Board and Train for Dogs: What Doodle Parents Should Know

Many Doodle parents ask whether a board and train program for dogs is the best solution. Many Doodle parents eventually ask the same question:

“Should I send my dog to a board and train program?”

It’s a very understandable thought. When your dog is jumping, pulling on leash, barking, or struggling to settle, the idea of sending them away for a few weeks and getting back a perfectly trained dog can sound incredibly appealing.

In this episode, I’m sharing a personal story about sending my own Poodle to a board and train program years ago, long before I became a professional trainer.

At the time, I had young children and simply wanted to do the best thing for my dog. I had heard that positive reinforcement was the best approach, and I asked a lot of questions before enrolling her.

One of the answers I heard back then is something I now recognize as a major red flag:
 “We start with positive reinforcement and only use other tools if necessary.”

When I picked up my Poodle, she had a beautiful down-stay.

But the moment I stopped using the tool she had been trained with, the behavior disappeared. And the emotional fallout for my dog was real. She became more anxious and started submissive peeing.

That experience taught me something important about how dogs actually learn.

Years later, after becoming a professional trainer and working with Doodles every day, I revisited that exact skill. I wanted to know if we could teach an even stronger down stay without relying on tools like prong collars or pressure.

That work eventually became Relaxation Protocol for Distractable Doodles™, a training approach designed specifically for the high-energy, highly social nature of Doodles.

Today I regularly see Doodles learn to settle calmly even with real-life distractions like doorbells, visitors, or activity in the home — all through positive reinforcement training.

In this episode, I talk about:

• Why behaviors built with pressure often disappear when the pressure is removed
 • The red flag phrase many dog owners hear when asking about positive reinforcement training
 • Why many board and train programs still rely on aversive tools like prong collars or e-collars
 • Why sending a dog away for training doesn’t automatically transfer skills back to the family
 • Why training together often creates stronger long-term results
 • How to teach a Doodle to settle and relax using positive reinforcement training

I also want to be clear about something important. Skilled, science-based trainers can be incredibly valuable. The best trainers don’t replace the relationship between you and your dog. They help guide you so you can build that relationship yourself.

Because in the end, the most important training happens in the everyday moments between you and your dog.

Many Doodle parents also find

🐾 Ready to train WITH me? Join the FREE Doodle Parent Challenge — 5 days of short, Doodle-specific lessons starting April 20th. No credit card, no catch. Grab your free spot at thedoodlepro.com/challenge

→ thedoodlepro.com/challenge

Corinne Gearhart is the founder of The Doodle Pro®, a science-based training platform helping Doodle parents raise calmer, well-mannered dogs using positive reinforcement. She is the host of The Doodle Pro® Podcast and author of Your Doodle’s Daily Schedule Blueprint™.

📘 Get the Doodle Schedule Blueprint:
https://thedoodlepro.com/doodle-schedule-bonus/

🎧 More episodes:
https://thedoodlepro.com/podcast

Transcript

Hello my friend and welcome back to the Doodle Pro Podcast. Today I want to talk about something that comes up a lot for Doodle parents, bored and trained programs. Many doodle parents eventually start wondering if sending their dog away for a training might be the easiest solution when a dog is jumping, pulling on leash barking, or struggling to settle, the idea of sending them somewhere for a few weeks and getting back, a perfectly trained dog can sound. Incredibly appealing. So today I want to talk about board and train for dogs, what those programs are designed to do, and a few things doodle parents should understand before choosing that path.

And I want to start with a personal story because I made this exact decision myself years ago when my children were very young. We had a standard [00:01:00] poodle. At that time, I wasn't a professional trainer yet. I was simply a dog mom trying to do my best and make good decisions for our dog. I had heard that positive reinforcement training was the best approach, and that idea really resonated with me.

I wanted to build a relationship with my dog based on trust and cooperation. At some point, I came across a board and train program that sounded incredible. It was connected to a prison program where incarcerated individuals trained the dogs. The story behind it was beautiful. Dogs were helping people rebuild their lives, and people were helping train dogs.

It sounded like a win for everyone involved. So I asked a lot of questions. I specifically asked about training methods. I wanted to make sure they were using positive reinforcement training. They said, yes, of course, and I was [00:02:00] told something that at the time sounded reassuring. They added, we start with positive reinforcement and we only use other tools if necessary.

At the time, I didn't realize that sentence was a pretty big red flag. But now I do because when I picked up my dog after the program, there was something in her bag, a prong collar, and she had learned a very impressive behavior. A beautiful downst stay. She would lie down and stay perfectly still no matter what distraction it looked like.

Incredible training. Until more time passed, without using that tool I had found. Then the behavior disappeared and something else started happening. She began submissive peeing. She grew more anxious, and the fallout from that [00:03:00] experience was real. At the time, I didn't have the language or the experience to fully understand what had happened with our dog, but today, with everything I've learned about behavior science and training, I do understand it much more clearly.

What I didn't understand back then was this behavior built with pressure often disappears. The moment the pressure disappears, and sometimes the emotional consequences can last much longer than the behavior itself. Now I want to pause here for a moment and say something important, skilled. Accredited trainers are a gift.

Working with a knowledgeable trainer who uses science-based humane methods

can be incredibly helpful for families and their dogs. In fact, last week's episode of the podcast, I spoke with Jean Donaldson about how to find a good trainer and spot some of the red flags people should watch for when choosing one [00:04:00] because.

Because a great trainer doesn't replace the relationship between you and your dog. A great trainer teaches you how to build that relationship. They guide you, they coach you. They help you understand your dog better. But the real learning still happens between you and your dog in everyday life. And this is where board and trained programs can sometimes fall short for families because when someone else trains your dog, they're the one building that learning history with your dog.

They're the one learning how your dog responds to reinforcement. They're the one figuring out what motivates your dog. Then your dog comes home to you, but you didn't go through that learning process together. And that's why so many doodle parents tell me something like this. My dog was amazing when I picked them up, but after a few [00:05:00] weeks, everything fell apart.

And it isn't because you failed,

It's because training is a relationship skill, not just a set of behaviors. When you train together, something really powerful happens. You learn to read your dog. Your dog learns to trust you. Your timing improves. Your communication improves.

You begin to understand what motivates your dog, and your dog begins to understand you. Your doodle doesn't need a stronger correction. They need a clearer conversation, and that conversation is something you build together. The beautiful thing about positive reinforcement training is that it strengthens that relationship every step of the way.

Instead of relying on pressure or intimidation or fear or force, you're teaching your dog how to succeed. You're showing them what works. [00:06:00] You're reinforcing the behaviors you want to see more often. Over time, your dog begins offering those behaviors willingly, not because they're trying to avoid something unpleasant, but because they understand what earns reinforcement.

That's why training your dog yourself can be so powerful, and I know what some of you might be thinking right now. But I'm not a trainer, and that's okay. You don't have to be. You are already the most important person in your dog's world. You're the one they live with. You're the one they look to. You're the one who sees their behavior every day, and with the right guidance and support, you are absolutely capable of teaching your doodle the skills they need.

It doesn't have to be overwhelming. It doesn't have to take hours every day. In fact, some of the most powerful training [00:07:00] happens in just a few minutes at a time. Short moments, simple exercises, clear communication. Over time, those moments build something really meaningful. A relationship where your dog understands you, A relationship where your dog trusts you, A relationship where calm behavior becomes easier and easier.

And that's especially important with doodles because if you live with a doodle, you already know something about them. They are incredibly smart. They are incredibly social and sensitive, and they're incredibly observant, which means they are constantly learning even when we're not actively training.

So the goal isn't to control your dog. The goal is to teach your dog how to succeed in the world they live in with you. Calm isn't something you [00:08:00] force a doodle into. It's something you teach them how to find. And once they learn that skill, life with your dog starts to feel very different. Walks feel easier, visitors feel easier.

Your dog can relax more easily in the home, . And you start to feel proud of your doodles behavior, not just their adorable teddy bear looks. If life with your doodles sometimes feels more chaotic than calm,

it usually isn't because your dog is stubborn. It's because no one ever showed you the system that helps calm behavior grow. That's something we can learn. That's something we can build together, and that's something I'm going to start sharing more of with you very soon. In a few weeks, I'm hosting a live Doodle parent challenge where we'll start building the training skills that help doodles focus, listen, and settle.

We [00:09:00] will practice simple exercises together, and I'll guide you step by step so you can start seeing real progress with your doodle. If life with your doodles sometimes feels more chaotic than calm. This is going to be a really fun place to start. I'll be sharing more details about the challenge very soon, but for now, I want you to remember this.

You don't need to send your dog away to build a well-trained doodle. You don't need painful tools that damage the trust between you and your dog. You could build those skills together, and when you do, the bond between you and your dog becomes stronger than ever. Thanks for spending this time with me today. And remember, your doodle doesn't need a stronger correction. They need a clearer conversation. I'll see you in the next episode of the Doodle Pro Podcast.

And remember, doodles are different wonderfully, [00:10:00] so.