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List of Tricks
1. Start with your dog in the sitting
position
2. Apply pressure inward on the shoulder of the paw that you would like your
dog to lift.
3. Give the command "shake" as your dog lifts his paw.
4. Grab the paw of the dog as soon as it is off the ground.
5. Praise & Reward
6. Release the paw
7. Repeat steps 1-6 until you do not need to apply any pressure on the shoulder
of the dog.
8. When the dog understands the command, start lifting your hand until you
are shaking the dogs paw at a level that is comfortable to you. The dog does
not get any Praise & Reward until the paw is placed in your hand.
The dog must know Shake A Paw first.
1. Start with your dog in the sitting
position.
2. Give the command "shake wave" ie/ your shake command first and your wave
command second
3. Lift your hand slightly higher than you would if your dog was shaking a
paw.
4. Praise & Reward as soon as the paw is in your hand.
5. Repeat steps 1-4 until the dog is placing his paw almost above his head.
6. Give the command "wave" (the dog should begin to be familiar with this
command since you have been using the commands shake and wave together)
7. Place your hand higher than the dog can reach.
8. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog strives to reach your hand.
9. Repeat steps 6-8 until the dog is familiar with the command.
1. Start with your dog in a down
position.
2. Tilt one of the hips by gently pushing the hip to one side
3. Grab the upper part of the dogs front leg and back leg on the same side
of the dogs hip tilt
4. Give the command "rollover" as you gently rock your dog to the other side
5. Praise & Reward the instant he reaches the other side.
6. Repeat steps 1-5 until the dog can do the command without any assistance
from you.
1. Start with your dog in a down
position.
2. Tilt one of the dogs hips by gently pushing the hip to one side.
3. Give the command "bang" as you gently push the front shoulder down in the
direction that the hip is tilted while gently pulling the upper front leg
towards you on the ground.
4. Praise & Reward as soon as the head and hip are flat to one side.
5. Repeat steps 1-4 until the dog can do the command without any assistance
from you.
If you want a very convincing dead dog, every time you shoot the dog keep petting him and talk to him in soft tones until he goes completely limp and closes his eyes. This might take a long time.
1. Start with your dog in
a standing position
2. Put one hand under the back legs.
3. Give the command "bow" as you encourage the dog to slide down and back
by showing the dog a treat/toy and moving the treat down to the ground between
the front paws.
4. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog is in the bowing position.
5. Repeat steps 1-4 until the dog understands the command and can do it without
any assistance from you.
1. Start with your dog in a down
position
2. Put one hand on the top of the dogs front shoulders.
3. Have a toy/treat in your other hand just within reach of the dogs front
paws.
4. Give the command "crawl" as you encourage the dog to move its front paws
towards the treat/toy. If the dog tries to get up, apply some pressure on
his front shoulders.
5. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has done one step crawling. 6. Repeat
steps 1-5 until the dog can accomplish one step without any assistance from
you and begins to understand the command crawl.
7. Repeat steps 1-5 until the dog can do several steps crawling. When the
dog understands the command, work at giving the command from a standing position.
This command is essential for Say Your Prayers
1. Start with your dog in a standing
position towards a wall.
2. Give the command "paws up" as you encourage the dog to put his paws on
the wall by holding a treat/toy above his head on the wall.
3. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has touched the front wall with
his paws.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog understand the command.
Part A
1. Start with your dog in a sitting position towards a table/chair or even
a small box for the smaller dogs.
2. Give the command "paws up" for the dog to put his paws on the table/chair/box.
Make sure the hind legs are still in a sitting position as the dogs paws are
on the table/chair/box.
3. Give the command "say your prayers" as you put the toy/treat under the
hole that the dogs front legs have created.
4. Praise & Reward as soon as your dog has stuck his head between his
front legs. Increase the amount of time that the dog has his head between
the legs and reduce the amount of pressure needed to hold the dogs legs on
the table/chair/box until the dog does not need a holder for his legs.
5. Repeat steps 1-4 until the dog understands the command.
Part B
When the dog will "say your prayers" for about 10 seconds than you can teach
him to bring his head up on the command amen.
1. Give the command "say your prayers".
2. When the dogs head is in the hole give the command "amen" and encourage
the dog to lift his head by putting his toy/treat by his front paws after
he has put his hand down the hole.
3. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog lifts his head.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog understands the command.
1. Start with your dog in a standing
position facing you.
2. Give the command "turn" as you move the dogs' toy/treat in a circle starting
from the dogs head and working its way behind the dog.
3. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has completed a circle.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog has an understanding of the command and
will do the command without any assistance from you.
You can teach the dog to turn both to the left and to the right; however, you must have a different command or signal for each side.
1. Start with your dog facing you.
You might want to have him tied up to an object.
2. Give the command "speak" as you playfully tease the dog. If your dog automatically
barks when someone comes to the door, then you might want to try tapping on
the door to stimulate the dog to bark.
3. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has barked once.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog understands the command.
Some dogs might not bark but will howl. So instead of teaching the dog to bark on command, you can use the above method to teach the dog to howl on command.
You will need some object for the dog to go around for this trick. ex: garbage can, chair, box etc....
1. Start with your dog facing the
object that you would like him to go around.
2. Give the command "around" as you bring his treat/toy around the object.
3. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has gone around the object.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog has an understanding of the command and
will do the command without any assistance from you.
Once the dogs know how to go around an object one way, you can teach him the same trick with a different command to signify going around a different way. If your dog has a firm understanding of this trick, you can teach him to do barrel racing like the horses.
You will need some object for the dog to go under for this trick. ex: chair, stick, small table etc...
1. Start with your dog on a leash
facing the object that you would like him to go under. Make sure the leash
is under the object.
2. Give the command "under" as you encourage the dog with a gentle pop to
go under the object.
3. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has gone under the object.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog has an understanding of the command and
will do the command off leash without any assistance from you.
This trick is only suitable for small to medium size dogs unless you have very long legs.
1. Start with your dog in a sitting
position beside you.
2. Have a toy treat in the hand furthest away from the dog.
3. Give the command "weave" as you step forward with the leg that is furthest
away from the dog while encouraging the dog to go under your leg with your
toy/treat.
4. Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has gotten to the other side by
going under your leg.
5. Now follow steps 1-4 with your dog on the other side.
6. Once your dog has the basic concept of the trick, do two steps before you
Praise & Reward. Keep increasing the number of steps as your dogs' understanding
of the trick grows.
The dogs should be a minimum of a year old for small dogs and 2 years for very large dogs before they start doing any jumping. Jumping is extremely stressful on the joints. Make sure that your dog is not overweight nor unfit before you start teaching jumping. If you are in doubt about the state of your dogs health check with your veterinarian whether you should jump the dog. If you have a breed that is prone to hip dysplasia, it might be wise to do a preliminary X-Ray of the hips. We will start with learning how to go over a basic jump. Once we know how to do a basic jump we can do variations on this command. If your dog really has a passion for jumping, you might want to check out agility.
Basic Jump
You will need to have a small obstacle for the dog to jump. If you do not have a bar jump then you can fabricate one from a broom stick over a couple of small boxes or a broom stick over a couple of pillows etc.... The dog should be on a leash. The steps 1-9 are expected to take place over several days. Do not push your dog to do a shoulder level jump on the first day. He might not be ready for it.
1) Start with the bar (broomstick,
etc...) on the ground.
2) Give the command "jump" as you go over the bar with your dog on leash.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as your dog has gotten to the other side by
going over the bar.
4) Practise steps 1-3 several times until your dog is comfortable going over
the bar.
5) Next leave your dog on a stay on one side of the bar jump as you go to
the other side.
6) Give the command "jump" and encourage the dog to go over the jump by giving
him a gentle pop on the collar.
7) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog gets to the other side of the bar
jump.
8) Repeat steps 5-7 until the dog is comfortable going over the bar jump on
his own.
9) Now you can repeat steps 1-8 with the bar at a higher level. Raise the
bar gradually, 8-10 cm at a time is sufficient. A reasonable level for most
dogs to jump is shoulder height. Many dogs can go jump higher than this level;
however, please be aware that jumping is stressful on the dogs joints.
You will need a stick for this trick.
1) Start with facing the wall with
your dog beside you on leash. Hold the stick in the hand closest to the dog
with the other end touching the wall. The stick should be close to the ground
but not touching the ground. Hold the leash in the other hand.
2) Give the command "jump" as you encourage the dog to go over the stick by
giving him a gentle pop on the collar.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog gets to the other side of the stick.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog is comfortable jumping over the stick. At
this point you can start raising the stick until the dog is jumping at a level
that he and you are comfortable with. Repeat steps 1-3 with the stick at a
higher level.
5) Now you can start working away from the wall. Repeat steps 1-3 while gradually
moving away from the wall.
6) Try the trick without the leash.
You will need a treat/toy that will grab your dogs attention or a partner to help you with this trick.
Treat/toy Method
1) Start with your arms in a circle
2-4 cm off the ground with your hands touching the wall (a doorway works best)
and your dog sitting on one side of you and the toy/treat on the other side.
2) Give the command "through" as you encourage the dog to go through your
arms towards the toy/treat.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog gets to the other side.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog is comfortable going through your arms.
At this point you can raise your arms until the dog is jumping through your
arms at a height that is comfortable to you and your dog. 5) Repeat steps
1-3 as you gradually move away from the wall. With some dogs you might need
to lower the height as you move away from the wall and then raise it again
gradually.
Partner Method
1) Start with your arms in a circle
2-4 cm off the ground with your hands touching the wall, your dog should be
on one side and your partner should be on the other side with a toy/treat.
The dog should be on a leash with the leash going through the circle.
2) Give the command "through" as your partner gives the dog a gentle pop to
go through your arms.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog gets to the other side.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog is comfortable going through your arms.
At this point you can raise your arms until the dog is jumping through your
arms at a height that is comfortable to you and your dog.
5) Try steps 1-3 without the leash but with the partner still holding the
dogs toy/treat.
6) Repeat steps 1-3 as you gradually move away from the wall. With some dogs
you might need to lower the height as you move away from the wall and then
raise it again gradually.
7) Try steps 1-3 without the partner.
You will need some obstacle that can hold the dogs' weight such as a table, chair, bed etc..... Whatever obstacle that you chose, make sure that is large enough for the dog to stand on and that it can hold the dogs' weight. If possible have several different size obstacles so that you can start with a low obstacle and increase the height as the dogs' confidence increases.
1) Start with the dog on
leash facing the obstacle (If you have several different obstacles with varying
height, start with the lowest obstacle)
2) Give the command "on" while you give the dog a gentle pop towards the obstacle.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog is on the obstacle.
4) Repeat steps 1-4 until the dog is confident with the command. If you have
obstacles of different height, increase the height as soon as the dog is confident
with the command at the low height.
5) Repeat steps 1-3 with the dog off leash.
In order to do this command, you have got to be able to lift your dog fairly easily. The dog will be trusting you to be able to catch him. You will also need a chair for this command.
1) Start with the dog on leash
facing you.
2) Give the command "arms" as you encourage your dog to jump onto your lap
by giving him a gentle pop on the collar.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog is on your lap.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog is confidently jumping onto your lap. Repeat
steps 1-3 with your dog off leash.
5) Now put your back against a wall and have your dog facing you. Your knees
should be bent almost to a sitting position. But not so much that you do not
have any balance.
6) Give the command "arms" as you encourage your dog to jump into your arms.
MAKE SURE YOU CATCH THE DOG.
7) Praise & Reward as soon as you catch the dog.
8) Repeat steps 5-7 until your dog is confidently jumping into your arms.
Also work on decreasing the amount that your knees are bent until you are
almost standing straight.
9) Go to an open space and stand straight with your dog facing you.
10) Give the command "arms" as you encourage your dog to jump into your arms.
MAKE SURE YOU CATCH THE DOG.
11) Praise & Reward as soon as you catch the dog.
12) Repeat steps 9-11 until the dog is confidently jumping into your arms.
I will be showing only one method for retrieving. If your dog does not learn how to retrieve from this method I would suggest checking with some of the obedience books.
Basic Retrieve
You will need a toy that the dog absolutely adores.
1) Start with the dog on leash
beside.
2) Tease the dog with the toy.
3) Throw the toy but within the length of the leash.
4) Give the command "fetch" as the dog runs to pick up his toy.
5) Praise the dog as soon as he has the toy in his mouth.
6) Pop the dog back towards you.
7) Give the command "drop it" as you take the toy from the dog.
8) Praise & Reward.
9) Repeat steps 1-8 until your dog is confidently retrieving. Decrease the
amount that you tease the dog until you are not teasing the dog with the toy
at all.
10) Repeat steps 3-8 without the leash.
Once your dog knows this trick, you can use the same method to teach him how to retrieve anything such as dog bowls, leashes, tennis balls, baskets, etc....
You will need a toy that the dog absolutely adores and an area that you can hide the toy in. For more information about scenting check out the Search and Rescue books.
Level A
1) Start with teasing the dog with the toy.
2) Tell the dog sit/stand or down stay while you hide the dog. Your dog should
see you hide the toy. Before you hide the toy, make sure you scent the toy
by touching it all over the place.
3) Give the command "find it" as you verbally encourage the dog to find the
toy.
4) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog finds the toy.
5) Repeat steps 1-4 until your dog is confidently finding the toy. Also decrease
the amount of teasing until you are not teasing the dog with the toy at all.
Level B
6) Now hide the toy without your dog seeing where you hide it. Perhaps put
your dog in a stay in another room or behind a barrier. Make sure that the
dog has seen and smelled the toy that he is required to find.
7) Give the command "find it" as you verbally encourage the dog to find the
toy.
8) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog finds the toy.
9) Repeat steps 6-8 until your dog is confidently finding the toy.
Level C
10) Get a variety of different objects (3-4) that are very very clean. Do
not touch them. Get a friend to spread the obstacles on the floor or spread
them yourself but use gloves.
11) Choose one of the objects. Scent the object with your hands.
12) Put it in the pile with the other objects.
13) Give the command "find it".
14) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog finds the object with your scent.
15) Repeat steps 10-14 until your dog is confidently scenting a number of
objects.
Make sure your dog understands each level before progressing onto the next one. If he has trouble on one level regress a bit and go back to repeat the level before it. If the dog is stalled on Level C and is picking up each object until he gets the correct object and he is not scenting the objects at all then I would suggest giving a verbal correction as soon as he picks up the wrong objects. Make sure he has a thorough understanding of scenting before you begin to correct him.
1) Start with the dog in front
of you in a stand position.
2) Give the command "back up" as you start moving towards him.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has backed up a couple of steps.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 until your dog is confidently backing up as you go towards
him.
5) Give the command "back up" but do not walk towards the dog.
6) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has backed up a couple of steps.
If the dog did not obey, go back and repeat steps 1-3 until the dog has a
better understanding of the command.
7) Repeat steps 5-6 until the dog can back up a reasonable distance.
Once your dog knows how to back up from a standing position, you can start training it to back up from a down or a sit position and have it back up sitting or down. If you are extremely lucky, you might have a dog that will automatically back up in a sit or down position without any additional training. I use the same command "back up" for all the positions since I expect my dogs to back up from the position that they are originally in; however, you may want to change the command for each position.
This trick will teach the dog to pull an object by its teeth. The dog should be retrieving before attempting this trick. You will need an object that the dog can pull. ex: a ball in a sock, a soft rope tied around some books, a mat etc.... Please make sure that the object is light enough for the dog to pull it and that the section that you want the dog to grip is soft. Do not use metal chains.
1) Start with your dog sitting
in front of you.
2) Tease the dog with object that you would like the dog to pull.
3) When the dog goes to put his mouth on the object, give the dog the command
"pull"
4) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has pulled the object a couple of
steps.
5) Repeat steps 1-4 until you do not need to tease the dog with the object.
6) Repeat steps 1-5 until the dog can pull the object several feet.
Sit-Up Pretty
Some dogs will do this command naturally, particularly small dogs who are constantly trying be taller. I have included two methods for this command. The first method is basically for dogs that are already doing it on their own, the second method is for dogs that we have to show how to situp pretty. Please be aware that this command can be very difficult for some dogs to learn since it requires learning how to balance on the dogs back legs.
Natural Method Check
1) Start with your dog sitting in front of you.
2) Give the command "situp" as you put a toy or treat above and slightly behind
his head. Encourage him to situp.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog is sitting up.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog understands the command.
Showing Method
IF YOU OR YOUR DOG STARTS TO GET FRUSTRATED WITH THIS TRICK, LEAVE IT AND
RETURN TO IT LATER.
Part 1
1) Start with the dog sitting in front of you.
2) Give the command "situp" as you take hold of the dogs front paws and lift
them off the ground into the situp pretty position. Have a toy/treat in the
other hand above the dogs head.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog is in the situp pretty position.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog is accustomed to having his front legs off
the ground.
Part 2
5) Start with the dog sitting in front of you.
6) Give the command "situp" as you take hold of the dogs front paws and lift
them off the ground.
7) Give the command "wait" and take away the hand that was holding the dogs
front paws. Make sure that when you do not take away your hand until the dog
is in the correct situp position.
8) Praise & Reward as soon as you have taken your hand away.
9) Repeat steps 5-8 gradually increasing the time that the dog is sitting
pretty until he can do it for 5-10 seconds before receiving the Praise &
Reward.
If your dog cannot hold his front legs up, it can be for two reasons: 1) the dog does not understand what you expect from it; 2) the dog is having trouble with balancing. If you believe the reason is number 1 and you have been practising Part 1 and 2 for several days, try Part 3. If you believe it is number 2, keep practising Part 1 and Part 2 until the dog starts to get his balance.
Part 3 (only for dogs NOT sitting
pretty)
10) Start with the dog sitting in front of you.
11) Give the command "situp" as you take hold of the dogs front paws and lift
them off the ground.
12) Give the command "wait" and take away the hand that was holding the dogs
front paws. Make sure that the dog is in the correct situp position as you
take your hand away.
13) If the dogs front legs touch the ground give him a verbal correction and
try steps 10-13. If after a couple of times of trying steps 10-13 the dog
does not understand, go back to Part 1 and try Part 1 a couple of times before
repeating Part 3.
14) Praise & Reward as soon as you take your hand away.
15) Repeat steps 10-14 until the dog is sitting pretty for 5-10 seconds.
Part 4
At this point the dog should be able to balance on his own on his back legs.
16) Start with the dog sitting in front of you.
17) Give the command "situp", you might want to put a toy/treat above and behind
the dogs head to encourage him to situp.
18) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog is sitting pretty.
19) Repeat steps 16-18 until the dog is going up onto his hind legs on his own
and sitting pretty for 5-10 seconds.
The dog must know how to shake a paw before progressing onto this trick.
1) Start with the dog standing
in front of you.
2) Give the command "shake". As your dog lifts his paw, take it and hold onto
it.
3) Give the command "limp" as you encourage your dog forward.
4) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog has gone one step.
5) Repeat steps 1-4 until the dog can limp one step without you holding onto
the paw.
6) Repeat steps 1-4 until the dog can limp several steps.
This trick will teach the dog to stand up straight on his back legs. I would not recommend this trick for any large dog. As with the beg command, I have included a natural method check. Many dogs, particularly the smaller breeds do this trick on their own. With the dogs that already know how to do this trick, you just have to teach them to do it on command. The method for teaching this trick is very similar to the sit-up pretty trick. In addition, some dogs do take a while to learn how to balance on their back legs.
Natural Method Check
1) Start with your dog standing in front of you.
2) Give the command "up" as you put a toy or treat above and slightly behind
his head. Encourage him to stand up on his back legs.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog is standing up on his back legs.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog understands the command.
Showing Method
IF YOU OR YOUR DOG STARTS TO GET FRUSTRATED WITH THIS TRICK, LEAVE IT AND
RETURN TO IT LATER.
Part 1
1) Start with the dog standing in front of you.
2) Give the command "up" as you take hold of the dogs front paws and lift
them off the ground until the dog is standing up on his back legs. Have a
toy/treat in the other hand above the dogs head.
3) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog is standing up on his back legs.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 until the dog is accustomed to having his front legs off
the ground.
Part 2
5) Start with the dog standing in front of you.
6) Give the command "up" as you take hold of the dogs front paws and lift
them off the ground.
7) Give the command "wait" and take away the hand that was holding the dogs
front paws. Make sure that you do not take away your hand until the dog is
standing on his back legs.
8) Praise & Reward as soon as you have taken your hand away.
9) Repeat steps 5-8 gradually increasing the time that the dog is standing
on his back legs until he can do it for 5-10 seconds before receiving the
Praise & Reward.
If your dog cannot hold his front legs up, it can be for two reasons: 1) the dog does not understand what you expect from it; 2) the dog is having trouble with balancing. If you believe the reason is number 1 and you have been practising Part 1 and 2 for several days, try Part 3. If you believe it is number 2, keep practising Part 1 and Part 2 until the dog starts to get his balance.
Part 3 (only for dogs NOT standing
on his back legs)
10) Start with the dog standing in front of you.
11) Give the command "up" as you take hold of the dogs front paws and lift
them off the ground.
12) Give the command "wait" and take away the hand that was holding the dogs
front paws. Make sure that the dog is in the correct position for standing
on his back legs as you take your hand away.
13) If the dogs front legs touch the ground, give him a verbal correction
and try steps 10-13. If after a couple of times of trying steps 10-13 the
dog does not understand, go back to Part 1 and try Part 1 a couple of times
before repeating Part 3.
14) Praise & Reward as soon as you take your hand away and your dog stays
up for 1 second.
15) Repeat steps 10-14 until the dog is sitting pretty for 5-10 seconds.
Part 4
At this point the dog should be able to balance on his own on his back legs.
16) Start with the dog standing in front of you.
17) Give the command "up", you might want to put a toy/treat above and behind
the dogs head to encourage him to stand up on his back legs.
18) Praise & Reward as soon as the dog is standing on his back legs.
19) Repeat steps 16-18 until the dog is going up onto his back legs on his
own and balancing for 5-10 seconds.
