# Board and train, does it work



## lalachka

I saw two dogs that were boarded and trained. I saw them with their owners, not the trainers. Nothing impressive

I'm sure a good trainer can train my dog and have him be perfect. But I'm also sure that once he's back with me - he will go back to his old ways. 

If i can't train him then I won't be able to learn to upkeep his training either. If I had to send him away then that probably means I don't have the time, the ability, the interest or the patience to train him myself. I don't see how that would change once he's back

What are your thoughts?

Also, is it possible that a b&t facility uses mostly or any positive methods? I'd think that they're short on time so they'd need to use more force or even all force. 

Looking for an interesting discussion. I'd never b&t my dog so this is not something I need help deciding on. 




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## Amurphy26

I did think about board and train for my dog but only because we are really rural with no training classes and she's issues with other dogs, but I ended going with my dog to a trainer for 5 days. 

I don't think they're awful but it's putting a lot of trust in someone who is often a stranger. You are sending your dog, a member of the family to live with a complete stranger under new rules. Like you I have to be a part of the training otherwise I can't see how the training would last.

There's also environmental differences that affect the dog. For example we're rural, the training wasn't. We now have a dog who we can get to behave in a city but not at home where it's all off lead dogs appearing out of nowhere. She was the best in her final class with 15 other dogs when we finished the 5 days but if one dog at home walks towards her.....she's crazy! To be honest, it was a waste of money. I should of paid someone to come and stay with us.


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## G-burg

> I saw two dogs that were boarded and trained. I saw them with their owners, not the trainers. Nothing impressive
> 
> I'm sure a good trainer can train my dog and have him be perfect. But I'm also sure that once he's back with me - he will go back to his old ways.
> 
> If i can't train him then I won't be able to learn to upkeep his training either. If I had to send him away then that probably means I don't have the time, the ability, the interest or the patience to train him myself. I don't see how that would change once he's back
> 
> What are your thoughts?
> 
> Also, is it possible that a b&t facility uses mostly or any positive methods? I'd think that they're short on time so they'd need to use more force or even all force.


 Sure board and trains work.. And of all the ones I know.. They also give the people lessons (one on one/a few lessons a year or for the lifetime of the dog) in working with the dog when it comes home. So that way the owners can keep up with the dogs training and they know exactly what was taught and how.

I can only speak for the people/facilities I know.. And they use a mix of positive and negative training methods..

Sometimes people need a starting point with their dogs.. That way it can make it easier for them to continue on with the training.


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## lalachka

I don't look at it as a starting point though that's how it's marketed. 

I haven't seen the dogs with the trainers, but let's assume that he listens to the trainer flawlessly. Whatever problem the owners had (bad timing, not enough time to train, not consistent enough, etc) is most likely still there unless somehow they decided to change right after boarding. 



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## wolfy dog

You never know what goes on behind closed doors. I don't trust any b&t trainer. The only person I trust with my dogs when I am gone is D's breeder and my neighbor who feeds them when I have to work long hours.


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## lalachka

wolfy dog said:


> You never know what goes on behind closed doors. I don't trust any b&t trainer. The only person I trust with my dogs when I am gone is D's breeder and my neighbor who feeds them when I have to work long hours.



Yep and that's the second part of my question. With such limited time the training must be mostly, if not all, force. I'm sure I wouldn't like what I saw. 


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## lalachka

Amurphy26 said:


> I did think about board and train for my dog but only because we are really rural with no training classes and she's issues with other dogs, but I ended going with my dog to a trainer for 5 days.
> 
> I don't think they're awful but it's putting a lot of trust in someone who is often a stranger. You are sending your dog, a member of the family to live with a complete stranger under new rules. Like you I have to be a part of the training otherwise I can't see how the training would last.
> 
> There's also environmental differences that affect the dog. For example we're rural, the training wasn't. We now have a dog who we can get to behave in a city but not at home where it's all off lead dogs appearing out of nowhere. She was the best in her final class with 15 other dogs when we finished the 5 days but if one dog at home walks towards her.....she's crazy! To be honest, it was a waste of money. I should of paid someone to come and stay with us.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App



Sorry, I missed your post

So you did send your dog for training? That's an interesting point, about rural and city. Does it really make that much of a difference?

I guess I'm talking about basic commands. Sit, come, down. I know that after boarding the trainer will teach you how to handle the dog. 

Here are my problems with it. 
From what I know, training must be done (or kept up) throughout the life of the dog. It takes about the same amt of skill to keep it up. If the owners couldn't train the dog then they probably can't keep it up either. I'd imagine that after a few weeks the dog will be back to the way he was. 


Anyone actually did b&t here a while ago? How's the dog today?


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## G-burg

> *I don't look at it as a starting point though* that's how it's marketed.


 But that's you! 

Some people need that though, others that seek out boarding training don't.. There can be many reasons why someone goes that route.. And believe it or not there are a lot of good trainers that aren't abusive or neglectful and do have the dogs best interest at heart.. And not everyone is good at teaching the basics but have no problem keeping up the training once it's established!!

Our facility does not market it that..


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## lalachka

G-burg said:


> But that's you!
> 
> Some people need that though, others that seek out boarding training don't.. There can be many reasons why someone goes that route.. And believe it or not there are a lot of good trainers that aren't abusive or neglectful and do have the dogs best interest at heart.. And not everyone is good at teaching the basics but have not problem keeping up the training once it's established!!
> 
> Our facility does not market it that..



That's why I'm posting. I'm wondering how this works. 

And I don't think the dogs are abused per se, I'm sure there are good facilities. But the time IS limited and more force need to be used, no?


About keeping the training up. So if someone can't train the dog to come then they still can maintain the training?

I'd be interested to see a dog that was boarded a year ago and how he is today with his owners. Just curious


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## BahCan

Our Story - ************** Nitro Foundation


This is one of many reasons why I would never send my dog to a board and train


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## Charliehound

BahCan said:


> Our Story - ************** Nitro Foundation
> 
> 
> This is one of many reasons why I would never send my dog to a board and train


Wow!  That is so heartbreaking!!!


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## Blitzkrieg1

Short answer YES they can work well.


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## MustLoveGSDs

BahCan said:


> Our Story - ************** Nitro Foundation
> 
> 
> This is one of many reasons why I would never send my dog to a board and train


One facility does not represent them all.

Ever use a vet clinic for their services? Things happen there too.
Dog's Family Files $1 Million Lawsuit Against Vet Who Kept Pet Secretly Alive | NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth


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## lalachka

BahCan said:


> Our Story - ************** Nitro Foundation
> 
> 
> This is one of many reasons why I would never send my dog to a board and train



Horrible but not indicative of them all. I agree with that. This is an exception, I'm hoping b


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## lalachka

Blitzkrieg1 said:


> Short answer YES they can work well.



Very informative. 


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## BahCan

MustLoveGSDs.....yes I use the Vet, however I am not sending my dog away to the vet, I accompany my dog to the vet, and when I get a dog it is for life, that means I am also there with my dog when it is sent to the bridge, so I am not worried about my vet.

I do realize that the link I posted is not a representation of all training facilities, I just said it is one of the reasons I would not send my dog away for training.

I want to be the one training with my dog, I want to create a bond with my dog through training. When I am working with a trainer it is more so me who is being trained to become better educated and better able to understand and train my dog. I want to learn through my trainer what is going on with my dog, to be able to read my dog, evaluate my dog, and implement training that will benefit my dog. I don't think you can get a lot of that by sending your dog away for somebody else to train and then getting a quick crash course at the end to show you what they did.


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## MustLoveGSDs

BahCan said:


> MustLoveGSDs.....yes I use the Vet, however I am not sending my dog away to the vet, I accompany my dog to the vet, and when I get a dog it is for life, that means I am also there with my dog when it is sent to the bridge, so I am not worried about my vet.
> 
> I do realize that the link I posted is not a representation of all training facilities, I just said it is one of the reasons I would not send my dog away for training.
> 
> I want to be the one training with my dog, I want to create a bond with my dog through training. When I am working with a trainer it is more so me who is being trained to become better educated and better able to understand and train my dog. I want to learn through my trainer what is going on with my dog, to be able to read my dog, evaluate my dog, and implement training that will benefit my dog. I don't think you can get a lot of that by sending your dog away for somebody else to train and then getting a quick crash course at the end to show you what they did.



I completely understand all of your points and they are valid, but from a different perspective and as I am a vet tech and someone who had worked in kennels and the like for the past 8 years....sometimes crap happens and our pets might need to be hospitalized at a clinic for a week or so. Somehes people close to us die it something happens and our pets might need to be boarded and can't always accompany us. Just because someone might stay with their pet in the room and watch them be euthanized doesn't mean they still know exactly what could go on when they leave. At the clinic I did my externship at one of the vets told me that there has been times where the pet still had a faint heartbeat when he listened after administering the injection so the pet wasn't really dead until the owners had left. I've heard all kinds of horror stories of things that have home wrong with hospitalized pets either tech or doctor error. 

When it comes to b&t, again you can't generalize because I know many credible trainers who send constant video updates and have phone or in person conversations about their dog's progress and training information so the owner doesn't just get a crash course at the end of it.

The nitro story is horrible(that's an understatement), I get it, but there are some really good trainers out there who do board and train. It isn't for every pet owner but it can be a god send for some. There are some I would never trust and others I'd recommend in a heartbeat.


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## Amurphy26

lalachka said:


> Sorry, I missed your post
> 
> So you did send your dog for training? That's an interesting point, about rural and city. Does it really make that much of a difference?
> 
> I guess I'm talking about basic commands. Sit, come, down. I know that after boarding the trainer will teach you how to handle the dog.
> 
> Here are my problems with it.
> From what I know, training must be done (or kept up) throughout the life of the dog. It takes about the same amt of skill to keep it up. If the owners couldn't train the dog then they probably can't keep it up either. I'd imagine that after a few weeks the dog will be back to the way he was.
> 
> 
> Anyone actually did b&t here a while ago? How's the dog today?
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App



I didn't send her as such because I went with her but we did go away for 5 days training. It actually took me ages to find a trainer who was happy for the owner to go along with the dog. I did consider sending her on her own but couldn't do it.

I think the environment makes a massive difference. Her training was done in an area where dogs are walked on leads and have off lead play and distractions are in the form of cars, people and other dogs. It was so far from her daily life at home it was a waste of time. Her issue is dogs running up to her so seeing them calm and on lead didn't help at all as that's always been something we get her past when we go to busier areas. We don't have traffic, dogs are loose and are often run alongside cars on tracks and there are as many sheep wandering about unfenced as rabbits. It was unrealistic of me to think sending her in to such a different environment would help her at home. Her issue is behavioural rather than training which I think makes a difference. My fault. 

With all that being said I would go on a socialising week with her again but 
I would never send her away on her own. It could be a lot of fun, like a doggy holiday but not for training purposes.


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## jafo220

lalachka said:


> I saw two dogs that were boarded and trained. I saw them with their owners, not the trainers. Nothing impressive
> 
> I'm sure a good trainer can train my dog and have him be perfect. But I'm also sure that once he's back with me - he will go back to his old ways.
> 
> If i can't train him then I won't be able to learn to upkeep his training either. If I had to send him away then that probably means I don't have the time, the ability, the interest or the patience to train him myself. I don't see how that would change once he's back
> 
> What are your thoughts?
> 
> Also, is it possible that a b&t facility uses mostly or any positive methods? I'd think that they're short on time so they'd need to use more force or even all force.
> 
> Looking for an interesting discussion. I'd never b&t my dog so this is not something I need help deciding on.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Not to be argumentative, but those dogs you seen, were they just back from a trainer or were they reestablished at home? Why would it necessarily be the training at fault? Maybe the owners have let off the training. Who knows? Maybe it was the training. Maybe those dogs had reactionary problems and the owners are still working through those. Or not. I think some people think B&T is some kind of silver bullet for misbehaving dogs, and with good trainers it may be, but I'll bet most times it's not. Sure the dog comes back the first day and is great so the owner doesn't see the need to keep up on training. Then it's a day to day slide.

A friend of mine sent his lab pup away to a B&T. Dog was awesome when she came back. But he learned real quick that he had his hands full with his family. They basically were letting the dog jump on them and get away with other no no's. He finally put a stop to it and works with the dog every day. She's back on track.

I would not personally send my dog to a B&T. It did cross my mind. I just couldn't afford it and more than that, just didn't want my dog in a strangers hands. But, if there was no other way, it would be better for me to do that than the alternative of the dog doing something bad to himself or others. 

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## martemchik

I train weekly at a facility that offers board and train. What you have to realize, is that the people that use this are mostly out of all other options and realize it’s probably the most effective way to train a dog. Many times, it is. It’s much easier to hand the leash over to a trainer who knows what they’re doing and can fix certain issues. Many times, there are no issues and the dogs just need basic obedience, but the people aren’t willing to put in the time or the money into classes to get to a point where the dog is manageable in public. Sometimes though, the trainer gets extremely aggressive dogs and it’s much easier to work with that dog if the owners aren’t around putting unnecessary stress onto the dog.

The aggressive dogs…sometimes need a “come to Jesus” moment. And the owners would probably not have the heart to do it, but sometimes, a dog just needs some discipline. I’ve also seen how quickly DA dogs end up getting socialized in that setting because they also run a dog day care and can slowly/objectively introduce the dog to a safe pack.

What most people need to understand is that everyone’s obedience goals are different. So a board and train will get you what you want and what you can afford. It won’t take your dog to Schutzhund obedience levels or AKC obedience levels, but it can pretty quickly teach your dog a lot of manners and make it a normal “citizen.”

Sure…upkeep is important, but the fact that the dog knows the expectations and already knows the exercises, really helps people that many times have no idea what they’re doing. And instead of paying $50-$100 a session to work with a trainer, its sometimes better financially to do a $1500 board and train for a few weeks.


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## DJEtzel

lalachka said:


> Yep and that's the second part of my question. With such limited time the training must be mostly, if not all, force. I'm sure I wouldn't like what I saw.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Not necessarily true. I board and train, typically puppy starter stuff. Housebreaking, recall, crate training, basic obedience. I don't use force. You're making a lot of assumptions about something that you admittedly know very little about.


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## Shade

Most problem dogs don't need force- they need consistency which they owners aren't providing. 'Magic' cures of giving the dog up for 6 weeks so they will come back trained to heel, sit, down, etc doesn't mean the dog is physically harmed each time to ensure the criteria is met before the deadline is there. Some facilities may do that but they would run out of clients pretty fast if all they did was beat the dog every time it did a sideways glance wrong

Dogs will naturally gravitate towards what gets rewarded, that includes self-rewards like chasing a cat is fun for them, counter surfing means they get to eat the butter out of the dish, etc. When they realize those things aren't getting the same results but doing the opposite is rewarded they start to change - for example NOT chasing the cat means getting to play tug with their owners and treats. 

While I'm personally not a big fan of B&T facilities I believe they do have their place.


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## lalachka

DJEtzel said:


> Not necessarily true. I board and train, typically puppy starter stuff. Housebreaking, recall, crate training, basic obedience. I don't use force. You're making a lot of assumptions about something that you admittedly know very little about.



That's why I posted, to learn. Also, I'm not making assumptions. This is stuff I read and from some friends experiences. 

So how is it possible to teach and proof a dog in 4 weeks without using a good amt of force?


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## simba405

DJEtzel said:


> You're making a lot of assumptions about something that you admittedly know very little about.


:thumbup:


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## lalachka

Shade said:


> Most problem dogs don't need force- they need consistency which they owners aren't providing. 'Magic' cures of giving the dog up for 6 weeks so they will come back trained to heel, sit, down, etc doesn't mean the dog is physically harmed each time to ensure the criteria is met before the deadline is there. Some facilities may do that but they would run out of clients pretty fast if all they did was beat the dog every time it did a sideways glance wrong
> 
> Dogs will naturally gravitate towards what gets rewarded, that includes self-rewards like chasing a cat is fun for them, counter surfing means they get to eat the butter out of the dish, etc. When they realize those things aren't getting the same results but doing the opposite is rewarded they start to change - for example NOT chasing the cat means getting to play tug with their owners and treats.
> 
> While I'm personally not a big fan of B&T facilities I believe they do have their place.



And that's my argument. If they weren't consistent before the dog went away they probably won't be when he's back. Maybe a few weeks but then they go back to normal. 

It's not that hard to train a dog (at least for me), it's much harder to train yourself to be consistent, train a little every day and so on. If you couldn't do it before the dog went away what changed?

As far as force, I'm not even talking about problem dogs. Just basic training. 

So it's possible to purely positive b&t a dog within 6 weeks (here the programs are 3 weeks). 


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## martemchik

lalachka said:


> That's why I posted, to learn. Also, I'm not making assumptions. This is stuff I read and from some friends experiences.
> 
> So how is it possible to teach and proof a dog in 4 weeks without using a good amt of force?
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


An older dog? Not very difficult. Things like manners and the simpler commands aren't out of the question. I'm not talking long sits/downs, but think about how many times we see the "I have the greatest puppy in the world, he learned sit in 5 minutes" and you don't think it's that easy to teach that to an older dog?

Many times, people just don't understand how to communicate with their dog. The #1 issue I see with first time dog owners, or even prior dog owners, is that they expect the dog to do things "for them" and not for themselves. New dog owners think they'll always have to carry treats, old dog owners love to say, "Well...my last dog just did it." Yeah...your last dog was also with you for years before he started to do things like that without constant reward.

Actually...if you work with a dog, for 30 minutes a day, twice a day, you'd be super amazed at the progress it would make. Especially when expectations are just "pet obedience" and not trial level stuff.


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## lalachka

martemchik said:


> An older dog? Not very difficult. Things like manners and the simpler commands aren't out of the question. I'm not talking long sits/downs, but think about how many times we see the "I have the greatest puppy in the world, he learned sit in 5 minutes" and you don't think it's that easy to teach that to an older dog?
> 
> Many times, people just don't understand how to communicate with their dog. The #1 issue I see with first time dog owners, or even prior dog owners, is that they expect the dog to do things "for them" and not for themselves. New dog owners think they'll always have to carry treats, old dog owners love to say, "Well...my last dog just did it." Yeah...your last dog was also with you for years before he started to do things like that without constant reward.
> 
> Actually...if you work with a dog, for 30 minutes a day, twice a day, you'd be super amazed at the progress it would make. Especially when expectations are just "pet obedience" and not trial level stuff.



Lol Maybe that's part of the problem. I've been trying to teach my dog down from a stand for months lol

I don't do it every day but after doing 30 reps he will still sit first without a lure. 

Maybe I just suck)))))


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## lalachka

Lol I decided to try doing this. I will work him every day, 3 sessions a day 10 mins each. 

I will post back in a month. 

But doesn't our bond count for something? Or it doesn't matter, any dog would respond to a stranger training them?


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## martemchik

I don’t want to minimize how important a bond is, but IMO when training (teaching new commands/exercises), the communication is much more important. When doing "upkeep" is when the bond will have importance. People that know what they’re doing, can communicate much faster to the dog what is expected from it. They can also notice issues, and probably have some way of fixing that issue without having to get advice from others, or as many people do, just keep trying the same method that is clearly not working. The moment I say that the dog doesn’t do it for the handler, and does it for some sort of reward, is the moment I’ll have 30 people logging on telling us stories of how their dog does things for them and not for food or a toy. So to avoid that, I won’t say it. But I’ve yet to see a high level competitor, with an extremely driven dog, that is 100% reliable without the dog expecting something at the end…generally not a good boy or a good girl either. It’s why people will tell you it’s very difficult to train a dog with no food or play drive…at a certain point…the drive for praise just isn’t enough. Praise can keep a dog going, but it will still need that high level reward (and withdrawal and withholding of that reward) to get it to a high level.

A dog will quickly respect someone else…and if that person is a lot of fun, or is providing the reward the dog really wants…trust me, it will do things for that person. Ever seen someone try to get their dog to do something, but someone else has a treat out and the highly food motivated dog completely blows off their handler? It’s not impossible to overcome such obstacles…but a very highly food motivated dog, will have the tendency to listen to whoever is offering the better reward.

I also see this with my dog in regards to bite work and working with the helper…it’s much more fun to bite the helper than it is to bite a tug toy. If a helper is on the field, and we’re trying to do control work…I have a very hard time rewarding my dog with a tug toy because he just doesn’t care to take it. He’ll bite it any other time (during obedience/at home), but when he sees the higher level reward out there…he’s not going to take a tug.

A good trainer, with a deadline, will figure out what the dog works for, and use it to their advantage. The actual dog owner, tries to push THEIR method of training on the dog rather than figuring out what works best for the dog. It’s amazing how quickly a dog will learn when the proper method is presented and the communication is clear.


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## lalachka

Ohh. When I said a bond I didn't mean working for praise. My dog doesn't))))) he will sometimes but most of the time they need something more. 

I just thought that maybe it helps with certain things. 

But yeah, I can totally see him listening to someone else. Actually, I thought he listens better to others and then I had a really good trainer tell me that it's not true. 

I said that he behaves better around him and he's like, no, you can get him to do things easier than I can. 

I didn't see it but it stuck and I'm asking.
Well, let's see what happens from my experiment 


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## DJEtzel

lalachka said:


> That's why I posted, to learn. Also, I'm not making assumptions. This is stuff I read and from some friends experiences.
> 
> So how is it possible to teach and proof a dog in 4 weeks without using a good amt of force?
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Is that a real question? Does it take you more than 4 weeks of daily training in different environments to proof sit, down, and stay? I know I can accomplish all of these in a few training sessions. 

I'm not trying to be a know-it-all, but don't think you're looking at this realistically, for whatever reason. 

My board and trains are a minimum of 2 weeks. Most are 2 or 3. I accomplish basic obedience, some level of stay, and decent progress on house training and crate training, send the owners videos of training sessions with feedback (what I'm doing and why), I give them some treats and a clicker, and we work together for a few hours at pick up so that they are on the right track with their dogs. I make it clear that if they don't keep up the progress I made, then there will be significant relapses. Most seem to understand and are quite happy with the process.


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## simba405

DJEtzel said:


> Is that a real question? Does it take you more than 4 weeks of daily training in different environments to proof sit, down, and stay?


:thumbup:


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## lalachka

My dog is almost 2 and still not trained, so yeah, very real question)))))

I know that I'm just a lazy bum but I did think it took longer than a month. 


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## DJEtzel

lalachka said:


> My dog is almost 2 and still not trained, so yeah, very real question)))))
> 
> I know that I'm just a lazy bum but I did think it took longer than a month.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


No, it doesn't. If you know what you're doing (not saying you don't, but obviously professionals know more) and you're devoting all of your time to it(at least 5 sessions a day + life training), it should not take long at all, ESPECIALLY with blank slate puppies. You may struggle for a few days with motivators and drive in an adult, but you almost never have those problems with puppies. They go home like angels!


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## lalachka

DJEtzel said:


> No, it doesn't. If you know what you're doing (not saying you don't, but obviously professionals know more) and you're devoting all of your time to it(at least 5 sessions a day + life training), it should not take long at all, ESPECIALLY with blank slate puppies. You may struggle for a few days with motivators and drive in an adult, but you almost never have those problems with puppies. They go home like angels!



I don't know what I'm doing and once I hit an obstacle that wasn't described in a video (and I hit tons) I lose motivation. 

I guess that's why it's so hard for me to believe it because I see how much I've accomplished (lol not much)
Yeah, I don't train every day, but over a year lol? And nothing to show for it?


Also, we saw our trainer work one of his dogs for the competition and I asked how long it took to get him there and he said 3 years and that kind of reinforced my belief. 

Of course, I'm not comparing training to compete with training a dog to come under distractions but I did think 3 years was long. I thought he'd say a year. 




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## martemchik

3 years?!?!? For what competition? I know IPO3 dogs that have attained it before the age of 3...and those people had full time jobs that didn't deal with dogs as well.

I know some people train for EVERYTHING before they enter anything. So in AKC...they'll have their dog trained for utility level stuff before entering a single novice level show. And then they'll bust out all the classes within a few shows and get all their titles. Maybe then it's alright to have a dog ready at 3 or 4. But if you're talking lower level stuff...it shouldn't take a "professional" or someone that's gone through it that long. I had a CD on my dog by the time he was 1.5...and he's my first, I had no plans of trialing until he was almost one.


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## lalachka

Maybe i misunderstood but he's well known, nationally too, I think. So he def knows what he's doing 


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## simba405

lalachka said:


> My dog is almost 2 and still not trained, so yeah, very real question)))))
> 
> I know that I'm just a lazy bum but I did think it took longer than a month.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


2 years and still not trained?! Maybe you should board and train your dog?


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## lalachka

simba405 said:


> 2 years and still not trained?! Maybe you should board and train your dog?



We are OK, thank you 


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## simba405

A dog should be well trained in pet obedience easily by a year and a half at the latest. 

Anything else is either bad dog or bad trainer. I mean how long does it really take to teach sit down stay come heel and proof it? 

Board and train gives people a starting point. Someone starts the training for them because some people are not sure how to motivate or communicate clearly with their dog.


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## lalachka

simba405 said:


> A dog should be well trained in pet obedience easily by a year and a half at the latest.
> 
> Anything else is either bad dog or bad trainer. I mean how long does it really take to teach sit down stay come heel and proof it?
> 
> Board and train gives people a starting point. Someone starts the training for them because some people are not sure how to motivate or communicate clearly with their dog.



Go up and read. I said I don't train consistently and I'm also a beginner. 
I'd never board my dog. He listens most of the time and so far that worked for us


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## lalachka

Oops, my dog is a year and a half. Still, pathetic but that's not the point of this thread. 


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## lalachka

Actually, here's a good example. I got stuck training when I realized my dog sometimes yawned when I told him to sit. So stress sign. 

So I stopped with the sits and went back to the beginning, building motivation, playing chase games, tug and so on. 

I could've just went on and corrected him every time he didn't sit but I don't want to. I'd rather spend time on motivation and making him want to listen. 

And also, as I said, i dont train every day. 


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## lalachka

Yeah so that's where I'm going with this. I'm not in a rush, I can afford to waste another year on a sit with no yawns lol. 

Is a trainer really going to do that? When they only have a month?


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## simba405

How many people really train every day? 

I train when I exercise my dog. My dog doesn't get exercise every day. 

All I have to say is if you ask your dog to sit every day for a year and he still doesn't sit 100% when told then somethings wrong. 

At this point people can accept the mediocre results of their dog listening basically whenever it chooses or they get a trainer. People who don't have time for a trainer can board and train.


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## lalachka

He does but yawns. I'm not OK with that. 

Post some vids of your trained dog. I'm also usually pretty hard on myself. Maybe what you consider trained is not what I'm looking for. 


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## lalachka

If you're posting vids then don't post vids of training sessions. 

I have my own and he's eager to work. I'm talking about you walking the streets, him off leash and distracted. I'm interested to see your dog. 


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## simba405

I own a Chihuahua


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## lalachka

simba405 said:


> I own a Chihuahua



Dying to see the training on her. Show it off


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