10/15/2026
Boone’s One Week Check-In!
One week into his 3-week Board & Train program, and this busy, impulsive young Labradoodle is making some great progress!
At just 6 months old, Boone is still very much a puppy. He’s curious, easily distracted, full of energy, and often acts on impulse before giving much thought to what he’s doing. That’s exactly why establishing a solid foundation of obedience at this age is so important.
The commands you’re seeing in this video are about much more than teaching Boone to sit, down, come, or walk nicely on a leash. We’re giving him a foundation that will help structure his everyday routines, develop self-control, and teach him how to make better choices.
Without that foundation, how can we expect him to know what we’d like him to do instead?
When unwanted behaviors arise, we need to be able to communicate what the appropriate behavior looks like. Whether that’s staying on Place when guests arrive, walking calmly instead of pulling, waiting at a doorway, or holding a Down when something exciting is happening around him, these commands give us a way to guide him toward the right choices.
Without that guidance, a young puppy like Boone will naturally do what puppies do. He’ll jump, pull, rush ahead, chase distractions, and act on whatever catches his attention. The more opportunities he has to practice those behaviors, the more familiar and habitual they become, making them increasingly difficult to change as he grows.
By introducing obedience now, we’re getting ahead of those habits while also preparing him for situations and challenges he hasn’t even encountered yet.
We’re not expecting perfection from a 6-month-old puppy. We’re teaching him what our expectations are and giving him the tools to meet them.
There’s still plenty of work ahead as we build consistency, introduce more distractions, and strengthen his reliability, but this first week has given Boone a great starting point for everything to come!
