Rocco · aggression program
Case status summary
- Since the Oct 2 intake, Rocco has had 3 logged incidents. Trigger distance grew from 10 to 25 to 40 ft, and recovery fell from 15m to 6m to 2m, down from 10+ min at consult. Next is session 4: keep both games going and add a walk past the quiet fenced yard on Elm.
Trigger distance vs recovery time
- Trigger distance — 2026-10-09T13:30:00.000Z: 10 ft, 2026-10-15T02:15:00.000Z: 25 ft, 2026-10-21T13:45:00.000Z: 40 ft
- Recovery time — 2026-10-09T13:30:00.000Z: 15 min, 2026-10-15T02:15:00.000Z: 6 min, 2026-10-21T13:45:00.000Z: 2 min
12-week core program
- Coaching session 4
- Coaching session 5
- Coaching session 6
- Coaching session 7
- Coaching session 8
- Coaching session 9
- Coaching session 10
- Final reassessment: maintenance, or a four- or eight-session extension
Homework until session 4
- Look-at-that from the car at the park (5 min) (Every day at 5:30 PM)
- Pattern game on the evening walk (Every day at 8:00 PM)
· Incident
Trigger: Off-leash dog at the park entrance
Distance: 40 ft
What Rocco did: Stiffened, then looked back at me
Recovery time: 2m
He checked in before I said anything. We left calmly.
· Session
Coaching session 3
Moved in to 45 ft from the park fence. He recovered from a barking dog in under 2 minutes.
Homework until session 4: same two games, plus one walk past the quiet fenced yard on Elm.
· Incident
Trigger: Dog walker with two dogs
Distance: 25 ft
What Rocco did: Froze, hard stare, one bark
Recovery time: 6m
Scattered treats. He took them after about a minute.
· Session
Coaching session 2
Look-at-that at 60 ft from the dog park fence. Rocco offered 8 check-ins in 10 minutes.
Homework until session 3:
⬜ Look-at-that from the car at the park, 5 minutes a day
⬜ Pattern game on every walk (1, 2, 3, treat)
⬜ Log any incident in the Incident template the same day
· Incident
Trigger: Neighbor’s dog behind the fence
Distance: 10 ft
What Rocco did: Lunged and barked, spun on the leash
Recovery time: 15m
Surprised at the corner. We U-turned but he kept looking back.
· Session
Written Safety and Management Plan
– Walks at quiet times (before 7 am, after 8 pm), on the long route away from the fenced yards
– Front-clip harness and a 6 ft leash, treats ready before the door opens
– Yard time on a long line until session 4
– No dog visitors in the house for now
– If a dog shows up inside 30 ft: U-turn, scatter treats, leave
· Session
Two-hour consultation
We went through Rocco’s behavior, triggers, health history, bite history, home environment and daily routines.
– Triggers: dogs on leash inside about 30 ft, dogs behind fences, the mail truck
– Warning signs: freeze, hard stare, tail high and still
– Recovery: often 10 minutes or more of pacing after a reaction
Next: the written safety and management plan, then weekly coaching.
· Intake
Aggression Training Application (received Oct 2)
Dog: Rocco, 3-year-old neutered male, shepherd mix
Concern: Lunges and barks at other dogs on leash. Snapped at a visiting dog in the yard in September.
Bite history: One bite to another dog (Sept 14, punctures, no stitches). No people.
Health: Vet check in August, no known pain.
Goal: Walk the neighborhood without a blowup.
Templates
Incident
**Trigger:** [text]
**Distance:** [number] ft
**What Rocco did:** [paragraph]
**Recovery time:** [duration]
[paragraph]
{{Anything else: where you were, what you did next}}