Wilson's Dog Training

Arly is smart. He learned to sit in an hour, developed fairly solid recall, and would run to his "place" with such enthusiasm that sometimes both he and the bed would fly across the room. He loves every person and every dog he meets—maybe a little too enthusiastically. He perfected the art of stealing absolutely everything, most notably my reading glasses first thing in the morning. He yelled when he wasn't getting his way. He could pull me over when he wanted something. He had a lot of great skills and quite a few bad ones, too. He was well exercised—we were walking 4–5 miles a day. He was socialized. He had weekly playdates with many good dog friends. We did training sessions multiple times a day. His challenge wasn't learning skills; it was impulse control. I spent a lot of time researching trainers, classes, and board-and-train programs, but nothing felt quite right. Everything seemed to fall into one of two categories: either we were going back to learning how to sit, or I was going to end up with a highly trained police dog. It took me a while to wrap my head around the idea of a board-and-train. I felt like I should be able to train the dog who would eventually become in sync with me. Every time I pulled my mittens out of his mouth, I realized that while I could teach skills, I wasn't very good at teaching impulse control. It may have been the moment the vet handed me a bottle of trazodone and said, "Don't come back without giving him two," that finally pushed me into making a decision. I was drawn to Wilson's because they seemed to genuinely like labs. It was on a farm, and I knew Arly would love having space. Most importantly, they seemed to train dogs in a way that allowed the dog and human to build a relationship that made ownership enjoyable for both. I initially signed Arly up for two weeks because I wanted to see how it went. What I saw was a dog working hard and thinking hard, but also a dog who was still allowed to be the goofy lab that he is. There is something pretty magical about watching a dog listen, think, and respond. There is also something wonderful about watching his trainers laugh when his goofy side comes out. I decided that habits are formed over time, so I turned his two-week stay into four weeks. He learned so much. My house used to be a series of gates that I was constantly opening and closing. Now I can leave shoes by the door and, most of the time, they stay there. I know Arly has gone to the Farm King multiple times and managed to leave without committing a felony, so I know he can do it. Now I need to get to that point with him, too. A perfectly programmed dog is not what you get back. What you get back is a dog who is building skills, has had great experiences, and is ready to continue developing a relationship with its human. The thing I am most excited about is that Arly learned how to settle and nap at my feet—and he can do it without first needing a long morning walk. Sasha and Avery truly cared about Arly. That was evident every time I visited. Arly interacted with all of us as if we were family. He was happy there. After training sessions, he was basically saying, "Good seeing you, but my friends want me to play." I highly recommend the experience. Arly will be back for Morel Dogs, and if I take a trip, I'll probably board him at Wilson's. We are so glad Wilson's has become part of our lives.