6 Places to Train with Real Life Distractions

Dog training classes are tons of fun and are a great way to keep yourself and your dog on track — in fact Koa and I are planning on attending an Adult 2 class at a nearby Petco just to get Koa back into the swing of focusing in a group setting (I'm fairly sure she is the least experienced dog in our KPA Professionals Program, so I am somewhat nervous about our upcoming workshops!) However, taking that training into real life is what really counts, and no dog is going to be perfect in every setting. In order to make sure your dog is able to maintain their good manners in a variety of settings, it's super important to take your training into the real world and practice. Here are a few places that are great for training with real life distractions:

1.) Take A Hike

Okay, I'm sure you saw this one coming, but for a dog used to neighborhood walks, a hike is a whole new sensory experience. We hike at least once a week, and it's STILL a whole new level of exciting for Koa each time. New smells, new critters, passing hikers and dogs. This is a great place to work on your dog's leash manners. We also spend a lot of time working on our stay to get good photos!

2.) Pet Stores

Even if you normally take a training class at a pet store, coming to the store during non-training hours can be good practice. Carts, people, animals, accessible food — there are lot's of good distractions here! Take it up a notch by actually walking your dog while making purchases and see how well they retain their leash manners when your hands are full, or how well they are able to hold their sit stay when a cute pup is behind you in line! (We are still working on this ourselves!)

3.) Hardware Stores

I took this photo at Home Depot, which is super pet friendly, but I later found my local hardware store down the street is also pet friendly and even gave us a treat to munch on while we shopped! Hardware stores are full of new people, big carts and ladders, and can be a great place to expose your dog to new sights, sounds and smells.

4.) Sporting Events

I often take Koa to watch Evan play hockey and it's a wonderful training opportunity. People in weird looking pads and helmets, skating around on wheels and making lot's of noise! We've also been to a few kids' baseball games, which present new distractions — kids, people with snacks, etc. This is a great place to bring your dog's mat if you have done some mat training!

5.) Dog Friendly Dining

Many restaurants offer dog-friendly outdoor seating! Especially in high foot traffic areas like Old Town, this is a great place to practice a relaxed down stay, or bring a mat for your dog to relax on. Try the Peach Cafe, 38 Degrees, or La Adelita in Monrovia!

6.) Dog Parks

While I do not recommend actually training in the dog park and especially do not recommend bringing treats into the dog park, working in sight of the dog park is a great distraction. Usually I'll let Koa play for 30 minutes or so to burn off excess energy first, and then we will often practice leash manners and eye contact alongside the fence, or work in the grassy area across from the park on things like stay or even tricks!