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Stay or program

What is the difference between board and train and boarding?

From the street the two look the same, because your dog sleeps at 210 Eastern Ave either way. The difference lies in the daytime and at the end. This page sets out what the training blocks and the lessons add, and gives a quick way to choose.

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A Jack Russell Terrier sleeps in a white dog bed on a wood floor, holding a plush bear.

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

In a sentence

The nights are the same, while the days and the ending are not

An overnight stay is Dogtown's name for boarding. Your dog spends the day in a playgroup of 7 to 10 dogs matched by size and temperament, sleeps in a suite under 24/7 monitoring, and can have a bundle added: the Dogtown Classic for $10 a night more, with a daily homemade pupsicle or puppy cup and 10 percent off grooming, or the Dogtown Deluxe for $15 more, with a stuffed Kong or Toppl, daily treadmill or enrichment play and a memory-foam bed.

Board and train keeps the suite and the monitoring and changes what fills the day. Your dog trains in short blocks on a published skill list, joins daycare when appropriate, and you hear from us every day of the stay. Then comes the part boarding never has: the go-home lesson, where you take the leash and learn the cues, rewards and timing your dog was taught. Our board and train page sets out both programs.

  • Both: an overnight suite and 24/7 monitoring
  • Overnight stay: playgroups, rest and care, priced by the night
  • Board and train: training blocks on a fixed skill list
  • Board and train only: go-home lessons that hand the skills to you

The training blocks

The training blocks add a skill list, a plan and a trainer's time every day

During an overnight stay, staff run the playgroup and the routine, and no skill is taught to a plan. In board and train, every day has training blocks aimed at a fixed list. Foundation's list is basic obedience and leash skills, place, stay and recall, impulse control, and crate and household manners. Advanced keeps all of that and adds distraction proofing, real-world outings, neutrality, confidence building and structured socialization.

The blocks are short, separated by rest, enrichment and group time, and Gabriella Pope sets them for each dog after the assessment. Methods are force-free throughout: markers, food, play, a long line and management, with no e-collars or prong collars. The daily update tells you what was worked on and how it went, which is a different kind of message from the report card an overnight guest's family sees in the Dogtown app.

The lessons

The lessons add the handover that makes the training yours rather than ours

The go-home lesson is the reason board and train has a finish rather than a checkout time. The trainer runs each skill while you watch, then hands you the leash and coaches your timing, rewards and release word. Foundation includes one lesson; Advanced includes two scheduled coaching lessons, so the handover happens in stages. The AKC's guidance on board and train says a facility should teach owners all the verbal cues and hand signals it taught the dog.

Without that handover, a trained dog goes home to a household that does not know its cues, and the skills fade. That is why board and train ends in person, with time set aside for the lesson. An overnight stay simply ends with a collection inside a pick-up window and, if you like, a bath first, since Dogtown Grooming is on site and needs no evaluation.

  • Foundation: one go-home lesson
  • Advanced: two scheduled coaching lessons
  • Every lesson: you on the leash, with coaching
  • Overnight stay: a collection, with an optional groom first

Choosing

Choose by the question you are answering: where the dog goes, or what the dog learns

If the question is where your dog stays while you travel and its manners are fine, book the overnight stay; paying for lessons you did not need is poor value. If the question is how to change a habit and you cannot run daily sessions yourself, board and train fits, provided you can attend the lessons. In law the two share a category: Massachusetts defines a commercial boarding or training kennel as an establishment for boarding, day care, overnight stays or training of other people's animals for a fee.

That category is the one Ollie's Law addresses. The law was signed on September 20, 2024 and took effect on December 19, 2024, and MDAR's regulations for commercial boarding and training kennels were due in 2026; as of the March 18, 2026 advisory committee minutes they had not been released. Some dogs need neither format: a dog with serious fear or reactivity is usually better served by an owner-present program, and the steps below sort most households quickly.

  1. 01

    Ask whether you need care, change or both

  2. 02

    Care only, and good manners: book an overnight stay at $78 a night

  3. 03

    Change needed, and you can attend the lessons: ask about Foundation or Advanced

  4. 04

    Change needed, and you are home each evening: consider Canine Campus or Academy days

  5. 05

    Fear, reactivity or aggression: ask about an owner-present program first

  6. 06

    Either way: book the free evaluation on a weekday between 6:30 and 9:30 AM

At Dogtown

Two ways to stay at Dogtown

Overnight stays for care while you travel, and board and train when you want your dog to come home with new skills.

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

Every price on one page

Asked and answered

Questions people ask about this

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

Can I add training to an ordinary overnight stay?
Not as board and train, but you can add structure. Dogtown Academy days, $89 for a full day or $69 for a half, include a training session with our trainer, and enrichment add-ons such as a puzzle game or the sniff room, $7 each, can be booked onto overnight stay days. Ask the front desk which suits your dog.
Does my dog need an evaluation for both?
Yes. The free evaluation comes before overnight stays and before board and train, since both involve nights with us and group time. It runs on weekdays between 6:30 and 9:30 AM by appointment, with Rabies, DHPP and Bordetella on file and a current city or town dog license.
Which one costs more?
They are priced differently, so compare carefully. An overnight stay is priced by the night, $78 for the suite plus any bundle. Board and train is quoted as a program after a short assessment, with training sessions from $94, so weigh the quote against the nights it covers and the lessons it includes rather than a nightly rate.
Can a dog do an overnight stay first and board and train later?
Yes, and it can help. A dog that has already slept at 210 Eastern Ave knows the building, the suites and the routine, so a later training stay starts with less settling in. Book the overnight stay as usual and send the training form when you are ready to talk about a program.

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 at DogtownOvernight staysBoarding vs board and trainGo-home lessons Board and train All guides

Next step

Care, or care plus a plan?

Send the training form if you want a program, or book an overnight stay online. We reply within one hour on business days.

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  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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