Board and train
Board and train during a home renovation
Tradespeople come and go, the front door often stands open, and power tools start when the job needs them, not when the dog is ready. Many dogs find that hard, and the usual nap spot may be under a drop sheet. We offer a different use for those weeks: the dog spends them somewhere else, in a structured routine with daily one-on-one training, while the loud work gets done.
Last reviewed September 28, 2026
Risks at home
Open doors, loud tools, and where we come in.
The first worry is usually the door. A tradesperson carrying drywall is rarely watching the dog, and a front door that stands open several times a morning is a real chance for a dog to wander, even one that has never bolted. The second is noise. Tile saws, nail guns and demolition tend to arrive without warning. The third is quieter: when the bed, the feeding spot and the walk schedule all shift at once, many dogs have a harder time settling.
A board and train takes the dog's days out of the house for those weeks. Instead of a house full of strangers and tools, the dog lives in a structured routine with daily one-on-one training, enrichment and individual care, and the time goes into place, loose-leash walking or recall around distractions. We send social-media updates and check in by phone or email. We cannot make the renovation quieter or shorter; we can give the dog somewhere else to be while it happens.
- Front door open for hours
- Power tools without warning
- Bed and routine displaced
- Fewer quiet places to settle
Timing it
Line the program up with the loud weeks.
Renovations tend to have a loud phase and a long tail. Demolition, framing, drywall and flooring are usually the weeks with strangers, open doors and machinery; painting and finishing are often quieter. The arithmetic is simple: On-Leash Foundations runs two weeks, Functional Off-Leash three, Advanced Off-Leash four. Schedules slip, though, so we would choose the program that fits the dog first and the calendar second. The consultation is where we recommend a program, and a smaller one when it is enough.
The dog comes home to a changed house: new flooring, a missing wall, a bed spot that may no longer exist. The handover lesson is where you learn the cues and tools, and a fair place to talk through where place and feeding now live. Free follow-up sessions cover what surfaces later. For shorter disruptions afterwards, a plumber for two days or painters back for a week, graduates and existing clients can use graduate boarding at $65 + GST per night.
The programs
Programs and prices
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
E · 3-week board & train
Functional Off-Leash
Everything in the on-leash program, then the next level: reliable off-leash recall even around distractions.
Includes handover lesson, follow-ups, Educator remote collar
Asked and answered
The questions people ask us.
Is board and train a good idea during a renovation?
It can be. Open doors, strangers and noise are a hard mix for many dogs, and a board and train gives the dog somewhere else to live during the loud weeks, with the time going into daily one-on-one training. The handover lesson and free follow-up sessions are where we work through the routine in the changed house with you.
Where should a dog go during a renovation if it also needs training?
A board and train covers both: the dog boards with us and trains one-on-one every day inside a structured routine, so the housing question and the training question are handled together. We would aim it at the demolition and framing weeks, which are usually the loud ones. The consultation is where we recommend a program and its length.
Can dog training happen while renovating the house?
It can, though a renovation is a noisy classroom and the door is often open when you would want it shut. Private Training is $150 + GST per one-hour session and comes with a written weekly plan customized to your home. Whether that or a board and train suits your dog and your job is what we work out at the consultation.
What if the renovation is only a few days?
For graduates and existing clients, graduate boarding is $65 + GST per night. That covers an electrician's two return days or a week of painters, and it is limited to dogs who have already trained with us.
Keep reading
Use the loud weeks
Send us the demolition dates and what the dog needs to learn. Book a consultation and we will size the program to the dog.
From real owners
Rated 5.0 on Google.
Real Northline dogs