Jimmy seemed to know his sit and down when he got here. He has caught on very quickly to his name, giving eye contact, and heeling on the left side. When we introduced stability, we gently put pressure between his shoulders, just above his front legs so he had stability. We slowly introduced more pressure to a light lean on him as he would be standing. We also put slight pressure on his shoulders going up and down stairs and he did not want to pull ahead. Having Jimmy in a standing position and applying shoulder pressure in front of a moving crowd was successful and Jimmy just stood there comfortably.
He has not shown any signs of distress in front of crowds or new people and dogs. In fact, we used Jimmy to have other dogs from the shelter practice a meet-and-greet and he was polite and playful with dogs that are normally timid. The timid dogs opened up right away and started to play with him.
Jimmy loves to lay down and sleep while in the room. His favorite thing to sleep on is his oversized dog bed and will stay on it when he is not going outside for play, training, or institutional walks. He is not bothered by loud noises like security doors clicking open or slamming shut. This may be due in part by the handler's consciousness that the dog may be picking up on his confidence levels of the situation, making him feel at ease.
Jimmy was able to go to visiting with about 20 strangers around, sitting and talking at tables, simulating a restaurant. He was walked around and was able to greet people and told to lay down under the table, which he gladly did and slept for an hour and half with no issues.
