Building Bravery: Concepts and Games for Growing Confident, Optimistic Dogs
Building Bravery is a six-week, game-based class designed to help dogs grow confident, curious, and optimistic in the face of new challenges. Using play, communication, and trust-building exercises, you’ll discover how fun it can be to turn worry into wonder and hesitation into resilience.
Course Details
Building Bravery is a six-week, game-based class designed to help dogs grow confident, curious, and optimistic in the face of new challenges. Using play, communication, and trust-building exercises, you’ll discover how fun it can be to turn worry into wonder and hesitation into resilience.
Each week blends practical training with concepts to help you create meaningful, confidence-boosting experiences for your dog. You’ll learn how to recognize when your dog is thriving versus when they’re overwhelmed—by developing the skill of reading subtle body language and emotional signals. This awareness allows you to tailor experiences so they truly support your dog’s internal emotional state- building bravery and optimism- not just their responses.
Through a mix of physical games, shared language, and teamwork challenges, your dog will learn to:
- Explore new environments with curiosity and enthusiasm
- Recover quickly from startle or surprise
- Build physical coordination and body awareness
- Become more confident in social situations
- Problem-solve with persistence and creativity
- Trust their handler’s support and their own ability to cope
And you’ll learn to:
- Identify and interpret subtle signs of negative stress, over-excitement, and confidence
- Adjust training intensity to stay in the “learning zone”
- Use play and relationship-based training to nurture resilience
- Develop handling strategies that support feelings of safety in stressful moments
- Apply the Recover-Rest–Reboot model to build emotional stability
By the end of this six-week journey, you’ll have a practical toolkit of games and strategies that strengthen your dog’s emotional fitness, plus the confidence to keep building bravery long after class ends.
This class is perfect for proactively building bravery and optimism in puppies, and for helping shy or sensitive dogs to thrive!
Teaching Approach:
***This class has a Training Assistant via the class facebook study group to help support bronze and silver students!***
Lectures will be released twice weekly. Lectures are primarily written with short (1-2 minute) video examples.
In this class, the basic lesson plan and homework will begin the same for all students, but Gold students can expect to receive personalized modifications when suitable for their dog, which may be presented via written description or video example. Gold and Silver level student feedback is provided in a kind, supportive, and detailed format- written and occasionally including screenshots or timestamps for added clarity.
Syllabus
This class is NEW for December 2025! Expect some adjustments/additions to this tentative syllabus, based on enrolled student progress/interest.
Concept Topics:
- Confidence from the LEGS perspective
- Body Language
- The Power of Play
- Communication
- Training Language - Marker Cues
- Life Language- Labelling & Narrating - the Mr. Rogers Hack
- Social Learning Strategies via the Buddy System
- The Seeking Mindset for Optimism
- Super Splitting into Fine Layers
- Arousal as a Magnifier
- Courage Fatigue
- PPPs (Precedents, Pattern, Predictions)
- Puzzle Patterns for Problems
- Recover, Rest, Reboot
Exercises/Games
- Consent Test
- Engagement Game
- Loopy Approaches
- Shaping Framework
- Greeting Protocols
- Shaping Games
- Smash It
- Move It
- Fly
- Mat
- Bravery Games
- Movement Puzzles
- Building the Pattern
- Adding A Prop
- Troubleshooting Puzzle "Errors"
- Platform
- Through
- Under
- Multi-Piece Puzzles
- What Feet? Rear End Awareness
Sample Lecture
Week 4 B- Adding Ribbons to Hoop
Who this exercise helps: Dogs who need to learn to 'push through' challenges in a physical sense, dogs who are uncomfortable with touch around head/ears, dogs who gain confidence from progressive victories!
Timing notes: your marker cue occurs at the moment your dog's face has passed through the hoop/ribbons
Progression check: Increase difficulty through these levels when your dog has had at least 3 short sessions where they consistently (85%+) and eagerly going through the empty bowl for 6-10 passes in a row. (These sessions should be at least separated by play and rest, not back to back- we check consistency over time). Note- some dogs may need to have this introduced in SHORTER sessions. If it looks like your dog is finding step 1 to be very challenging, aim to end sooner, and build up the number of passes gradually over more sessions before increasing difficulty. Success at any level is more empowering than rushing to challenges your dog is not ready for.
Level 1 - Start easy- add 2 strips of ribbons to the edge of the hoop. This should create a large open space where your dog can still get through the hoop without touching the ribbons, if that is their preference
Level 2: Increase challenge: Fill in the remainder of hoop with ribbons (leave 3-4 inch spacing between each, room for a pushy muzzle to easily shove through.
Level 3: Max Ribbon Challenge: add ribbons to fill in, so that only ~1 inch gaps remain. You'll notice in this demo, the wind is giving us a bit of a boost and moving the ribbons - that is helpful in Velveeta's case (less difficult to push through)- but some dogs may find that additional movement very challenging. Be aware of your dog's reactions and if it feels like TOO much of a jump for any reason- abort and lets discuss options.
GOLD STUDENTS- show me each step and let's check comfort level before moving on.
Instructors
Erin (she/her) is a lifelong dog enthusiast from Quesnel, British Columbia, Canada. Erin is certified as a Karen Pryor Academy Training Partner, a Certified Professional Canine Fitness Trainer, a Licensed Family Dog Mediator, and as a Cani-Fit Leader, ...
Registration
Choose the plan that fits your goals and start learning at your own pace.
Gold
$260
Enrollment limit: 12
- Access to all lectures and homework forums discussion
- Read all posted questions and answers
- Watch all posted videos
- Post general questions to discussion forum
- Submit written assignments
- Post dog specific questions
- Post videos (unlimited)
- Receive instructor feedback
Registration dates:
November 22, 2025 - December 15, 2025
Silver
$130
Enrollment limit: 25
- Access to all lectures and homework forums discussion
- Read all posted questions and answers
- Watch all posted videos
- Post general questions to discussion forum
- Post dog specific questions (video only)
- Post videos (up to 2)
- Receive instructor feedback
Registration dates:
November 22, 2025 - December 15, 2025
Bronze
$65
Enrollment limit: Unlimited
- Access to all lectures and homework forums discussion
- Read all posted questions and answers
- Watch all posted videos
Registration dates:
November 22, 2025 - December 15, 2025
Scholarship available! Apply here
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