to introduce you to

one of our patients with Fus if we do

let's do

it hi hi oh that's awesome see that is

really

good oh this is

adorable

thank Fus did just anaz amazing job uh

this was his first opportunity to be

with actual patients people who had

undergone some trauma it felt so great

watching the patients interact with

Fergus their faces lit up they've been

going through a lot of adversity and I

think having a dog just brought their

energy level to a place of calm and I

could see they just felt great I'm just

amazed of how F good response just look

at that he loves it look how how he's

leaning he leans in he leans

in I think Fergus was born to do this I

think what he went through was important

in order for him to empathize with the

burn victims I'm very excited really

happy for his future more excited for

the people who he's going to be touching

empathy confidence compassion calmness

is what they need and this is what

Fergus will be

offering guys I hope you enjoyed the

video make sure you like subscribe and

comment and join me on my mission of

better humans better planet