Who says training pets is hard? On the contrary, it’s actually quite easy! Dogs are highly food-motivated, so with the right amount of time, patience, and treats, your fur pal can learn even the most complicated tricks.
Take some time out of your day to sit your dog down and try out these tricks!
Speak
While this may seem intimidating, the key is discipline and repetition. After getting your dog into the “sit” position, try to get him excited enough to bark and reward him once he does. Keep doing this while slowly associating a vocal cue (“speak”) so he knows when to initiate the bark. Make sure you only reward one bark at a time so your dog does not associate crazy barking as a signal for a treat.
Play dead
For this trick, your furbaby should already know the “down” command and be familiar with the “roll over” command. While your dog is in the “down” position, hold a treat in front of him and move it over to his side. This will cause him to roll over to his side to follow it. Reward with a treat and wait a bit longer every time performs the action so he can hold the pose. Begin associating a word, or another signal (finger guns with the word “bang”), to complete the trick!
Shake
This is one of the easier tricks you can teach your dog! Keep a treat in a closed fist and hold it out to your dog. They might lick or sniff you at first, but the moment they paw at your hand (which they will naturally do), open up your hand and give them the treat. Gradually increase the time between the moment the paw is in your hand and when you give the treat. This is so he understands that you want him to place the paw in your hand and not scratch at you. Introduce the verbal cue “shake” after a couple rounds of repetition.
High five
A continuation of the “shake” trick, high five is so much easier once your dog has mastered the basics. Simply hold up your hand and wait for your dog to paw at it, like what he has learned with the “shake” command. Introduce the verbal cue “high five” every time your dog’s paw hits your hand and reinforce with treats.
Spin
A super simple trick! Start with the sitting position and keep a treat in hand. Put your hand near your dog’s nose and circle it around his body; he is sure to follow your hand movements. After one complete spin, reward your dog with a treat. And of course, begin associating the command “spin” with the action.
All of these tricks are possible only if you put in the effort to train. Dogs are incredibly smart creatures that can pick up on things with proper repetition. While training, don’t forget to give you best fur-iend lots of treats and verbal praise after they’ve mastered the trick — they won’t forget it!
