Board and Train

One of the training programs we offer my clients is what I refer to as a Board & Train, as that is basically what it is. A dog boards with us at Aunt Faye’s Dog Training while we train him. The advantage to this program is that the dog spend two weeks learning new behaviors in an environment he hasn’t been in before. I think it is probably a lot like the first few weeks of school for kids. They are in a new environment, they aren’t sure what the rules are, there are new and different people and sounds. So it’s the perfect environment to learn new rules for behavior and prevent old habits from happening. The biggest misconception people have about a board and train is that the dog will come home and just do everything he was trained to do with no effort on their part. Wrong! The advantage to the board and train for the dog is that he gets to learn from someone who is experienced in teaching a dog something new, being very consistent in what is expected and being knowledgable enough to know how to tweak things to the dog’s personality.

The advantage for the owner is they don’t have to try to teach the dog at the same time they are trying to learn something new themselves, so when the dog comes home, they know the dog already understands the commands, they just have to learn how to maintain them and learn how to interpret the dogs mistakes. Was he confused because you weren’t clear? Was he testing to see if you were really going to make him do it? Or did he fall back on an old habit?

The advantage to the trainer is we get to teach the dog first, then we can teach the owner. I especially enjoy the Board and Train program. I really like the time I get to spend getting to know the dog and helping him figure out what it is the humans are trying to get him to do. And we get to play too. (I call it recess.) We go on field trips as well, that’s when we go to a park, for a walk in town or to the pet supplies store and practice the new skills in different environments with distractions. It’s like I get a new dog for 2 weeks, only just as he get to be good, he goes home!

So if you don’t have the patience or time to get your dog trained, consider our Board & Train program. If you are going on vacation and the dog has to go to the kennel, it’s the perfect time to send him here. He will be learning something while you are gone instead of just kind of hanging out at the kennel.

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