Ember
Shepherd Husky Mix
Cherry Valley, Ca | Three Week Board and Train
Meet our newest board and train! This happy-go-lucky girl is a year-and-a-half-old shepherd mix. She came from a high-kill shelter in San Bernardino, where her brothers were not as fortunate as she was to make it out. The Oaks Ranch saved her. After nursing her back to health, she has been on the hunt for a place to call home. Let’s follow her journey as we help her learn some skills to find a family.’
May 3rd, 2026
This little girl arrived full of spunk! She spent her first day settling in to her new environment. She is fond of women and eventually warms up to men. She enjoys using her mouth to interact with all of her surroundings but was easily redirected with food or treats! She is a bit wiggly estimated around 45lbs at the moment. She eats all her food and definitely wants more.
May 4th, 2026
Ember slept through the night in the crate. She starts off a little whinny but settles right after. She went to the park today but we quickly learned she has some work to do around other dogs and men. She has a deep bark but is eager to please and just needs some confidence building. Working on a long line was helpful to give her lots of space to observe at a safe distance. She likes playing fetch but does not know how to return the ball as well as catch it! We worked on teaching her new name today, she’s getting the hang of it. We are building her door manners but she’s a fast learner and she’s just happy to just be with someone. Her only real caveat is she loves to lick.
May 5th, 2026
Ember went to a farmers market today! It was with the help of some lovely people Ember had the chance to work on her reactivity towards men and other dogs. She is rather neutral to women and children, all types of scooters, wheelchairs and bicycles. She’s working on manners and a few commands. She’s really smart and picks things up fast.
May 6th, 2026
Ember spent the day going for lots of walkies to people watch at the park. She does great when given ample space to observe but no pressure to interact. We encountered some beef with balloons. We did many walkbys, probably annoying the woman who owned the balloons, to play the engage-disengage game until she no longer longed for violence! She is learning to wear an e-collar before we begin conditioning. As well as working on settle and food manners. We are seeing improvements in her door manners. She’s still not auto sitting on her own but is no longer jumping when bored or rushing the doors. We learned that she is water neutral while out gardening. She approaches water seeming intrigued but not trying to play or chase.
May 7th, 2026
Ember had some interesting encounters today! She met a fruit guy and at first was very suspicious of fruit in boxes. Then she said the cart was going to murder her and last but not least the fruit man himself was out to get her! However we worked very hard and overcame our produce fears. Later on she met a cat! She was a concerned citizen for the first few minutes. Treats and “you are so brave” on repeat helped significantly! The second time we saw the cat she could care less, at a distance, fingers crossed. Finally was our battle with a marvelous goth cactus on the side of the street. With its menacing charm she had to investigate! A few treats and lots of touching helped overcome her deep concerns of overworld domination. She was so brave today that we were able to work on place and using that to build her confidence. It has helped that her door manners and duration work are improving greatly. She’s quite an impatient blossom eager to bloom but she is gathering herself nicely, eager to please.
May 8th, 2026
Ember went to an outdoor mall today to people watch and work on her settling in public. She’s improved greatly on her reactivity towards men, being able to walk closer without needing to be redirected. She is working on her food manners and greeting people with out jumping. Jumping is a struggle for her as it is her love language. She is settling better around my own dogs without reacting however she’s not yet ready to meet them up close, still a work in progress. She is having lots of fun trying different food puzzles and ways to eat her food.
May 9th, 2026
Ember had a spa day! She took a shower. She was not too fond of it, but did really well for turkey! She cutely stole an extra towel for herself, and one couldn’t be mad with how smart she went about pulling it off the hook and throwing it on herself to have two towels. She was quite proud. She enjoyed a more relaxing day after by playing with a Kong and doing impossible missions to steal a bully stick as well.
May 10th, 2026
Ember began her e-collar conditioning. We went to different parks and outdoor spaces to find her working level. She responded really well. Her reactivity to men still exists; however, she finally made a male friend after several days of patience and touch. She’s working on her crate manners, but her door manners continue to improve as her asking permission transfers to all doors. She met some new cats today. She is definitely unsure about them and reacts immediately, but over a few minutes, she disengages with space. She could eventually make a cat buddy if someone took the time to manage her and introduce her slowly over a few months. She is very cuddly, though, and eager to please. She does have high energy, but she tires fast.
May 11th, 2026
Ember worked on her recall and place. She is gaining confidence around more distractions, but we are sticking to larger places where she can get the space she needs to build her confidence. She met geese and had no interest in them, but one goose found her particularly irritating, hissing and walking up to us, demanding she leave their territory. Ember seemed oblivious to her demands. She’s improving around men, only reacting to a select few rather than all we passed. She is still dog reactive, but her distance from them is getting shorter. She did find squirrels interesting and tried to chase one, but the two decided they were at an impasse, and she stopped caring after a few minutes of their standoff.
May 12th, 2026
Ember made great strides towards conquering many fears today. She went to the beach, probably for the first time in her life. It was exciting and scary; she was unsure of many things but eager to overcome them! Her recall is doing fabulous as she is understanding to check in more. We are improving her duration, place, and sit. She got to practice around detractions. She even went into the water, and that seemed to be the least scary thing for her all day. She did not return to the water, but she was intrigued by the foam from the crashing waves. She’s making progress, and we are so proud of her!
May 13th, 2026
Ember conquered more fears! We went out and about, where she got to see lots of dogs and people walking. Several people asked about her and thought she was very cute. She’s working on street-crossing manners and settling in public. She got to enjoy a bully stick while people-watching. She’s improved greatly around men, but she still prefers women. She met some babies as well and was intrigued. Her door manners are improving; now she understands the game, but the hard part is self-control, adding duration, which is still a work in progress. Her crate manners are improving, and we are working to translate those to car manners. Her loose leash walking is getting better; we are working towards heeling.
May 14th, 2026
Ember went out and about to work around more distractions. We are working on building her duration to commands like sit and place. She seems able to walk past most men now with little care, but she still prefers women. We are still working on her reactivity to dogs. She gets a lot of attention with her pleasantly striking features. She has developed a nice pivot as we start tightening up her loose leash, walking into a heel.
May 15, 2026
Ember ran errands with her new friend Squink! Home depot proved to be an interesting challenge as there were only men! However challenging she did fabulous, even letting one of the cashiers pet her! We visited a farmers market and she made friends with Squinky the Maltese mix. She saw a few other dogs and we worked on her disengaging and leaving them alone. She met many of the booth owners who all thought she was beautiful and very sweet. We are still working on her manners but her load up in improving nicely. She likes playing fast paced games but tires fast. Leading me to believe she is still developing with her puppy energy as she tires fast but has lots of energy. Quick short fun games or walks tire her for hours. Steady paced walks gives her more time but she still wants mental stimulation afterwards.
May 16, 2026
Kitties! All we think about is kitties! Probably what Ember was thinking was on my brain all day. We worked on introducing her to my cat with his bodyguards as emotional support. It started with some yelling, but that was quickly dismantled with some very good treats. She got all the way up to sniffing through the baby gate by the end of the day. Kitties equal very good kitty treats. Her pivot is coming along nicely and we began working on her grooming skills by learning side to help with her nails!
May 17th, 2026
Ember had a busy day! We went to a car show, which she found very interesting. A few people came up and asked about her. She won them over with shake. She worked on her place command, building duration and distraction. She’s real wiggly but she’s enthusiastic about getting on place, which is endearing. She is also becoming a shower girl! She was so excited to take a shower, I had to convince her to get out! She enjoys her heated towels and cheese.
May 18th, 2026
Ember went to the beach to work around more distractions! She made friends with a lovely man who played the harmonica. She worked on adding distance to her place and sit commands. She enjoyed walking a few miles down the beach smelling all the washed up kelp. She tolerated all the bikes, kites, scooter, and other dogs. She did get to witness some lovely ladies performing for a video at the start of the pier. A few people came up to us to tell her how cute she was and how well behaved she was acting!
May 19th, 2026
Ember had a long day working out and about at an outdoor shopping center. She walked passed several dogs and children. She struggled with the screaming or jumping children and other reactive dogs but she over came and we were so proud of her! She got a lot of attention for her obedience and we got to share her story with several people who were able to pet her and tell her how sweet she was. She didn’t jump on anyone and sat through all the pettings like a polite young lady! Her door manners are starting to include activities and the hustle and bustle of moving in and out of the house around her. Ember’s duration and distant work is improving thoughtfully as well as we gain confidence in her recall. She still has her puppy energy. She can go for long periods of time. On average a 1.5 to 4 mile walk a day if not twice a day, but when she’s done, she’s out for hours. Dead to the world, zonked under the fan, or sprawled on the couch until her evening walk. I think she’s either still building her endurance or she about at her cap. I think she would do best as someone’s hiking buddy. She currently is a long walk on the beach kind of girly.
May 20th, 2026
Ember had an interesting time going to the city train stop! There were lots of people coming and going. Some with suitcases and rolling carts, others had bicycles and big back packs. She was cautious but open minded at a safe distance. As we watched the a few trains go by she started to settle and enjoy her bully stick. It was the saving grace of the day! She would be a very good dog for a single woman, or a couple, or roommates. She is settling nicer in the house. She can still be destructive but that’s only when left unsupervised. When supervised she waits for attention until she decides to settle for a nap. She can be a great work from home dog or couch potato if given the proper exercise and mental enrichment first.
May 21st, 2026
Ember had a relaxing day with her new friend Squink. She went out to an outdoor restaurant where she met a new friend! We were quite surprised when she willingly went over to the very nice security guard and let him pet her! What an accomplishment! She didn’t show any signs of caution or fear; she was calm, cool, and collected! She dealt with motorcycles, e-bikes, other dogs, cats, and people with shopping carts! She is doing great with her door manners, letting other people come over and walk out first with items while she waits politely.
May 22nd, 2026
Ember went on an adventure to a dog show! Not only was her dog neutrality in full effect but she was also quite tolerant of all the men as well! She saw so many different breeds of dogs on their best behavior. Lots of different people, noises, and machines! She was confident and excited to be included! She said she would love to do Fast cat and one day even try Rally! As a reward she got a special pig ear to chew on, she said it was delicious!
May 23rd, 2026
Ember spent her last day being an off leash girl! She has earned the privilege of going for a walk off leash. She is aware of every man and looks but is easily called off or redirected. Her recall has become so fun! She eager runs when I call her and wants to dance every time she returns, so proud of herself. She has come such a long way since day one being uncertain about everything to the lovely lady she is now! Her door manners are impeccable, the door can be wide open and she will go sit on the couch to observe what we are doing. She has become such a lovely little Ember. She has a little spice but is mostly all nice. She’s loves being included in all activities but has a beautiful off switch after a few minutes. It has been such an honor and privilege to earn her trust and love, to be able to see all the progress she has made in 3 weeks!