How Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt Can Transform Your Dog from Reactive to Relaxed in Just a Few Weeks
Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt: What is it and why you need it
If you have a dog that struggles with focus, confidence, reactivity, or impulse control, you might have heard of Control Unleashed, a training program that helps dogs learn how to relax, focus, and work off-leash reliably in stimulating or stressful situations. But what exactly is Control Unleashed and who is behind it?
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In this article, we will introduce you to Leslie McDevitt, the author and creator of Control Unleashed, and explain why her program is so effective and popular among dog owners and trainers. We will also give you an overview of her three books in the series, where you can find more resources, and how you can download the ebook versions of her books.
By the end of this article, you will have a better understanding of what Control Unleashed is all about and how it can help you and your dog achieve a more harmonious and enjoyable relationship.
The benefits of Control Unleashed for dogs and owners
Control Unleashed is not just another dog training method. It is a philosophy that guides you to understand your dog's behavior, emotions, and needs, and teaches you how to communicate with your dog in a way that builds trust, respect, and cooperation.
Control Unleashed is based on positive reinforcement, which means rewarding your dog for doing what you want instead of punishing him for doing what you don't want. This way, your dog learns that following your cues leads to good things, while ignoring them leads to nothing.
Control Unleashed also uses counterconditioning, which means changing your dog's emotional response to something that triggers him. For example, if your dog barks at other dogs because he is afraid of them, you can use counterconditioning to teach him that other dogs mean treats and fun, not danger and stress.
Some of the benefits of Control Unleashed for dogs and owners are:
It helps your dog develop life skills and coping skills that make him more comfortable and confident in the world.
It helps your dog learn how to self-regulate his arousal level and impulses, and how to calm himself down when he is overexcited or anxious.
It helps your dog learn how to pay attention to you and follow your cues, even in the presence of distractions or challenges.
It helps your dog learn how to work with you as a team, instead of against you or independently of you.
It helps you understand your dog's body language, signals, and needs, and how to respond to them appropriately.
It helps you build a strong bond with your dog based on mutual trust, respect, and communication.
It helps you have more fun with your dog, whether it is in training, playing, or everyday life.
The main concepts and techniques of Control Unleashed
The Control Unleashed program is based on some key concepts and techniques that Leslie McDevitt has developed and refined over the years. Some of them are:
The Look at That (LAT) game: This is a game that teaches your dog to look at something that triggers him (such as another dog, a person, a car, etc.) and then look back at you for a reward. This way, your dog learns to associate the trigger with something positive (you and the reward) and to check in with you instead of reacting.
The Pattern Games: These are games that use predictable patterns of movement, cues, and rewards to help your dog focus on you and relax in stressful situations. For example, one pattern game is the 1-2-3 game, where you count to three and then reward your dog for staying with you. This way, your dog learns to anticipate the reward and ignore the distractions.
The Default Behaviors: These are behaviors that your dog offers automatically without being cued, such as sitting, lying down, looking at you, or staying close to you. These behaviors are useful because they give your dog something to do instead of reacting or wandering off. You can teach your dog default behaviors by rewarding him whenever he does them in different contexts.
The Premack Principle: This is a principle that states that a more probable behavior can reinforce a less probable behavior. For example, if your dog loves chasing squirrels more than sitting still, you can use chasing squirrels as a reward for sitting still. This way, your dog learns that doing what you want leads to doing what he wants.
The Conversational Training: This is a style of interaction where both you and your dog can cue each other to perform a behavior and give feedback. For example, if your dog looks at another dog and then looks back at you, he is cueing you to reward him. If you reward him, you are giving him feedback that he did well. This way, you and your dog have a two-way system of communication that fosters trust and cooperation.
Control Unleashed: Creating a Focused and Confident Dog
This is the first book in the Control Unleashed series, published in 2007. It covers the basics of the program and introduces the foundation behaviors and core games that Leslie McDevitt uses to help dogs learn how to relax, focus, and work off-leash reliably in stimulating or stressful situations.
This book is for anyone who wants to improve their relationship with their dog, whether they have a pet dog, a performance dog, or a rescue dog. It is especially helpful for dogs who struggle with focus, confidence, reactivity, or impulse control.
The book is divided into three parts:
Part One: The Theory Behind Control Unleashed: This part explains the philosophy and principles behind Control Unleashed, such as positive reinforcement, counterconditioning, pattern games, default behaviors, Premack principle, conversational training, etc.
Control Unleashed: The Puppy Program
This is the second book in the Control Unleashed series, published in 2012. It covers how to raise a confident and well-adjusted puppy with Control Unleashed, from the moment you bring your puppy home until he is ready to join a regular class or activity.
This book is for anyone who wants to give their puppy the best start in life, whether they have a pet puppy, a performance puppy, or a rescue puppy. It is especially helpful for puppies who are shy, fearful, anxious, or overexcited.
The book is divided into two parts:
Part One: The Puppy Program: This part explains how to use Control Unleashed to teach your puppy life skills and coping skills that will make him more comfortable and confident in the world. It covers topics such as socialization, crate training, house training, bite inhibition, leash walking, recall, etc.
Part Two: The Puppy Games: This part teaches you how to play the puppy games and exercises of Control Unleashed with your puppy. These games are designed to help your puppy learn how to relax, focus, and work with you in different situations. Some of the games are: Look at That (LAT) for puppies, 1-2-3 Treat Game, Puppy Ping Pong, Find the Mat, etc.
Control Unleashed: Reactive to Relaxed
This is the third book in the Control Unleashed series, published in 2019. It covers how to help your reactive dog learn coping skills and relax with Control Unleashed, using the latest additions and revisions of the program.
This book is for anyone who wants to help their dog overcome reactivity issues, whether they have a pet dog, a performance dog, or a rescue dog. It is especially helpful for dogs who bark, lunge, growl, or freeze at other dogs, people, noises, or objects.
The book is divided into three parts:
Part One: Reactive to Relaxed: This part explains how to use Control Unleashed to change your dog's emotional response to something that triggers him. It covers topics such as understanding reactivity, assessing your dog's arousal level and triggers, creating a safe space for your dog, managing your dog's environment and exposure, etc.
Part Two: The New CU: This part introduces you to the new additions and revisions of Control Unleashed that Leslie McDevitt has developed and refined over the years. Some of them are: The Pattern Interruption Protocol (PIP), The Off Switch Game (OSG), The Voluntary Sharing System (VSS), The Look at Me Game (LAM), etc.
Part Three: Putting It All Together: This part teaches you how to apply Control Unleashed to different scenarios and situations that you and your dog may encounter. It covers topics such as walking your dog on leash, meeting other dogs and people on walks, going to the vet or groomer, visiting friends or family, etc.
Control Unleashed: Where to find more resources
If you want to learn more about Control Unleashed and Leslie McDevitt's work, there are plenty of resources available online and offline. Here are some of them:
The official website: You can visit www.controlunleashed.net to find more information about Leslie McDevitt and her canine family, behavioral services available, the books and related products, etc.
The videos: You can watch videos from Leslie's Control Unleashed series of books and DVDs on her YouTube channel. There are videos of Leslie teaching and demonstrating the games and exercises of Control Unleashed with different dogs and handlers.
The podcasts: You can listen to podcasts featuring Leslie McDevitt and her Control Unleashed program on various platforms. Some of them are: Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast, Animal Training Academy Podcast, BARKS from the Guild Podcast, etc.
The seminars and workshops: You can attend seminars and workshops on Control Unleashed taught by Leslie McDevitt or her certified instructors around the world. You can find the schedule and locations of the upcoming events on the events page of the official website.
The online community and support group: You can join the online community and support group of Control Unleashed on Facebook. There are thousands of members who share their experiences, questions, tips, and success stories with Control Unleashed.
The certified instructors: You can find a certified Control Unleashed instructor near you who can help you and your dog with the program. You can search for an instructor by name, location, or specialty on the instructors page of the official website.
Control Unleashed: How to download the ebook versions
If you prefer to read the books in digital format, you can purchase and download the ebook versions of the three books from different platforms. Here are some of them:
Amazon Kindle: You can buy the Kindle versions of the books from Amazon. You can download the ebook files to your device and read them on the Kindle app or device.
Apple Books: You can buy the Apple Books versions of the books from Apple. You can download the ebook files to your device and read them on the Apple Books app.
Google Play Books: You can buy the Google Play Books versions of the books from Google. You can download the ebook files to your device and read them on the Google Play Books app.
Kobo: You can buy the Kobo versions of the books from Kobo. You can download the ebook files to your device and read them on the Kobo app or device.
Nook: You can buy the Nook versions of the books from Barnes & Noble. You can download the ebook files to your device and read them on the Nook app or device.
Conclusion
In this article, we have introduced you to Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt, a training program that helps dogs learn how to relax, focus, and work off-leash reliably in stimulating or stressful situations. We have also given you an overview of her three books in the series, where you can find more resources, and how you can download the ebook versions of her books.
If you want to improve your relationship with your dog, whether you have a pet dog, a performance dog, or a rescue dog, we highly recommend you to check out Control Unleashed and see how it can help you and your dog achieve a more harmonious and enjoyable relationship.
So what are you waiting for? Grab your copy of Control Unleashed today and start playing with your dog!
FAQs
Q: What is Control Unleashed?
Q: Who is Leslie McDevitt?
A: Leslie McDevitt is the author and creator of Control Unleashed. She is a certified dog behavior consultant and a certified professional dog trainer. She has been working with dogs with behavior issues for over 20 years. She is also a popular speaker and instructor who teaches Control Unleashed seminars and workshops around the world.
Q: How many books are there in the Control Unleashed series?
A: There are three books in the Control Unleashed series: Control Unleashed: Creating a Focused and Confident Dog (2007), Control Unleashed: The Puppy Program (2012), and Control Unleashed: Reactive to Relaxed (2019).
Q: Which book should I start with?
A: It depends on your dog's age, personality, and needs. If you have a puppy, you should start with Control Unleashed: The Puppy Program. If you have an adult dog who struggles with focus, confidence, reactivity, or impulse control, you should start with Control Unleashed: Creating a Focused and Confident Dog. If you have a reactive dog who needs more coping skills and relaxation techniques, you should start with Control Unleashed: Reactive to Relaxed.
Q: Where can I buy the ebook versions of the books?
A: You can buy the ebook versions of the books from different platforms, such as Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, Google Play Books, Kobo, Nook, etc. You can find the links to the platforms in the article above.
Q: How can I learn more about Control Unleashed?
A: You can learn more about Control Unleashed by visiting the official website, watching the videos, listening to the podcasts, attending the seminars and workshops, joining the online community and support group, or finding a certified instructor near you. You can find the links to these resources in the article above.
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