101 Dog Tricks Read online

  Picture this failure scenario: you tell your dog to spin, while luring him in a circle with your treat, just as this book instructs. Your dog squirms and nips at your hand. You raise your voice and say in a more firm tone, “spin!” Your dog scratches himself, ignoring you. You grab his collar, yelling this time “spin!” while you drag him in a circle. He cowers down, while you grumble about your dumb dog.

  The single most common reason people fail teaching dog tricks is their lack of patience. Even trainers with bad timing, poor coordination, and lack of common sense can manage to teach tricks better than an impatient trainer.

  Picture this success scenario: you tell your dog to spin, while luring him in a circle with your treat, just as this book instructs. Your dog squirms and nips at your hand. You try again, luring your dog in a circle, as before. Your dog scratches himself, ignoring you. You try again, and your dog performs a lopsided sort of spin. “Yeah! That was great!” You try again, and again, and again, and a few hundred more times … and one day … you have it! How lucky are you to have the world’s smartest dog?

  Progress can be slow and frustrating—keeping an even temper and consistent training method requires patience.

  END ON A HIGH NOTE!

  Practicing new tricks is mentally tiring for your dog. Keep it fun and end the session while your dog is still wanting more. End on a successful note, even if you have to go back to an easier behavior to achieve this.

  LURING VERSUS MANIPULATING

  There are two obvious ways to get a dog into a desired position: you can lure him by guiding him with a treat or toy, or you can assert physical pressure to manipulate him into position. It is tempting to manipulate your dog’s body physically because it is faster and more precise, however it can actually delay the learning process. By manipulating your dog, you are encouraging him to relinquish initiative and be led. He is not required to engage his brain and is not learning the motor skills required to position his body by himself. When possible, it is always preferable to lure your dog to position his body himself.

  USE “WHOOPS” INSTEAD OF “NO”

  Trick training is the yin to obedience training’s yang. Trick training allows the dog to be silly and encourages independent action. You want to keep the enthusiasm high during training sessions or your dog could shut down for fear of being wrong. Save the word “no” for when your dog is being naughty. If your dog is giving you an incorrect behavior, it is probably not intentional. Instead of “no,” try a more lighthearted “whoops!”

  FIRST PRAISE, THEN TOUCH, AND TREAT LAST

  As discussed earlier, correct timing of your reward is essential. When teaching new tricks, food is often used as a lure and is released instantly to mark a correct behavior. For more general obedience training, or when rewarding your dog at the end of a session, reward in this order: praise, pat on the head, and then a food reward. Not only will this serve to keep your dog in a calm state of mind, but an association will develop whereby verbal praise will be pleasantly associated with your touch, and your touch will be associated with the food reward.

  RELEASE WORD, “OK!”

  Your dog needs to understand at which times he is under your control and at which times he has been released. When instructed to “down” or “stay” for example, your dog is expected to remain in that position until you release him with your release word. “OK” is the most commonly used release word. When a training session has ended, “OK” releases your dog to run and play. “OK” also releases your dog to jump out of the parked car, to pounce on a toy, and to play with another dog.

  WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF HAND SIGNALS?

  Dogs can perform a trick based upon a verbal cue or hand signal. Hand signals are extremely useful for dogs performing in movies on quiet sets, and they generally give you more options. When a child asks your dog a question, your subtle “bark” hand signal can cue your dog to answer! Most dogs actually respond to hand signals more readily than verbal cues. Try it with your dog: use a verbal cue from one trick while signaling for another trick. Most often, the dog will perform the trick indicated by your hands!

  CAN I MAKE UP MY OWN WORDS AND SIGNALS FOR TRICKS?

  Words and signals for some tricks are more standardized than others. Basic obedience commands and many agility commands are widely used and have evolved with good reason. It can be helpful to use standardized verbal cues and hand signals, especially if your dog has aspirations of a movie career. Hand signals may look arbitrary but have often evolved from the methods used in a dog’s initial training. The raising of the hand as a signal to “sit” evolves from your initial upward baiting when teaching the command. A downward hand motion is used to signal “down” and parallels your initial baiting of your dog near the floor. The toe-touch foot signal for “take a bow” draws your dog’s attention toward the floor, coaxing his head downward. And the flick of your wrist to the right is a diminished version of the large circle you drew when teaching your dog to “spin.”

  Trick training, of course, is not a life-or-death pursuit and if you want to make up your own words and signals, nobody can stop you! A word of caution though: the more tricks you teach, the quicker you will run out of words. “Left” and “right” are tempting to use in the beginning, but a time may come when wish you had saved those words for a different trick.

  CAN I MAKE UP MY OWN TRICKS?

  Some of the best tricks happen by accident! If your dog acts out a long and laborious death in the “play dead” trick, capitalize on his inventiveness and teach the trick his way. In obedience class, your job is to instruct your dog on the correct behaviors, and his job is to do exactly what you wish. In trick training you are a team—allow the training process to be a collaborative one.

  CHAINING COMMANDS

  This is the really fun part! Once your dog has learned individual behaviors, you can chain them together and give a name to this new set of actions. “Night-night,” for example, chains the behaviors of come, down, take it, roll over, and head down to produce an impressive trick of your dog rolling himself up in a blanket! There are many ways to use command chains, and even in practice they are a great brain exercise for your dog. Even a simple command of “target, sit” engages your dog’s brain to execute first one action and then another.

  HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO TRAIN A DOG?

  How many years does it take for a child to become educated? For an athlete to become skilled? How many piano lessons until you’re a musician? Dog training should be thought of as a lifelong process. Although at some point your dog will be able to produce a behavior on cue, he will still need repetition and refinement to maintain and improve his skills. Challenge your dog with new skills for the rest of his life, and you’ll find your bond will increase tenfold.

  REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS

  As you read the table of contents in this book, you may be having wonderful fantasies of lounging on the couch while your dog obediently gets you a beer from the fridge. Or perhaps you envision commanding your dog to help with the housework by gathering up all his toys into his toy box. Let me burst your bubble right now, your dog is never going do such complicated tricks completely independent of you, and certainly not without a reward. Tricks like these will require you to be within eye contact of your dog and will probably require verbal coaching and multiple commands. Remember, while these tricks mimic everyday simple human chores, they are complicated challenges for your dog.

  LET’S START TRAINING!

  You’re on your way to becoming the next great trick dog team. Grab your treat bag, Rover’s favorite toy, your copy of 101 Dog Tricks, and let’s get started!

  TOP 10 TRICK TRAINING TIPS:

  1. Reward with tasty treats

  2. Reward while your dog is in the correct position

  3. Reward immediately (no fishing in pockets)

  4. Train before dinner

  5. Training comes before playtime

  6. End the session with your dog wanting more

  7
. Be consistent

  8. Motivate—use your happy voice

  9. Be patient—it won’t happen overnight

  10. Be a fun person to be around

  Chapter 1 Groundwork

  “Obedience” is a word often misinterpreted in dog training to suggest the imposition of a dominating control over our dog. But let’s get past the word and think of basic obedience skills as the groundwork upon which a successful living arrangement between dog and owner is achieved. The sit, down, come, and stay behaviors are marks of a civilized and well-behaved dog. These behaviors will also be required for almost every trick in this book, and time spent teaching them now will reduce frustration down the road.

  “Since my dog already knows his groundwork commands, why should we continue to practice them?”

  Consider this: the concert pianist warms up by playing scales, the olympic gymnast rolls summersaults, the teacher reviews lesson plans, and the NBA athlete works on his free throws.

  Obedience training serves a greater purpose than merely teaching your dog to perform behaviors upon command. It is a mental exercise and a comfortable routine that allows you to reconnect with your dog. Warming up with these familiar skills gives your dog the confidence to achieve new ones.

  easy

  Sit

  TEACH IT:

  Your dog sits squarely on his hindquarters and remains there until released.

  1 Stand or kneel in front of your dog, holding a treat in your hand a little higher than your dog’s head.

  2 Slowly move the treat straight back over your dog’s head. This should cause his nose to point up and his rear to drop. If his rear does not drop, keep moving the treat straight backward toward his tail. The instant his rear touches the floor, release the treat and mark the behavior by saying “good sit!”

  3 If your dog is not responding to the food lure, use your index finger and thumb to put pressure on either side of his haunches, just forward of his hip bones. Pull up on his leash at the same time to rock him back into a sit. Praise and reward him while he is sitting.

  4 Once your dog is consistently sitting, wait a few seconds before rewarding. Remember to only reward while your dog is in the correct position—sitting.

  WHAT TO EXPECT: Puppies as young as six weeks can start learning this command, and it is often the first trick a dog learns. Within a week, you should see some progress!

  TROUBLESHOOTING

  MY DOG JUMPS AT MY HAND WITH THE TREAT

  Hold the treat lower, so that he can reach it while standing.

  MY DOG SITS, BUT KEEPS GETTING UP

  In a gentle but firm manner, keep placing your dog back in a sit. Once he has learned the behavior, he should not break his sit until released.

  TIP! Command your dog to sit before each meal. This reinforces your position as pack leader and is just good manners!

  1 Hold a treat over your dog’s head.

  2 Move it straight back.

  3 Press his haunches while pulling up on the leash.

  easy

  Down

  TEACH IT:

  Your dog drops to rest on either his chest and belly or askew on his hip. This vital command could help avert dangerous situations such as unsafe road crossings.

  1 With your dog sitting facing you, hold a treat to his nose and lower it slowly to the floor.

  2 If you’re lucky, your dog will follow the treat with his nose and lie down, at which time you can release the treat and praise him. Remember to only release the treat while your dog is in the correct position—lying down. If your dog slouches instead of lying down, slide the treat slowly toward him on the floor between his front paws or away from him. It may take a little time but your dog should eventually lie down.

  3 If your dog is not responding to the food lure, put slight pressure on his shoulder blade, pushing down and to the side. Praise your dog when he drops to the floor. It is always preferable to coax the dog to position himself without your physical manipulation.

  4 Once your dog is consistently lying down, gradually delay the release of the treat. With your dog lying down, say “wait, wait” and then “good” and release the treat. Varying the time before treating will keep your dog focused. The dog should not move from the down position until you have given your release word, “OK!”

  WHAT TO EXPECT: Herding breeds and sedentary or massive dogs often drop easier into a down position than long-legged, deep-chested, and hyper dogs. This skill can be learned by dogs and puppies of any age.

  TROUBLESHOOTING

  MY DOG IS RESISTANT TO THIS BEHAVIOR

  Your dog lying down before you is interpreted as subservience to you. Evaluate your status as pack leader.

  MY DOG DOESN’T STAY DOWN

  If he stands up, don’t reward him, and put him back down. Standing on his leash will cause him to self-correct if he tries to stand up.

  MY DOG DOWNS IN ONE ROOM, BUT NOT ANOTHER

  Pay attention to the ground surface. Short-coated dogs will often resist downing on hard floor. Try a carpet or towel.

  BUILD ON IT! Once you’ve mastered down, it will be an easy step to learn crawl (page 144)!

  TIP! When a dog jumps on you or the sofa, use the command “off” instead of “down.”

  STEPS:

  1 Hold a treat to your dog’s nose.

  2 Lower the treat to the floor.

  Slide the treat toward or away from him.

  Release the treat once your dog lies down.

  3 Press downward and to the side.

  easy

  Stay

  TEACH IT:

  When in a stay, your dog holds his current position until released.

  1 Start with your dog sitting or lying down, as he is less likely to move from these positions. Use a leash to guarantee control. Stand directly in front of him and in a serious tone, say “stay,” holding your palm flat, almost touching his nose.

  2 Move a short distance away, keeping eye contact with your dog, and return to him. Praise him with “good stay” and give him a treat. Be sure to give the praise and treat while your dog remains in the seated and staying position.

  3 If your dog moves from his stay before you have released him, gently but firmly put him back in the spot where he was originally told to stay.

  4 Gradually increase the time you ask your dog to stay, as well as the distance between yourselves. You want your dog to be successful so if he is breaking his stays, go back to a time and distance he is able to achieve.

  WHAT TO EXPECT: The tone of your voice and your body language will be a big part of getting your message across. Be firm and consistent, and it won’t take many sessions before your dog begins to understand.

  TROUBLESHOOTING

  MY DOG KEEPS GETTING UP

  Use very little verbal communication when teaching this skill. Talking evokes action, and you want inaction. Solid body language will convey your seriousness.

  MY DOG SEEMS TO BREAK HIS STAY A SECOND BEFORE I RELEASE HIM

  Do not show him the treat until you give it to him, as it may pull him forward. Vary your pattern; sometimes return to him and leave him again without rewarding.

  TIP! “Stay” means: don’t move a muscle until I release you. “Wait” is less formal, meaning: stay approximately there for a short time. “Wait until I gather my things before jumping out of the car.”

  1 Command your dog to “stay.”

  2 Move a short distance away.

  3 Return him to the original spot if he breaks.

  easy

  Come

  TEACH IT:

  Upon your command, your dog comes immediately to you. In competition, this command ends with your dog sitting in front of you. In order for this command to be consistently obeyed, your status as pack leader needs to be definite. Always reward your dog for obeying your “come” command, whether it be with praise or a treat. Not obeying this command, however, should be viewed as a major infraction and should end with you physically bringing your dog to the
spot from where you originally called him.

  1 With your dog on a 6’ (1.8 m) lead, command him to “come” and reel him quickly in to you, where he will be praised. Your command should sound happy, but firm. Give the command only once.

  2 As your dog improves, graduate to a longer lead.

  3 When you are ready to practice off-lead, do it in a fenced area. Let your dog drag a leash. If he does not obey your first command, go to him and firmly lead him back to the spot where you gave the command. Do not give a reward if the dog does not perform the command on his own, the first time you call. Put the long lead back on him and require him to do five successful “comes” before attempting off-lead again.

  WHAT TO EXPECT: A dog can learn the meaning of the word very quickly, but the practice and enforcement of this command should continue for life.