HI, We have an 11 month old female chocolate lab and are looking for somewhere for her to stay for 6 weeks whilst we get are on holiday at the end of January. We would prefer her to go somewhere where as well as being well looked after she can be further trained. I dont mean gun dog training just general obedience. At the moment she is well behaved and quite obedient so we just dont want this all going down the drain  by puttting her into boarding kennels or with someone who will let her away with murder!! We are in Fife, but willing to travel to find the right place or her. Can anyone recommend anywhere?

I would never recommend sending a dog away to be trained - I have heard too many horrid stories about dogs who have come back from such places a very different dog (and not in a good way) to the dog the owners sent.  Far better to build a bond with your dog by training it yourself IMHO....

6 weeks is an awfully long time to go away and leave a young dog. If you are worried about her training, I'd take a shorter holiday.

Daisy

I thought the point of training a dog was to not just teach the dog but also the owner on how to handle and interact with the dog, or have i missed something

No - you're quite right. What I can't understand is why the guest isn't worried about leaving their dog for such a long time - the training would be the least of my worries :(

Daisy

Thing is, can you GUARANTEE that the training establishment will train the dog with kindness at all times??  After all most trainers would prefer to train the owner to train the dog this way the owner has more chance of the dog listening to them.
I wouldn't be happy leaving any dog, especially a puppy, for six weeks at a time.  Seems far too long to me :( :(

Friends (first time owners) sent their lab to someone for training (not a residential place tho') - at the end of it the dog behaved beautifully for the trainer, but behaved just the same as before at home :D

Daisy

I cant believe the negative responses that I have received for a perfectly legitimate question. I am trying to do what is best for my dog and ensure that she goes somewhere where she is well looked after and her training continued! Yes, we are training her ourselves and yes we would thouroughly check anywhere that we were considering sending her. We do not wish her to go into kennels for up to 6 weeks as we feel this is grossly unfair, that is why I am trying to find information on the right place. We do not want to return to find that she now sits on couches/ beds etc and begs for food. Do you think that if I didnt care about my girl that I would have looked here for what I thought would be unbiased help? Nobody out there knows my personal circumstances as to why I am going away for 6 weeks, so maybe people should be less judjemental. Any sites that I have looked at incorporate training the owner as well as the dog. is it such a bad thing to want to have a well trained dog that is a pleasure to own? After all theres surely nothing wrong in seeking assistance from those who may know better?

IT's a shame you don't like the replies you've received - but if you ask a question on a forum such as this you shouldn't expect to receive 100% support if others don't feel your plans are appropriate - you asked for advice, and you got it, but not the sort of advice you wanted......... That's life!

Perhaps when people ask a question on a forum such as this, yes they are looking for advice and yes I accept that not all responses will be positive. Perhaps it would be more useful if people who responded could do it in a more informed manner? If nobody can recommend anywhere that they think may be suitable or have heard good reports about then I am more than happy to take that on board and accept that this is not a good idea. However, for people to post sarky replies insinuating that 'the guest' is not considering the welfare of her pet is surely not what this site is about. I hoped that the people that were posting would be sharing their knowlwdge which I really want to hear. This is not the first time that I have read other people post and be villified for their question. People that look here care about their pet and surely are trying to do their best for them.

I agree with what most people have said here.  The thing is, you say your dog is well behaved and quite obedient at the moment, so presumably she knows some commands, she responds well, and you then reward her.  What happens if, when you send her away, the people who train her use a different word for a command?  Or perhaps just a different intonation?  Or maybe they don't reward her with the reward she values?  (Every dog is different and has a different reward hierarchy.)  She could end up coming back very confused.

After reading the website of one well-known place like this, I saw that they use choke-chains to train with - although this was very slightly alluded to and they were called 'training collars' and not 'choke chains'.  Where I think that training collars to most people would mean half checks.  You can't know for sure what methods they will use, whatever they tell you, because you won't be there to watch. 

From Jasi's post it seems to me that he just wants someone who isnt going to undo all his hard work, he just doesnt want his dog to forget what he has trained it, and it doesnt make him bad just because he has to go away for 6 weeks it looks like it cant be helped. 

Jasi, I have sent you a PM

Claire :)

>HI, We have an 11 month old female chocolate lab and are looking for somewhere for her to stay for 6 weeks whilst we get are on holiday at the end of January. We would prefer her to go somewhere where as well as being well looked after she can be further trained

Jasi

I have copied this from your first post as 'Guest'...maybe now you can begin to understand why you got the sort of replies you did. Members only have the information provided to go on and in this case that was that you wanted your dog to be 'further trained' whilst you are 'on holiday' for 6 weeks....

My friends recently had to be out of the country for six weeks and their dog went back to the breeder for this time. I understand that not all breeders will have the facility to board a dog but I thought I would mention it in case it was an option for you.

The first GSD I trained for someone else was sent to just such a kennels, when she came out she was a mental wreck, it transpired that she was subjected to daily physical abuse & had been swung round on a choker frequently. It took a year before she regained her confidence in people
The problem with this sort of kennels is that there is no regulations to cover them or qualifications needed to set them up. You have no control over what happens to your dog. I would never advise sending any dog into kennels & have the kennels train it. Much better to go to a kennels that have a good reputation & whose staff/owners play & exercise the dogs daily.
There is no reason why you cannot pick up your dogs taining when you come home from holiday & also no reason why your dog should forget the trainng it has already had. In fact sometimes a break from formal training is no bad thing

I wouldn't put a dog into 'training kennels' as you have no idea on the methods used.  They will charge far more then a normal kennels too.

What about finding a good kennels first.  Then explain your situation regarding keeping up the training and not wanting your dog left in a kennel and run for six weeks.

Perhaps they could find you one of the kennel assistants to talk to and in her spare time she may be willing to spend sometime with your dog and its training.  You could pay her a little more for this service.

Thanks for that. It seems like this may be the best idea to make sure that my doggy gets well looked after with plenty of interaction with a little bit of training every day without being subjected to harsh training methods. I had no idea that kennels that offered training facilities used such harsh methods as people have suggested. I just want her to be well looked after by someone who is experienced with dogs and would  spend an hour or so each day working on her basic obedience training and giving her plenty of mental stimulation and attention. Surely to goodness there must be someone, somewhere that will be able to look after and enjoy her for the time that we are away! Thanks also to Claire who has recommended a lady who has useful contacts in my area.

Hi Jasi

In your situation - not making a judgement, I don't know why you are going away, I would look for someone who would board your pet on a one to one basis in their own home.  I have just been vetted myself to take on this role (I wont be doing it until next Summer though) and the selection process seems very thourough.  The kind of training they undertake with your pet is the sort you would do in your own home and on your own walks (after all they want a well behaved pet in their home, stands to reason). They are police checked too.  I am not giving any other information or advertising.

If you are looking for this kind of service in your area try putting pet/house sitters in your area, you may be pleasantly surprised.

i know quite a few people in my area,who train people at club who also take in home borders.im prettey sure for a small extra fee they would also keep up abit of basic training .
it may be worth investigating some training clubs around your area & find out if some of the instructors also take in home borders?

personally i wouldnt want someone to teach my dogs anything,as aas a owner i think thats down to you,but theres nothing wrong with a experinced person maintaining what you have taught.
good luck

Michelle your response is in direct reply to MY interpretation of the original post.

I understood it to mean that she did not want her young dog sat in a kennel 24/7 but would prefer someone to maintain and perhaps extend if appropriate, the training that had already been undertaken.

I would like to second your recommendations.

Therefore I would like to "third" those recommendations because that is exactly how I read the post and actually pm'd the OP with a name of someone who can provide that service ;)

oh good!!!!!!well done!