Board & train
Does board and train help with prey drive and chasing?
No, board and train does not take prey drive out of a dog, but it can work on the skills that interrupt a chase. A dog who locks onto a hare and goes deaf is often running on instinct, not defiance. That instinct does not come out in three or four weeks away from home. Here is where the off-leash curricula touch this problem, and where they stop.
Last reviewed October 4, 2026
Curriculum fit
Recall and distance work are trained; the drive itself stays.
Functional Off-Leash, three weeks at $3,030 plus GST, lists reliable recall around distractions and distraction training, and includes a Micro or Mini Educator remote collar. Advanced Off-Leash, four weeks at $3,940 plus GST, adds advanced recall, advanced distraction training, and sit, stay and down at distance. That last line is worth asking about for a chaser: a dog taught to drop where it stands gives you a second option when a recall is struggling.
What a live-in program cannot change is the wiring. A dog bred to notice movement will usually still notice it, and in our experience a dog who has enjoyed a full chase often remembers it. Training also cannot stage every trigger: the deer that steps onto your trail is not available on request. So the program works on the interrupts against distractions it can stage, and owner education covers the remote collar for the moments it cannot.
- Recall around distractions listed
- Distance commands in Advanced
- Remote collar with owner education
- Instinct managed, never erased
After handover
The recall comes home with the dog, the judgement with you.
Owner education is part of both off-leash programs, so you learn the remote collar and the recall before the dog is back in your yard. The particular hare, cat or cyclist on your own route is yours to work through, on a long line first, with the leash on wherever the City of Calgary bylaw requires it. Every board and train includes a handover lesson and free follow-up sessions; Advanced Off-Leash lists two.
At the consultation, ask how recall around distractions is tested before handover, and how the distance commands are taught to you. Then the honest question: is off-leash freedom the goal, or a calm walk past squirrels on a leash? On-Leash Foundations, two weeks at $1,865 plus GST, is built for dogs who lunge at squirrels, and A program is recommended at the consultation, not before, and a smaller one when it is enough. The method lives in our guide on stopping a dog chasing wildlife.
Asked and answered
The questions people ask us.
Does board and train fix prey drive and chasing?
It does not remove the drive, and a program that promises that is overselling. It works on recall around distractions and, in Advanced Off-Leash, commands at distance, then teaches you to use them. Whether those skills hold on your trail depends on how they are kept up after the handover.
Which board and train program is for prey drive and chasing?
Functional Off-Leash, three weeks at $3,030 plus GST, lists reliable recall around distractions and includes an Educator remote collar. Advanced Off-Leash, four weeks at $3,940 plus GST, adds sit, stay and down at distance. The consultation recommends the program, including a smaller one when a leashed walk is the real goal.
Does the remote collar in a prey drive and chasing training program stop a chase?
Not on its own. Skills are taught with markers and rewards first, and the Educator collar is introduced properly and taught to the owner as a way to reach a dog at distance once it knows the skill. A dog who was never taught the recall has nothing to respond with.
Can my dog ever be off leash around wildlife after board and train?
Only where the City of Calgary bylaw allows it, and only after you have practised the recall yourself in that setting on a long line. Around deer, even a solid recall is a judgement call, and putting the leash back on is always an option. The program works on the skills; the decision stays with you on every walk.
Keep reading
Interrupt the chase, not the dog
Tell us what your dog chases and where. Book a consultation and we will say which program fits, or which smaller one does.
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