BOARD & TRAIN / DOGGIE BOOT CAMP...

Weather you call it “Doggie Boot Camp”, “Doggie School”, or "Doggie College" It works. This program is for pet owners who do not have the time in their schedule to practice, practice, practice and maintain the consistency required to change the behavior

of delinquent dogs. Board & Train programs include basic obedience, socialization, health and weight loss (if needed), and problem solving. Each program is customized to fit the particular needs of your household and pet. The programs range from a 14 day on lead (leash) Basic Obedience Training to a 4 week off lead Advanced Training. Each program includes lessons for training the handler (you), boarding, daily socialization with other dogs, daily play times, and of course the training sessions where the dogs learn all the commands needed to be a good citizen. Does this really work? You bet! Your dog learns to behave in any environment. Zion Kennels board and train programs succeed while other board and train programs fail because we take the time to train YOU.

Obedience Program - Medium & Large Breeds Only
This is just for people wanting an obedient dog. Your dog will also be socialized to other dogs and all in all be a good citizen.

Checklist for Drop Off Application for Obedience Training needs to be filled out in full. Shot Record from your vet. All dogs must have a copy of their vaccination records for me to view or permanently keep. Rabies, Parvo, Distemper, Corona, and Bordatella (within 6 months) are a must. Giardia is optional. First payment in advance. Monthly Heart Worm preventative is required. Please bring enough for the dogs entire stay. Frontline or Advantage is optional. All dogs must be free of fleas and ticks, or a dose of Frontline will be applied at owners expense.

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Training Tips For When Your Dog Goes Home!
A good dog's greatest desire is to please you, its master. When you teach your dog good manners through obedience training you increase its pleasure in living since you give it a greater opportunity to be with you and to serve you. You give it a feeling of confidence in itself and in its master, and you are making it a better member of the community in which it lives. Every minute you spend training your dog is going to be repaid to you in hours of enjoyment in a well-behaved companion who knows and understands what is expected and who is happy to give back to you its unswerving loyalty and trust.

The secret of training dogs, as well as humans, is to see that they know and understand what it is you want them to do. Then make sure that they do it every time you give the command. It is most important in training to know what a dog can understand and how you can make it understand it. Here are a few principles of training:

Catch Your Dog Being Good You need to teach your dog to learn right from wrong, Let your dog associate pleasure with obedience. Praise and reward it when it does the right thing. Pats, strokes,

smiles, and soothing voice tone will soon teach your dog that you approve of its behavior. To minimize confusion, a dog must also learn that a stiff "No!" means that its behavior at the moment is not desirable. Let your dog associate disapproval with failure and disobedience. This is the basis for all training methods. The clearer you are in sending messages of approval and disapproval, the faster your dog will learn. Most dogs will strive to please you and obey your commands, so catch them being good both at training and at home.

Be Consistent
Dogs are natural born schemers and actors. They will make a game of out-guessing and disobeying you unless they know they will win instant disapproval and correction every time they disobey, as well as approval every time they are obedient. Confusion arises on the dog's part if you let it get away with a wrong-doing one time and then correct it for another, Your consistent behavior wins repeated obedience from your dog, whereas inconsistency slows or stops the learning process.

Be Patient And Kind As Well As Persevering
Angry scolding or punishment when your dog is slow to understand or obey only confuses it and makes it hesitant about trying new acts for fear of doing them wrong and incurring your displeasure. A few firm words of displeasure are usually punishment enough. By being kind, you can heighten your dog's natural desire to please you, Sometimes a power struggle can occur between a dog and its owner. If this happens, you must be very patient and very firm when working with your dog. Making your dog understand that you are going to win every time it chooses to be dominant requires much perseverance and energy on your part. If you let a mistake go uncorrected one time, you are undoing hours of work, as the dog will constantly be tempted to repeat the undesirable behavior again.

Only One Person Trains The Dog Initially
It is humanly impossible for two people to think, talk, and act alike. Decide which member of the family is going to do the training and leave that part of your dog's education entirely up to that individual. After the dog has thoroughly learned its commands and what is expected of it, then other members of the household may begin working with the dog. They, too, must ensure that the dog quickly obeys commands every time.

Keep Your Dog's Attention During Training
Take your dog, on leash, to a quiet place at home when you begin your homework. That place should be free from distractions by other people and dogs at first. Talk to it in a cheerful manner en route, telling it that it is time for "doggie school". Play with your dog a bit to arouse its interest and to get it to center its attention on you. Work the actual training procedure right in with your play. Give a command, make the dog execute it correctly and then make a great fuss over it. Complete all the exercises and then end the lesson on a cheerful note with a command that your dog can do. Try to end the training session before your dog loses interest. Short, daily sessions are far superior to long sessions with no work in between. Practice does make perfect.