Dog Day School: Hannah and Bella's Story

Why Dog Day School might be the best choice for your dog

Hannah's family had wanted a dog for years, and Bella the Labrador joined them full of energy and enthusiasm. Before Bella started attending Royvon Dog Day School, she pulled the kids down the street on the lead, and once off lead at the park, would turn selectively deaf, refusing to come back, especially once a lake was involved, at which point she'd simply swim for hours.

The daily reality before day school

Hannah described a routine built entirely around managing Bella's behaviour: dropping the kids at school, then walking Bella on the lead (never off, in case she decided to bolt or swim and made everyone late), then home to leave her alone with toys for the day. On return, Bella would be a whirlwind, running, jumping on the kids, pulling coats, so full of pent-up energy that a long walk or game of ball became mandatory just to settle her down. Family outings were carefully chosen around what Bella could actually cope with, sitting outside a pub, visiting friends, a trip to the beach were all things the family dreamed of but couldn't quite manage.

Finding day school

Hannah found Royvon Dog School by chance on Facebook, and found booking online straightforward once registered. Bella now attends three days a week at a cost of £100, and after five weeks, the training was already paying off.

What changed

Bella learned to walk nicely on the lead without dragging the kids down the road. Recall remains an ongoing project, but Hannah's family now understands what they'd been doing wrong previously, having attended two training sessions with Bella's trainer to see her progress firsthand and learn exactly what to reinforce at home. Consistency, and practising the homework set by the trainer, turned out to be the key. Bella now comes home from day school and settles for the evening rather than needing to burn off a full day's pent-up energy, and mornings are considerably calmer for Hannah too, dropping Bella off at 8am and collecting around 5pm frees up her whole day. The family checks Royvon's daily social media updates each evening to see what Bella got up to at school, now a genuine highlight of their day.

Looking ahead

Hannah's family plans to keep sending Bella to day school, with the hope that continued progress will eventually mean bringing her camping as a family in summer, rather than needing a dog sitter.

Getting the right support

See also our guide on how to train your puppy. Get in touch to find out about booking your dog into Day School. Learn more about our play days programme and our social enrichment hub and Teaching Reliable Recall: Why It's the Most Important Skill Your Dog Can Learn and Teaching Loose Lead Walking: A Step-by-Step Approach.