Residential training - advice? Recommendations?

[DogQuestions]

A relative of mine is thinking of sending her dog to residential training. Dog is sweet natured intelligent adolescent but large and ill-trained, and behaviour in danger of reaching crisis point.

What do we need to know about residential training? Has anyone done it? Do you have any recommendations? What would be a red flag?(according to Google not large chain is very iffy). Money no object.

I suspect I'm going to be told that residential training is not ideal - there are family reasons why it would be preferable, but please do talk to me about boot camp type non-residential courses as well. She's in the South East.

Umm if only the dog goes only the dog learns. In 99% of cases the owner needs to learn too, this why most dogs who go on residential courses 'fail'.

Dogs become well mannered and pleasant to be around because of their owners.

The money would be better spent on one to one training from a member of the APDT who would support your friend in implementing long term improvements and help to build a solid relationship with the dog. No trainer can do that remotely from the owner.

No amount of money fixes these situations unless a big effort accompanies it I'm afraid.

I really don't think residential training is ideal. Any decent trainer will tell you that half their job is training the owner rather than the dog. A family dog can be taught commands etc but the behaviour will not stay in place without effort and consistency from the owner. If money is no issue could they not have someone round one or twice a week to help them train and bond with the dog. This will be much more successful in the long term than sending them away and the expecting them to know to continue to behave in the "new" way in the same old home environment.

Cross posted with cashew and very much agree.

It's owners that need to be trained, not dogs . When i went to classes with my first dog the trainer could always get him to behave and walk to heel, I had to be there to learn how to handle my dog so he would want to obey me.

Residential training -am assuming dog would be sent off on its own - isn't the answer. There's no quick fix for getting a well trained dog. if money's no object then one-to-one training with a good behaviourist would be the way to go.

Somebody on here a while ago had sent their dog somewhere for a couple of weeks and he came back in a dreadful state ,thin and with urine burns If I recall . To me its a definite no.

Even with home visits or a boot camp style course, the training happens all day every day, in every interaction, not just during class. The class is just where the owner learns how to approach training. Urge them to use an APT positive trainer.

I did fear that that would be the response.

What would you all recommend in terms of a home training programme? What kind of hours, timeframe, set up might work? She's entirely capable of being a perfectly good dog owner, this one's just got away from her a bit. Their relationship is fine in terms of mutual affection but not in terms of doing as he's told and being manageable in certain situations.

And yes I've read the scary thread with the dog who came back with sores

Most dog trainers will do home visits then they can assess the issues and sort her out a programme.

No good dog trainer will ever do residential training. So there are no questions to ask, no good one to recommend as they will all have issues.

The only way to train a dog is to do it yourself at home with a positive reward based trainer.

APDT - is a good place to start.

I have started taking Roo to puppy classes, and it is as much a learning curve for her as it is for me!

It's a good class, and another woman and I were saying we feel it is almost more like "owner training" than "puppy training".

So I imagine that training a dog without it's owner is probably pointless.

Training is a good idea though, but the owner/handler will need to put in the time and effort himself.