From a timid puppy mill stud rescue to a normal family dog

This story is not about the ribbons, podiums or "major achievements".  And yet, it truly is! For us here at the Academy it is one of the amazing transformations we are all most proud of, and it is also one of the hardest cases I faced in my 30 years of training dogs!  

When Ray called me in June of 2025, at first it sounded like a typical morning call -  we rescued a dog and he is timid and anxious.  As usual, I said "Tell me more?", as I poured more coffee into my cup.  And I heard what I expected to hear - how Manny is scared of noises, big objects, and dogs, then what Ray said next made me ask him to repeat it because I have never heard anyone say that to me.  Ray confirmed what I heard, Yes, 3 MONTHS after coming home from a shelter, Manny is still scared of Ray and Emily and he was still hiding behind the couch most of the time!!!!   I had to see this with my own eyes...

Manny arrived to the initial consultation in his crate, which Ray and Emily carried into the training building with Manny in it, because he was way too scared to come out of it!  We talked about socialization, and confidence building, and some basic obedience, and different temperaments, and genetics and the realistic expectations, vs goals.  This is when Ray said - "All I want is a buddy, a normal dog who can go jogging with me and who can curl up on the couch with me and Emily in the evenings..." Such a small insignificant goal yet such a huge project to change 3 lives around, it  became our new mission for the next 4 week camp...

Without going into details, I will mention how the entire team was dedicated to quietly sitting on first by Manny's run (yes, his crate came with him, or more like he came with his crate which he was reluctant to leave for days, till one day he got out of it and went thru the dog door to see the sun, then how he finally hesitantly slowly started taking treats and we all fed him chicken by hand.  And then he took a chance on life and started trusting us, and so the gentle training sessions and potty training started.  Manny went home on the potty training schedule just like a puppy would, knowing all the basic commands,  and he was still fed by hand, now by his own humans...Now fast forward and hear the amazing transformation in Ray's own words...

July 17, 2025

"Manny has been doing great adjusting to home life. He is doing well going on walks, wagging his tail and happy to explore, and he’s much more confident on a daily basis.  Emily is able to pet him everyday without him trying to get away.  

He gets on leash easily, on his Karunda when I tell him and all I have to do is walk to his crate, then tap on it and he gets in. (And gets praised and a treat) 

We had to crate him at night because his stomach was torn up from nerves the first couple of nights and he pooped (squirts) several times each night. Since he loves the crate we decided to keep crating him when we go to bed. 

He’s loner, independent and a couch potato.

And he likes Pilates. 😁"

February 3, 2026 

And so this is a story of one very dedicated family and a super lucky dog, which really makes our work significant and worthwhile

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