Daisy is a sweet, rescued, Cockapoo puppy who is very shy, and would spend most of her day hiding under the dining room table. The only time she would come out would be to sit next to her human, Diane, on the sofa. She could not focus at all outside - the sounds and smells were overwhelming for her.
So we started our lessons the first week on the sofa - working on the basic behaviors of sit and down, and two focus exercises. Daisy did very well, and after a week of Diane doing the training with her, we tried the exercises on the floor by the sofa. Daisy wasn’t ready for that, so we did the session under the dining room table, moving her just inches at a time closer to the real world.
Diane worked with her for short sessions every day, and by the third week, Daisy was brave enough do her sit, down, “touch,” and “watch” on the floor in different areas of the living room. So we tried outside - on the deck - and we were all to get a “sit” outside! Then when Diane sat down on a deck chair to talk, Daisy jumped up onto the chair and sat next to her! Beautiful, brave Daisy is coming out of her shell.