FF175 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

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 FDSA Study Group forums 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

Pre-Class Lecture

0.1 PreClass Lecture: Recover, Rest, Reboot

Week 1

1.0 Confidence from the L.E.G.S. Perspective

1.1 Communication- Marker Cues

1.2 Super Splitting

1.3 Loopy Approaches

1.4 Movement Puzzles Intro

1.5 End Session Routines

1.6 Consent Test

1.7- Play!

1.8- Shaping 1

Week 2

2.1 The Power of Play

2.2 Shaping 2 -Variations

2.3 Movement Puzzles 2

2.4 Troubleshooting Puzzle Errors

2.5 The Seeking Mindset

2.6 Bravery Games

2.7 Shaping 3- Easy Movement

Week 3

3.0 Social Learning- The Buddy System

3.1 Communication: The Mr. Rogers Hack

3.2 Movement Puzzles 3

3.3 Shaping 4 - Tipping

3.4 Rear End Awareness: Magnetic Rear Feet

3.5 Bowling- Double Tip!

3.6 Bravery Games- Level 3

3.7 - Movement Puzzles: Variations and Mobile Game

Week 4

4.1 Movement Puzzles 3: Hoop and Push!

4.2 Shaping 5- Box!

4.3 Changing Feelings about Gear & Tools

Week 5

5.0 Courage Fatigue

5.1 Bravery Game - Level 4

5.2- Shaping - Messy Box

5.3 Movement Puzzles - Box Obstacle

5.4 Puzzle Patterns for Problems

5.5 Slippery Floor Protocol

Week 6

6.0 Arousal as an Amplifier

6.1 Combination Movement Puzzles - U- Shape

6.2 Combination Puzzles- Square

6.3 Fly! 6.4 Bowling in a Box!

6.5 Magnetic Rear Feet 2

6.6 Advancing Skills for Gear

Prerequisites & Supplies

No skill prerequisites for this class, but we specifically use food as reinforcement in many exercises so at least a moderate interest in some type of food is helpful. Equipment: Front Foot target (phone book, rubber feed bowl, etc) Platform- non-slip and big enough for the dog to comfortably sit on or larger. A Cato platform works great for most dogs, but anything similar in size that is slightly raised will do. (DIY option: Stack 3 or 4 of these interlocking mats and duct tape them together) a largish carboard box (collect a few if you can!) - Size should be at least as wide/long as your dog is wide (we'll cut down the sides, height is not important). Two matching 'uprights' (these could be traffic cones, jump standards, or plungers Two matching bowls -heavier bowls that don't flip or slide easily is best One hoop like this (or DIY version - 2 chairs and a broomstick) Some ribbon or fabric strips, about 10 -25 pieces 10-24" long (check sample lecture for usage demo) 6 x Empty plastic water or pop bottles Clean/crumpled paper (recycled flyers, newspaper, wrapping paper, etc) Mat or dog bed Optional: If you have agility aspirations for the future, or a dog who already has concerns about contact equipment, you may want to acquire a wobble board or tippy board and/or a narrow plank. We will likely use some other household items as well, get ready to become creative!

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.

Instructor

Erin Lynes

Faculty

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

Available seats: 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:

January 22, 2027 - February 15, 2027

Silver

$130

Available seats: 10

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:

January 22, 2027 - February 15, 2027

Bronze

$65

Available seats: Unlimited

Access to all lectures and homework forums discussion
Read all posted questions and answers
Watch all posted videos

Registration dates:

January 22, 2027 - February 15, 2027

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