Before you book
What training methods are used in board and train?
Method is the question under most of the others, so here is ours in one breath. We teach every skill with a marker and a reward before anything else is added. Where an individual dog needs one, we add a tool matched to that dog, introduce it properly and teach it to the owner at the handover. Everything is one-on-one. No group classes, no crowd to hide in.
Last reviewed September 28, 2026
Markers first
A marker and a reward teach the skill before anything else does.
Every behaviour in every program starts the same way. The dog offers something close to what we want, hears a marker at that moment and earns a reward. That is how sit, down, place, name recognition and loose-leash walking are taught in Puppy Fundamentals and On-Leash Foundations, and how recall and off-leash heel begin in the off-leash programs. The marker tells the dog which piece earned the pay. Tools, where a dog needs one, come after that, never instead of it.
The teaching happens as daily one-on-one training inside a structured routine, with socialization and enrichment around it. Relationship-based means the work rests on the dog wanting to engage with a person, which is why the reward comes before any tool. Balanced means we will use a slip lead, a prong collar or an Educator remote collar where an individual dog needs it, rather than ruling tools out on principle. Skills are then proofed against real-world distractions.
- Markers and rewards taught first
- Tools matched to the individual dog
- Daily one-on-one training, structured routine
- Every tool taught to the owner
Tools and handover
The tools we use, and the rule that governs every one of them.
We work with three kinds of tool: slip leads, prong collars and modern Educator remote collars. Which one, if any, an individual dog wears is matched to that dog, not to a default. Each is introduced to the dog properly, after the skill has been taught with a marker and a reward, and each is then taught to the owner at the handover lesson. Which programs include which collar is its own question, answered on the e-collar page.
The method does not end when the program does. Every board and train includes a handover lesson, where the owner learns the cues and any tool the dog was trained on, and free follow-up sessions afterward. Honest recommendation is part of the method too: the consultation is where we recommend a program, and we recommend a smaller one when it is enough. Questions about any of the three tools are welcome at the consultation as well.
Asked and answered
The questions people ask us.
Do you use shock collars in board and train?
We use modern Educator remote collars where an individual dog needs one, and we introduce them only after the skill has been taught with a marker and a reward. The owner is taught the collar at the handover lesson. Which programs include one is listed on the e-collar page.
Is board and train positive reinforcement only?
No. We teach every skill with markers and rewards first, and where an individual dog needs it we add a slip lead, prong collar or remote collar, introduced properly and taught to the owner. That combination is what we mean by balanced.
Are treats used in board and train?
Yes. Rewards are how every new skill is taught, and for many dogs that reward is food. Markers and rewards come first, before any tool.
Can I choose which training tools are used on my dog?
You can raise any preference at the consultation, which is where the program is recommended. Tools are matched to the individual dog, and every program's inclusions are published, so you will know what a program lists before choosing it.
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Ask us about method
Book a consultation and ask about markers, collars and what your dog might need. Plain answers, one-on-one.
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