Day 1 of Board and Train

Are you curious about what your dog's day would look like after you drop them off for training? Here's a peak into a behavioral rehab program!

1) A walk. If the weather is decent, I take your dog for a 20-30 minute walk through my neighborhood. Usually the smells are so interesting, pulling on the leash isn't really a big deal.

2) Allowing your dog to get comfortable with me. If they ask for or give consent to physical touch, I will give it. If your dog will take food from me on day 1, I will hand feed their meals as well. I'll also see if they're interested in any toys (theirs or mine) and if so, we will try to play. Most dogs aren't comfortable on the first day and typically don't take any food or treats from me and they also usually don't play with me right away.

3) Working on basic everyday exercises: going in and out of the crate politely and efficiently, going in and out to potty respectfully, and I often test the dog's obedience skills as well as test their interaction with my dog.

4) Sometimes if the dog is already in a follower state, I'll ask the dog to complete a simple challenge to help build some trust - especially with a behavioral rehab - like asking them to get on and off the place cot and/or the treadmill.

Remember: most dogs in today's society do not adapt well to being left with a complete stranger and it is incredibly common for dogs to skip the first couple meals and refuse treats for a day or two. For this reason, it is impossible to free shape, lure, or bribe many of these dogs into doing things they aren't comfortable with - like going into a new crate. This means some leash pressure must be used. I tend to use a slip leash because it's too easy for dogs to slip out of their flat collars and I rarely get a dog with a martingale. I make sure the leash pressure is JUST enough that the dog can feel the pressure without struggling, and you'll see that I don't strangle the dog if they put up a fight against me (which is an instinctive response!)

#dogs #dogtraining #balancedtraining #toledodogtrainer #boardandtrain