CLEVELAND — Roxy, our Wags 4 Warrior puppy, is growing right before our eyes.
She’s now 11 weeks old, and boy is she getting big!
Check out the pictures below to see the difference in just the 3 weeks since Roxy has joined us in the morning.
Feb. 19, 2019:
Feb. 26, 2019:
March 5, 2019:
Roxy is not only growing, but she is learning, too. Puppy classes started this week, an important step for Roxy as she continues her journey to becoming a service dog.
“It’s really important for any puppy to start off with the basics and get used to training to set the foundation for everything else,” explained Roxy’s handler Kayla DeLorenzo.
But Roxy’s training is a little different. As we saw in class, the other dogs were learning to heel. Roxy was learning, something called “front."
“So when the handler stops, the puppy stops in front and looks at the handler. From there we are going to have her work for more things like look behind the trainer and alert them if anyone is behind them. So it’s really important to start with front. That way she understands that and we can work from there."
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Puppy school also includes distraction training for Roxy.
“So we had her in the middle of the class with the other dogs walking around her and it was a distraction, so she focuses solely on the handler,” DeLorenzo said.
So far, Roxy has been doing very well in class and is picking up commands very quickly! We will keep you posted on how her training goes!