Dog Training Institute

I would not recommend this facility, especially for senior dogs. First, their “no contact” boarding means zero access to grass. Dogs are kept entirely on hard surfaces, which I find unacceptable. This is especially frustrating given that they charge premium prices, yet the environment and level of care feel more like a county shelter than a high-end boarding facility. My poor Aussie, who is reactive needed no contact boarding, and was stuck on concrete for 10 days. He came home and spent 25 minutes outside on the grass relieving himself. More importantly, my other dog, who is a senior was injured while in their care, and I was not informed proactively. I only learned something was wrong after I reached out for an update, and even then I didn’t receive a response until more than 24 hours after my message. They told me they could take her to the vet, but claimed no one was available due to the holiday. Instead of taking her to an emergency vet, they did nothing—allowing the wound to worsen significantly and become severely infected. (See pics - the first 2 are what the facility sent me on Sunday, Dec 27 and the 3rd one is from after I picked her up yesterday, January 2. The 4th is post-vet visit.) By the time I picked her up, my dog was unable to walk and clearly in a great deal of pain. I took her to our vet immediately, who was horrified that she had not been taken to an emergency vet given her condition. She had an exam, bloodwork, x-rays, medicated bandages, and $850 in vet bills just to get her stabilized. She’s now on THREE antibiotics (because of the level of infection) and pain meds. We will be returning to the vet every 3 days for bandage changes and check-ups until she’s healed, which I was warned will be a slow process. Not to mention ending up with even more vet bills. Thankfully, she is now on the road to recovery, but this situation was completely avoidable. As a smaller but still frustrating note: they continue to send me canned training emails about reinforcing behaviors. I did not use this business for training—I used them strictly for boarding over Christmas and New Year’s, which makes these messages feel tone-deaf given what happened. I trusted this facility with my dog’s care and safety, and that trust was broken. If you love your dog—especially if they are older or vulnerable—I strongly suggest looking elsewhere.

I used them to board my two dogs last minute when our normal facility renovations were not completed in time. The dogs were boarding for 18 days so I was a little nervous. My one dog is reactive and has been in training for over a year so I knew he can only board at a facility that specializes in reactivity and can handle him properly if he did react. From the moment we arrived Sebastian took to the trainer and other employees which amazed me! The easy send off really helped me not worry to about them. The place is an hour away from where I live, but I would definitely use them again!

Hello! We enlisted the services of Ashley & team for a 2 week board & train a few months back when our GSD, Maggie, was 16 weeks. She is now 6 months old so I wanted to provide an honest review along with some feedback based on what we have experienced since she returned home. Maggie returned to us a completely different pup (in a good way!) and for the most part, we couldn’t be more pleased! Yes, there are times where she isn’t perfect, but I couldn’t imagine where we would be today without the foundation that Ashley & team has built...Not just for our own sanity here, but for Maggie’s overall happiness and quality of life as well. This is something that I will be able to continuously build on over the years and is priceless in terms of the amount of happiness created for both pet & owner rewarding positive behaviors. That said, I do have some feedback on where I believe Ashley & team could improve on this experience for the owners of the pups that are away at the board & train program. I believe that a little bit more of an explanation on expectations/upkeep upon graduation along with more proactive updates on progress during the stay would go a long way here. This is an easy fix and in no way takes away from the services that they provide! In summary, Ashley & team 100% deserves the 5 star review that they are receiving from me here. I am forever grateful for the hard work that they have put in to help Maggie be set up for success on this wonderful journey of a life she is embarking on. Lastly, I will also be working with them in the future on continued education as I could not imagine taking her to another trainer. Obviously, I highly recommend. :)

Ajax, a European Doberman, spent two weeks with Ashley at Board and Train, as well as continued weekly training at the age of 11 months old. Although Ajax had some previous training with another local trainer, we reached out to Dog Training Institute because of his breed, lineage and ongoing aggressive behavior towards other dogs. Ashley’s experience with working Dobermans made her the perfect choice for our Ajax. Her environment is clean and her team is respectful of the animals they come in contact with. We are excited and optimistic with Ajax’s progress under Ashley’s training, as well as the ongoing progress we are making as Ajax’s parents.❤️

We just picked up our 12 month old German Shepherd Gunner, from the two week board and train program. This program exceeded our expectations. Gunner met all of his goals and we could tell he really enjoyed working with his trainer, Jessica. Elena did a wonderful job explaining things to us at drop off and pick up. Both of these ladies were very kind and professional. I can tell Gunner was treated with love, care, and compassion during his stay here. Excellent value for the results we received. We highly recommend this program! Thank you again Dallas Dog training institute!! The Melton’s