Cycle 3: Impulse Control & Precision

Duration: January 21 - February 20, 2026 (30 days)

Goal: By February 20th, Melon has rock-solid impulse control. She can wait patiently for food, hold behaviors with distractions, and work through frustrating challenges without quitting. She’s ready for advanced obedience work.

Outcome: Patience under pressure, frustration tolerance, reliability and precision in behavior.

The 5 Games

1. Pause for Food Challenge (Week 1)

What: Impulse control with high-value reward - wait before eating despite wanting to Why: Foundation for impulse control, patience, ability to delay gratification Week 1 Goal: Waits patiently without stealing food

2. Stack an Object (Week 2)

What: Precision + sustained focus - carefully stack or arrange an object Why: Builds precision, sustained focus, problem-solving under pressure Week 2 Goal: Can stack object reliably (this one takes time to perfect)

3. Crawl Under Obstacles (Week 3)

What: Body control + patience - crawl under low objects slowly without rushing Why: Body awareness, controlled movement, patience, precision Week 3 Goal: Crawls under table, chair, low obstacles calmly

4. Ignore That (Week 4)

What: Delayed gratification - looks at you despite visible food elsewhere Why: Advanced impulse control, handler focus over environment Week 4 Goal: Pays attention to you even when food is visible

5. Integration & Assessment (Week 5)

What: Run all Cycle 3 games in sequence under pressure Why: Prove patience and impulse control are solid Week 5 Goal: All games work with distractions and pressure

Weekly Game Focus

Week Dates Game What You’re Building
1 Jan 21-27 Pause for Food Impulse control with high-value reward
2 Jan 28 - Feb 3 Stack an Object Precision + sustained focus
3 Feb 4-10 Crawl Under Obstacles Body control + patience
4 Feb 11-17 Ignore That Delayed gratification
5 Feb 18-20 Integration & Assessment Patience under pressure

Week 1: Pause for Food Challenge (Jan 21-27)

Goal

She waits patiently for food without stealing, even with high-value treats visible.

Daily Training Plan

Session What to Do Success Metric
3pm Courtyard Marker + Engagement (standard) Consistent check-ins
Bonus Session Pause for Food (10-15 min) See weekly progression

Progression

Days Focus Goal
1-2 Bowl in hand, wait for her to pause, then release She waits 3-5 seconds
3-4 Increase duration, hand gets closer to her She doesn’t steal
5-6 Set bowl on ground at distance first She waits before moving toward it
7 Bowl on ground nearby, she waits Rock-solid pause

Success Metric

She waits patiently without stealing, even with high-value treats visible.

Week 2: Stack an Object (Jan 28 - Feb 3)

Goal

She can stack/arrange an object reliably. (Note: This one takes time to perfect.)

What Stacking Looks Like

Arrange an object (blocks, rings, items) in a pattern. She nudges/moves/stacks them following your guidance.

Progression

Days Focus Goal
1-2 Shape toward nose-touching one object She makes contact
3-4 Lure movement, shape into arrangement She’s starting to interact
5-6 Practice arrangement pattern Building familiarity
7 Reliable stacking attempts Making progress

Important Note

Stack is a complex behavior. You might not get a perfect stack by Week 2’s end, and that’s fine. The goal is progress and building the foundation.

Success Metric

She’s making reliable progress toward stacking. She understands she needs to interact with the objects in a specific way.

Week 3: Crawl Under Obstacles (Feb 4-10)

Goal

She crawls under tables, chairs, and low obstacles calmly without rushing.

What Crawl Looks Like

She goes under obstacles slowly, controlled, without panicking or rushing. Body low, careful movement.

Progression

Days Focus Goal
1-2 Lure under low table, very short distance She goes under willingly
3-4 Longer distance, still very low She moves slowly
5-6 Different obstacles, add slight height Works under various obstacles
7 Multiple obstacles, generalize Crawls calmly anywhere

Success Metric

She crawls under low obstacles calmly and controlled, without rushing or panicking.

Week 4: Ignore That (Feb 11-17)

Goal

She pays attention to you even when visible food/toys are present elsewhere.

What Ignore That Looks Like

Put food or toy on ground nearby. She looks at you instead of the food. She focuses on you despite the temptation.

Progression

Days Focus Goal
1-2 Food visible, she makes eye contact with you She looks at you first
3-4 Food closer, wait longer for eye contact She still chooses you
5-6 Toy or food slightly more tempting She stays focused on you
7 High-value item visible, she ignores it Solid eye contact, ignores item

Success Metric

She consistently pays attention to you and makes eye contact, even when high-value food or toys are visible.

Week 5: Integration & Assessment (Feb 18-20)

Goal

Run all 5 Cycle 3 games in sequence and assess impulse control progress.

Assessment: Impulse Control Test

Run all 5 games with escalating difficulty/distractions:

  1. Pause for Food - With high-value treat visible nearby
  2. Stack an Object - With her favorite toy visible
  3. Crawl Under - With another dog or person present
  4. Ignore That - Multiple items visible, high-value stuff
  5. Integration - All in sequence under pressure

Reflection Questions

  • Does she wait patiently for food?
  • Can she work through frustration (Stack)?
  • Can she maintain control under pressure (Crawl)?
  • Does she choose you over environment (Ignore)?
  • Is she rock-solid on impulse control?

Outcome

By end of this week, she should have rock-solid impulse control across all games.

Key Principles for Cycle 3

Patience Is Teachable

  • Some dogs learn it faster than others
  • Consistency is key
  • She needs to learn patience = reward

Frustration Is the Enemy (And Also the Teacher)

  • She’ll get frustrated with harder challenges
  • Your job is to manage her frustration level
  • Make it hard enough to build resilience, not so hard she gives up

Precision Matters

  • These games teach HOW to think
  • Not just the behavior, but the mindset
  • Patience, impulse control, and precision are life skills

Real-World Application

  • These games translate to:
    • Waiting at doors
    • Not counter-surfing
    • Settling during vet visits
    • Respecting other dogs’ space
    • Paying attention despite distractions

Troubleshooting Cycle 3

If She Breaks and Steals Food

  • Go back to shorter waits
  • Increase distance (food further away)
  • Build foundation more gradually

If Stack is Too Frustrating

  • Break it into smaller steps
  • Make it easier (fewer objects)
  • Increase frequency of rewards

If She Rushes Through Crawl

  • Lure more slowly
  • Reward heavily for slow movement
  • Practice in confined space first

If She Can’t Ignore the Item

  • Start with lower-value items
  • Increase distance (item further away)
  • Build up gradually

Celebrating Cycle 3 Completion & 90-Day Milestone

When all 5 games are complete and she shows rock-solid impulse control across contexts, you’ve completed Cycle 3 AND the entire 90-Day Foundations Program!

You now have:

✅ Bulletproof marker response ✅ Default handler focus ✅ Complete arousal regulation ✅ Rock-solid impulse control ✅ 15 games mastered across all 3 cycles ✅ Confidence and problem-solving ✅ Real-world reliability

What’s Next: The 150-Day Timeline

You’re now 90 days in. The next phase includes:

  • Foundation skill deepening (Down with duration, distance, distractions)
  • Advanced cycles (continued game progressions)
  • Real-world generalization (parks, cafes, busy environments)
  • Prep for sport/advanced work (if desired)
See **[[training-timeline-hub Full Integrated Training Timeline]]** for the complete 150-day arc.

Celebrating Yourself

You did it. 90 days. 15 games. A completely transformed dog.

You built:

  • A training habit
  • A thinking dog
  • A reliable partner
  • Real skills

Celebrate this. You earned it.

🐾

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