Why don’t we offer short
Board & Train programs?
Why we don’t offer short Board & Train programs
We do not offer one or two-week Board & Train programs, and there’s a very simple reason why!
The number one complaint people have after spending thousands of dollars on a Board and Train, is that their dog reverted right back to their old behavior within a week or two of coming home. What most people don’t realize is that the overwhelming majority of board and train programs across the country are only one or two weeks long. From a psychological and scientific standpoint, that simply is NOT enough time!
One of the biggest misconceptions in dog training is confusing “learning” with “behavior modification”.
A dog can learn what “sit” means in five minutes. They can learn a new command in a single training session. However, learning something new… and permanently changing an existing behavior are two completely different things. “Behavior modification” is the process of replacing habits that have often been practiced for months or even years. That takes repetition, consistency, reinforcement, and enough TIME for the new behavior to become the dog’s default response - not just something they can do when asked.
My entire background and education is in behavioral psychology. Before becoming a full-time dog trainer, I was a New York State certified special education teacher and behavior therapist. Due to that background, I have a moral issue with taking someone’s hard-earned money for a program that I know… simply isn’t long enough to produce the results they’re expecting. It takes an average of 30 days to create meaningful, lasting behavior change in an animal (humans included), which is why our minimum Board & Train is 30 days.
I often use human examples because the science is exactly the same (the animals obviously are not, but the science of LEARNING is).
You CAN’T go to rehab for two weeks and expect to overcome addiction.
You CAN’T undo years of unhealthy habits in two weeks.
You CAN’T complete anger management in two weeks.
You CAN’T become physically fit after exercising for two weeks.
Why? Because real behavior change takes time. Dogs are not an exception to this rule.
Anyone can teach a dog what to do. The hard part is changing what the dog chooses to do when life gets difficult. That’s what behavior modification does, and that’s what our Board & Train programs are designed to accomplish.
If someone isn’t looking to invest in a 30-day or longer program
I genuinely believe they are usually better off investing in private lessons instead, and saving their money. It simply provides more value than paying for a program that isn’t long enough to produce lasting results.
At Canine Karma Training, we don’t structure our programs around what’s most profitable - we structure them around what gives dogs and their owners the greatest chance of long-term success. Longer board and train programs are actually less profitable for us (the longer the program, the more it is discounted), but we’ve never been interested in doing what’s easiest or what makes the most money. We’re interested in doing what works. Those long-term results are why we are the highest-rated dog training company in Virginia.