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Booking a stay

How do I book board and train?

Online booking handles daycare, overnight stays and grooming, but a training stay needs a plan before it gets a date. Here is the order the steps run in, a sample form message written out in full, and what makes a booking complete.

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Small doodle smiling during a playgroup at Dogtown

Last reviewed October 10, 2026 · by the Dogtown team · reviewed by Gabriella Pope, Director of Training & Canine Behaviorist

The order

A stay is booked in a fixed order, and each step leaves you with something in hand

The form leaves you with a reply, within one hour on business days. The consult leaves you with a recommendation, Foundation, Advanced or another program, and the quote that goes with it. The evaluation leaves you with a result: whether your dog is ready to stay and which playgroup could suit it during the integration part of the program. The confirmation leaves you with dates and terms in writing. Nothing is held on the calendar before that last step.

The order matters because each step can change the next one. A consult may show that fear, not manners, is the real problem, and point you to React Less, Relax More or private sessions instead of a stay. An evaluation may suggest group time should wait. A dog that already attends Dogtown daycare may have its evaluation on file, so mention that on the form, because it can shorten the path.

  1. 01

    Send the training form, choosing Dog Training

  2. 02

    Read the reply and book the consult with Gabby

  3. 03

    Receive the recommendation and the quote

  4. 04

    Complete the new customer form and the free evaluation

  5. 05

    Agree the dates, the drop-off window and the lesson dates

  6. 06

    Pay what the written terms require, then pack

The form, filled in

A useful form message answers five questions, and here is one written out

The form asks for your name, email, phone, your dog's name and breed, the service and a message. The message does the work. Write it so the trainer can picture your dog without a phone call: age and sex, whether spayed or neutered, the three behaviors you most want changed and where they happen, the dates you are aiming for, and anything about health or history that would change the plan.

Here is an example, invented for illustration. Pet: Juniper, a 10-month-old Labrador mix, spayed. Goals: pulls on the leash, jumps on visitors, recall fails in the yard. Dates: away March 8 to 21, could drop off March 6 or 7. Health: vaccines current, no medication. History: two daycare days a week elsewhere, no incidents. Questions: Foundation or Advanced, and the update format. A message like that lets the first reply move straight to booking the consult.

  • Age, sex and spay or neuter status
  • The three behaviors to change, and where they happen
  • Your target dates, with any flexibility
  • Health, medication and any bite or fight history
  • What you already do: daycare, classes, walks

Consult and evaluation

The consult chooses the program, and the evaluation confirms your dog can stay

At the consult, Gabriella Pope, Director of Training & Canine Behaviorist, asks about history, health and goals, then recommends a program. The quote comes out of that conversation, so it is also the time to ask how updates arrive, how many lessons you get, and how a heat, an illness or a late flight would be handled. Write the answers down while they are fresh, and ask for anything that affects cost in writing.

The free evaluation follows. It runs Monday to Friday between 6:30 and 9:30 AM by appointment, a temperament test and then a few supervised hours in a group. New customers complete the new customer form beforehand. Bring your dog on a leash with a secure collar or harness, proof of Rabies, DHPP and Bordetella, and a current license from your city or town; in Gloucester that comes from the City Clerk.

  • Consult: program, quote and your questions
  • New customer form before the evaluation
  • Evaluation: weekdays, 6:30 to 9:30 AM
  • Vaccine records and a current license in hand

Confirmation

A date is held only once it is confirmed in writing, with any deposit and its terms

Neither the form nor the consult reserves a date. Dates are set once the consult and the evaluation are done, and they come with the terms that govern them. Dogtown does not publish whether a deposit is taken for board and train, how much it would be or when it would stop being refundable; all of that arrives in writing with the confirmation. Read it at home before paying anything it asks for.

Ask four short questions as you read: how much is due now and when any balance is due; what happens if you move the dates; what happens if your dog is unwell before drop-off; and what happens if the evaluation points to a different program. Keep the answers with the confirmation, and put the drop-off window and the lesson dates into your calendar the same day.

Other ways in

Phone, email and the app reach the same team, but the form keeps your dog's details in one place

You can call 978 491-5922 during opening hours, Monday to Friday 6:30 AM to 6:30 PM and Saturday 8 AM to 6 PM, or write to info@dogtowndaycare.com, and existing clients can message the front desk in the Dogtown app. Each works for a quick question. For a booking, the form is better, because the trainer reads your dog's details in your own words before the consult rather than from a note of a phone call.

Online booking through MoeGo and the app cover daycare, Dogtown Academy days, overnight stays, grooming and add-ons, but not a training stay. Once your dates are confirmed, the app becomes useful again: the daily updates arrive there, and it is the quickest way to tell the front desk about a change. Families in Rockport, Gloucester, Essex and Manchester-by-the-Sea can ask whether the Pup Van, $10 each way, can bring the dog in.

At Dogtown

Arranged by the same front desk

A training stay starts with the form; the overnight suite it uses and the Pup Van are arranged alongside it.

Australian shepherd sitting attentively during training Dog TrainingFrom $94 per session · Explore Golden retriever resting on a cozy bed in a Dogtown boarding suite Overnight StaysFrom $78 · Explore

Every price on one page

Pick-up & drop-off

The Pup Van comes to you.

Pup Van pick-up and drop-off is available for $10 each way in the Rockport, Gloucester, Essex and Manchester-by-the-Sea area. Not in the area? Ask us for pricing.

  • Rockport
  • Gloucester
  • Essex
  • Manchester-by-the-Sea
Book with pick-up Ask about your area
The Dogtown Pup Van: a navy van with dog portraits, the Dogtown logo and the phone number on the side

Asked and answered

Questions people ask about this

Short, complete answers you can act on today. More in the full FAQ.

Why can't I choose board and train dates online?
Because a stay needs a plan before it gets a date. The consult decides the program and the quote, and the evaluation confirms your dog is ready to sleep here. Online booking and the Dogtown app handle daycare, Academy days, overnight stays and grooming, none of which need that step first.
How quickly will I hear back after sending the form?
Within one hour on business days, the reply time Dogtown publishes for training inquiries. That promise covers business days, so a form sent late in the evening or over a weekend waits for the next one. Include your target dates, so the reply can offer a consult time that leaves room for the evaluation.
Do I need the new customer form as well as the training form?
If your dog is new to Dogtown, yes. New customers complete the new customer form before the evaluation, which every dog staying overnight does. The training form starts the program conversation; the new customer form sets up your dog's record. A dog already attending our daycare will usually have that record in place.
Can I book the evaluation before the consult?
Ask on the form. The usual order is the consult first, because it decides whether a stay is the right program at all, then the evaluation. If your dates are close, say so, and the team can look at both appointments together so that neither one holds up the other.
When do I pay?
Payment follows the written terms that come with your confirmed dates, and those are not published, so we cannot give a schedule here. Ask when anything is due, whether a deposit counts toward the program price and whether it could move to new dates, and read the answers before paying.

More questions? Read the full FAQ

Sources

Rules and dates change. We re-check every beach, licensing and ordinance page each spring and fall; the source above is the current word.

Keep reading

Board and train in GloucesterBooking and availabilityThe consult and the evaluationDo you require a deposit? Board and train All guides

Next step

Start with the form.

Choose Dog Training, describe your dog and your dates, and ask your questions in the same message. The training team replies within one hour on business days.

Book online Customer inquiry Call 978 491-5922
  1. 01Free evaluationWeekdays 6:30 – 9:30 AM
  2. 02Book a dayOnline, in the app or by phone
  3. 03Play, rest, repeatReport card at pick-up
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