Does a Board and Train work?
You’re thinking about sending your dog for some residential dog training, but you’re unsure about how well it will work?
Straight away I’ll answer, and straight away you’ll hate the answer but I implore you to read on..
The answer is simply yes, but it depends… on you!
Sorry for the inevitable groan you just did, but I’m dead serious. Before I explain why, I’d better go ahead and briefly explain what exactly a Board and Train actually is. If you just came for the yes/no, skip to ‘the answer’.
What IS a Board and Train?
In a nutshell, it’s residential dog training for your dog. If you fancy, you can watch my video about it here.
Funnily enough, this was the way dogs were originally trained! If you wanted a well-trained dog, you would send your dog off to a trainer who would train it for you, then return it. The idea of training your own dog was only popularised by Blanche Saunders and her poodles in the 60s!
So, a brief description: Your dog goes to live with a trainer, most often inside their home, and not only has a big change in their lifestyle but has daily targeted training sessions on the behaviours that you really need help with. It’s also likely in the process that any outlying problem behaviours will come to the surface and the trainer can likely address those too. Some view it as a doggy boot camp, but I like to think of it as a big old detox for your dog, with the loving guidance of a professional to help them work through their ‘stuff’.
What can a Board and Train help with?
A whole range of things! To name a few:
Loose lead walking
Separation anxiety
Aggression / aggressive behaviour
Play biting / mouthing
Reactivity
Recall
Anxiety / fearfulness
Socialisation
Basic obedience
It’s always worth making an enquiry with your chosen trainer to see if they can help you with your specific needs.
Now that we’ve got the basics covered, let’s talk about that horribly vague answer I gave…
The Answer
Board and Trains DO work.
It’s HIGHLY likely that the drastic upheaval of moving into someone else’s home, of living with structure and boundaries, and those all-important targeted sessions with an expert did their job with your dog’s behaviour. Although there will be specific sessions designed to work on the behaviour you wanted help with, the reality is a dog is always inferring what behaviour is appropriate in accordance with what feels good… AKA they are always training, even when they’re not in a training session. Being under the direct supervision of a dog trainer, 24 hours a day, for 2+ weeks means that all of those constant lessons are the right ones. The dog immediately benefits from consistency and clear communication, because a dog trainer behaves the way they do around dogs as a habit without even thinking about it.
The reason I say ‘it depends’ is because the absolute crucial moment is what happens when the dog goes home after their Board and Train. Your dog received a reset whilst at their Board and Train. If sent home with a plan for the transition back into home life, and if that plan is followed correctly by you, then yes, the Board and Train is going to work! If not sent home with a plan, or if you don’t follow said plan, then it’s likely that any effect the Board and Train did have will quickly dissipate.
It’s a tall order to expect a dog to turn into a robot after a fortnight of lessons. They are still a living, breathing animal with weird and wonderful thought processes. In general they are fast learners, and living well with a dog can make a massive and impactful difference in a very short time. But if, after that beautiful detox, they go home and are immediately allowed to slip back into old habits, they will do precisely that.
So my final answer is yes, emphatically yes, Board and Trains do work and are a wonderful training option, but ultimately if you’re asking will the training stick? That’s up to you when your dog comes home!
Written by Jen, Head Walker and Dog Trainer at Fetch Club.
