Therapeutic Board & Train

Additional details:

• What we do: During a TB&T we are assessing and working on the following aspects of care.  We do not hit EVERY bullet; we tailor the learning tasks and goals to everyone's needs.  For some, we may touch on multiple areas, for others we may focus hard on one: 

  • Assessing a dog’s learning style: impulse control, frustration tolerance, known cues, learning superstitions, relevancy of reinforcers, distractibility, learning conditions that are ideal, learning speed and more – this helps inform the success of the rest of the treatment plan.

  • If we do not already know or the guardians are struggling to find effective reinforcers, we engage in a deliberate reinforcement testing process.

  • Develop coping and self-regulation skills and fluency 

  • Condition dogs to become comfortable with management tools that you can use at home

  • Teach dogs that they can have different emotional and behavioral responses to current triggers 

  • Assess how you may be able to assist the dog in recovering and decompressing from their stressors 

  • Incorporate environmental opportunities into the dog’s training sessions (i.e. pausing at each gate and waiting to be released may support front door/guest management strategies and reduce impulsivity) 

  • Assist in loading patients on long-term medications, assessing for side effects and consulting the doctor to adjust as needed 

  • Situational/fast-acting medication testing for efficacy and side effects – note, that doses required may be different in the home environment than in the boarding environment (typically lower), patients will likely be discharged with a range of doses to trial in different stressful circumstances at home 

  • As indicated, assessment of utility of pain medications or other treatments the doctor recommends; re-evaluation of physical response to treatments as indicated during boarding 

• Methods we use:  As a team grounded in science and evidence-based practice, and as a veterinary team that takes an oath to "do no harm," all of the methods we use keep the welfare of the dog at the heart of what we do.  Our goals are to teach skills, new associations and improve resilience in a manner that treats anxiety and does not make it worse.  As a result we do not utilize shock collars, prong collars and other punishment-based training devices in our protocols.  

• No guarantees:  There are no guarantees about what we accomplish and what skills they will have when they go home – this is a large part dependent on what skills they have coming in, any learning we have to “undo”, training history, their stress levels and ability to learn in the boarding facility, duration the problem behavior has been going on, responsiveness to available/informed reinforcers, appropriateness of their medication support at the time of the TB&T for the conditions they are in, and your compliance with the treatment plans up until that point.  It would be unethical to guarantee an outcome given the dynamic nature of their experience, learning and the environment.  Any trainer that guarantees an outcome is not acknowledging the uniqueness of the individual or allowing for the learner to proceed at the pace that is best for their welfare.  

• Exclusive to TVBC patients:  All dogs participating in the Therapeutic Board & Train must have completed at least a Diagnostic Behavior Consultation with our team to be eligible.  A doctor or behavior therapy technician of The Veterinary Behavior Center will determine if your dog is well-suited for this service or not.  

• Scheduling:  Our team is in Hawaii approximately once a quarter for a period of 7-10 days. For this reason, TB&T weeks are limited as to when we can offer them.  Call to find out next available dates.  If boarding is needed outside these times, please contact Ali'i Unleashed for their non-therapeutic boarding services. 

• Bringing items from home:  We encourage you to bring their dog beds, food, favorite treats and toys, etc. as long as your dog is safe to engage with them unmonitored in their suite, so we can provide them with as many of the comforts of home as possible.  If your dog has a tendency to consume non-food items then we ask you only send items you know they cannot consume.  We also ask you to leave irreplaceable items at home.

• Maximizing safety:   Everything we do, we do with safety in mind.

  • The Veterinary Behavior Center team is highly skilled at safe and defensive leash handling skills, kennel etiquette, behavior redirection and reinforcing appropriate and calm behaviors.  We are experts at reading dog body language, engaging in consented handling and knowing when too much is too much.  In this way we can keep ourselves and those around us safe, by maximizing the likelihood your pet feels safe. 

  • We are mindful of overstimulation and overarousal leading to poor emotional self-regulation.  We intentionally provide decompression time, training breaks, play breaks and outside time so dogs have a chance to gather themselves and reset.   

  • We never let dogs contact each other on leash, unless specifically part of the treatment program or a patient is approved for dog play time.  Team members are all fluent at avoiding interdog conflicts. 

  • As a veterinary team, the medical health of your pet is attended to.  We are watching food intake, urine and fecal output, limping, itchiness, skin lesions and anything else that may affect their medical well-being.  We are proactive about their surroundings to ensure they do not get access to something they are not supposed to.   The Ali’i Unleashed Resort has careful infectious disease and safety protocols for all their boarding patients, ours included.  

  • We utilize safety barriers as needed to keep people and dogs safe.  We utilize leashing systems for redundancy when needed and have techniques to minimize the flight risk/bolting behaviors that may occur.   

  • If needed, we can engage in a full TB&T with minimal handling.  Our technicians are trained in protected contact treatment techniques whereby there is a barrier in place between dog and person.  Potty breaks and other standard handling will be modified to accommodate this. 

• Sibling co-housing:  if your dog gets comfort out of a housemate and it would be safe to house them together, this is an option we can discuss whether the sibling is a TVBC patient or not.  We are unable to test new fast acting medications in co-housed patients due to risk of side effects.  Additional fees will apply depending on level of care the sibling receives. 

• Extending their stay: If you would like for your dog to stay at Ali'i Unleashed for additional days on either the front or back end of the TB&T, we can arrange for standard boarding if their is availability and your dog qualifies behaviorally and medically. 

• Picking Up Early: While we cannot guarantee outcome, we can guarantee to be honest with you about the potential success of the program and goals that might need to be adjusted.  If a patient arrives and is having a lot of difficulty learning because they are so stressed, and we are unable to adjust the medications appropriately, we will discuss with you whether remaining the full week is productive or not.  We will keep the welfare of the dog in our care as top priority.  If the TVBC team determines that the TB&T cannot be successful, and the client agrees to pick up their dog, a pro-rated refund will be given depending on the care received and time involved in the case.  This must be initiated by the TVBC team to qualify for a pro-rated refund.  If a client elects to pick up their dog early of their own accord, no refunds will be given.