Board and train
Board and train before moving house
A move stacks several stressors at once: strangers in the house, furniture disappearing, a car ride, then a building that smells like someone else's dog. Owners tend to be at their least available that same week. The idea behind training first is simple: the dog works on the skills in a structured routine, you learn them at the handover lesson, and the move becomes practice rather than the classroom.
Last reviewed September 28, 2026
Skills that travel
What a dog needs to know before the boxes arrive.
Crate comfort leads the list, because a crate is the one room that moves with the dog, and it can be the familiar corner in an unfamiliar house. A settle on place can give the dog a job while movers carry a sofa past. Door manners are worth having, but during loading we suggest a closed room or the crate rather than trusting any training near a door propped open. Loose-leash walking can make the first walk on new streets simpler.
Puppy Fundamentals works on crate comfort, place command and leash manners over three weeks; On-Leash Foundations works on loose-leash walking, place command and everyday distractions over two. Both send the dog home with a slip lead and training collar, and the welcome package includes a crate-training guide worth rereading before the crate gets packed. Training ahead of a move means the dog works on those skills in a structured routine, and you learn them at the handover lesson before the calendar gets crowded.
- Crate as the familiar room
- Place while movers pass
- Closed room during loading
- Loose leash on new streets
Moving week itself
Where the program sits on the moving calendar.
We suggest anchoring the plan to the possession date and working backwards: a two- or three-week program, then the handover lesson, then ideally a couple of weeks living the new rules in the old house before the truck pulls up. If the dates are tight, ask about Private Training: a one-hour session at $150 + GST with a written weekly plan customized to your home. The consultation recommends the program, including a smaller one when it is enough.
On moving day, the kindest place for many dogs is somewhere else. Graduates and existing clients can book graduate boarding at $65 + GST per night while the house is taken apart. If the dog has to be present, we suggest a closed room with water and the crate, loaded onto the truck last and set up first. For the first weeks, the same short loop on the slip lead lets the dog learn the new neighbourhood before the circle widens.
The programs
Programs and prices
SW · Weekdays, drop-off 8–10 am · pick-up 5–7 pm
Day Training
Professional training all day, your couch at night.
Includes weekly one-hour go-home lesson, daily structure
NE · 2-week board & train
On-Leash Foundations
If every walk is a wrestling match, pulling, barking, zig-zagging, this two-week program rebuilds the walk from the ground up with foundational on-leash obedience..
Includes handover lesson, follow-up session, lifetime support, slip lead + collar
Asked and answered
The questions people ask us.
Should we do a board and train before moving, or wait until we are settled?
If the calendar allows, we suggest before. The dog works on crate comfort, place and leash skills in a structured routine, and you learn them at the handover lesson while the old house is still in order. Moving first means a new house, a new routine and new training all landing in the same month.
What dog training actually helps before a move?
Crate comfort, a settle on place and loose-leash walking are the published skills that map most directly onto movers in the hallway, a strange first night and a first walk on unfamiliar streets. Doors propped open are a separation problem rather than a training one, so we suggest a closed room or crate during loading whatever the dog knows.
How do you prepare a dog for moving house when the move is only a few weeks away?
On-Leash Foundations, at two weeks, is the shortest board and train, and it still needs the handover lesson and some practice time after it. Private Training is a one-hour session at $150 + GST with a written weekly plan customized to your home. The consultation recommends the program, including a smaller one when it is enough.
What should the dog do on moving day itself?
For graduates and existing clients, graduate boarding at $65 + GST per night keeps the dog out of the loading path while the house is taken apart. If the dog has to be present, we suggest a closed room with water and the crate, with any door to the outside kept on the far side of a barrier.
Keep reading
Pack the training first.
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