Board and train
Does board and train help with door bolting?
A dog that runs when the door opens is usually fast rather than defiant, and in a city with busy roads, fast is the dangerous part. Some of what stops it is trainable: a sit that holds, a place to go to, a recall that works around distractions. Some of it is not training at all, just a closed door and a leash. This page separates the two.
Last reviewed September 28, 2026
Skills that apply
The cues that matter at an open door.
Nothing in our programs is titled door bolting. What the published curricula include are the pieces that bear on it. On-Leash Foundations, two weeks at $1,865 plus GST, works on sit, stay, down and place around everyday distractions. Puppy Fundamentals covers the same cues for puppies, along with crate comfort. A dog who can hold a sit or stay on a place cot while a door opens has an alternative to running through it, though how quickly any individual dog gets there varies.
Recall is the other relevant skill. Functional Off-Leash, three weeks at $3,030 plus GST, works on reliable recall around distractions, and Advanced Off-Leash adds advanced recall and sit, stay and down at distance over four weeks. We teach these with markers and rewards first and proof them in real-world settings. What we will not call any of them is insurance. A recall is a trained behaviour that can fail on a bad day, and a dog on a road has no margin for one.
- Sit, stay and place cues
- Recall around distractions
- Distance commands in Advanced
- Owner handover lesson included
Beyond training
What a trained cue cannot replace.
A board and train cannot change the door. A cue the dog knows well is still a cue, and a door left open while groceries come in is still an open door. Our advice is that management continues alongside training rather than being dropped once the cues look solid: a leash clipped on before an exterior door opens, a barrier across the hall, and guests asked to wait until the dog is settled. Trained and contained beats one or the other.
Nor can a program diagnose a dog from a description. One dog runs to greet, another to chase, a third because something in the house worries it, and that third dog may have more in common with Behaviour Rehab, which works on anxiety, reactivity and aggression and is planned and priced after a full assessment. The consultation is where the program is recommended, and a smaller one when it is enough. Worth bringing: where the dog gets out, when, and what it does next.
Asked and answered
The questions people ask us.
Does board and train help with door bolting?
It can help with the skills a door bolter is missing, such as a sit or stay that holds, a place to go to, and a recall around distractions, all of which are in published programs. It cannot make a door safe on its own. A leash and a barrier stay part of the picture for as long as the dog needs them.
Is board and train worth it for a dog that runs out the door?
That depends on what else the dog needs, which is what a consultation sorts out. Sit, stay and place in On-Leash Foundations, or recall in Functional Off-Leash, may cover it, and a smaller program is recommended when it is enough. Private Training at $150 plus GST per one-hour session is also an option for hands-on owners.
Which program teaches a dog to wait at the door?
No program carries that name, but sit, stay and place are published skills in Puppy Fundamentals and On-Leash Foundations, and those are the cues that give a dog something to do instead of running. Functional Off-Leash works on reliable recall around distractions for the dog who is already through.
Will my dog stop bolting after board and train?
We cannot promise that, and we would be wary of anyone who does. A program works on the cues that apply and teaches them to you at the handover lesson; how reliably any dog uses them at home varies with the dog and with how the household manages its doors. Free follow-up sessions are included for the gaps that show up.
Keep reading
Where does your dog get out?
Book a consultation and describe where your dog gets out, when, and what happens next. We will say plainly which skills apply.
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