Dog Training and Behavior Consulting serving the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago
Puppy Raising Board and Train
Did you recently bring home a new puppy, but you’re being pulled away from home before they’re old enough or ready for a busy daycare environment?
Or maybe you’re a busy family with a crazy couple of weeks coming up, and you know that outsourcing your puppy’s care for just a little while would be ideal, but you don’t have anyone in your life who can help currently?
Or maybe, in all honesty, you just need a BREAK from 24/7 puppy?
If any of these sound like you, Happy Hound University’s Puppy Raising Board and Train is the answer to your prayers!
Our board and train program is specifically suited to large breed puppies under 16 weeks of age and small breed puppies (under 18 lbs) up to 20 weeks of age. We specialize in young puppies who are still within their critical window of socialization, and our program focuses on proper socialization to:
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Other animals
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New People
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New locations
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Body handling, grooming, and equipment
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And more.
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We also introduce skills like sit, down, leave it, hand targeting, relax on a mat, leash walking, and more!
Your puppy will live with us in our home, sharing in our day to day lives. We only take one puppy at a time so you know that your puppy is getting the individualized attention they need. No loud, crowded kennels or hours of alone time for your puppy!
How does it work?
First, you’ll sign up for a virtual boarding consult that is held remotely over zoom. This consult will reserve a half hour slot in our schedule and costs $30. If you decide to sign on for our program after the consult, that fee will go towards the total cost of your package. To schedule a consult, email info@happyhounduniversity.com.
During this half hour slot you will meet both Mary and Phil, who will be taking care of your puppy. You will also get to see the layout of our home and yard and where your puppy will be staying. We’ll discuss how your puppy is doing with potty training, separation training, crate training, and how their socialization has been going so that we know where we’re starting. Lastly, we’ll discuss what you’ll need to bring for your puppy’s boarding stay and iron out some final details.
If your puppy is a fit for our boarding program and you’d like to sign up, we’ll get the dates you need for boarding and identify a drop off and pick up time. If you live within 15 miles of Elk Grove Village we also offer complimentary pick up and drop off at your home if needed.
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What’s included in our socialization boarding program?
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Daily text and/or email updates with pictures and video
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Field trips to new and varying puppy safe locations
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Participation in our group puppy classes if suitable
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Continued potty, separation, and crate training
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Daily enrichment toys and puzzles
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Daily handling and grooming conditioning
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Daily training sessions where your puppy is introduced to the following behaviors: sit, down, relax on a mat, hand target/touch, leave it, drop it, sit to say please, and polite leash walking
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A "go home" session completed within two weeks of your puppy's stay with us.
Board and Train FAQ:
After a board and train will my puppy be fully trained?
There are a lot of trainers out there who will try to sell you guarantees and claim a fully trained dog in just two weeks. Full disclosure: that's not us. If you hand us a 12 week old puppy with no skills and come back two weeks later, we'll give you back a 14 week old puppy with more obedience skills than they had before, better potty and crate training, additional socialization on board, and more confidence! But they will still be a 14 week old PUPPY, and will still have a lot of growing and maturing to do!
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Our board and train program is a great way to lay a solid foundation for your puppy, but you will need to continue your training at home as your puppy grows and matures into adolescence! Luckily, we can help with that too!
Investment
(4 day minimum requirement for any stay, every package includes a go home session):
- $235 a day
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Once we have your requested dates, we will require a $500 nonrefundable deposit to hold those dates. Half of the remaining total minus the $500 deposit will be due on the first day of your puppy's board and train. The remaining balance is due before pick up. We take credit card, check, and cash payments.
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Wondering if you can have your puppy back on the weekends? Absolutely! We understand that for busy families weekdays can get chaotic, but you may still want to connect with your puppy on the weekends! If you would prefer Monday through Friday boarding with your puppy home on the weekends just let us know!
Ready to get started? Email us at info@happyhounduniversity.com or through the contact form below to schedule your boarding consult!