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Home » Home & Garden » Dog Tricks & Training » Cool Dog Tricks » Amaze Your Friends With Simple New Dog Tricks

Amaze Your Friends With Simple New Dog Tricks

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dog-under-tableHere’s a fun way to teach your dog a new trick… something I learned from a friend of mine.

Years ago we were visiting a friend who commanded his dog, “Butch, go lay down under the table”.

Butch dutifully did as he was told, and I was thoroughly impressed. “That’s amazing; he knows what a table is!”

 

What Dogs Know…

Our friend gave me a sheepish grin, and let me know that ol’ Butch would always lay under the table.

He could have told the dog to go lay down on the moon, and he still would have gone under the table.

“Go lay down” was the command Butch was hearing — the rest was added to impress gullible visitors like myself.

Needless to say, we all had a good laugh, and I filed that little tidbit away for future reference.

 

Same Trick, Different Dog

neils-dog.jpg

Sometime later, we moved into a rental house where the previous tenant had abandoned an old brown piece of a sectional sofa. Like most dogs, the two we had at the time much preferred sleeping in a nice, cushy people chair to the floor or their (equally cushy) dog bed. They quickly claimed this piece of furniture for their own.

We soon noticed that whenever we told the dogs to “Go lay down”, they automatically headed for “their” chair. So we simply changed the command to, “Go lay down in the brown chair”.

Many subsequent visitors were suitably amazed, and their comments were always a variation of “Wow! I knew your dogs were smart, but you mean they can actually tell COLORS?!”


You Can Do It, Too!

To adapt this scenario to your own dog, think about some things your dog does naturally without being asked. Does she shake with her left paw instead of her right? Does he turn around 3 times before he’ll lay down? The possibilities are endless!

In effect, the way to teach your dog some fun new tricks is to simply think about some things your dog does naturally without being asked. Then, give a specific “command” to that behavior. From this point forward, whenever your dog does that behavior… call out that command. That’s how you associate the behavior with the command. So, in the future, your dog will do this particular behavior on command.

Now all you need is a creatively named command, and together you and your dog will be able to pull off some pretty remarkable “tricks”! It’s up to you whether you share the details of how he does it with your friends or not.

 

It Works With Any Command & Any Behavior

Here’s an example of a dog that would “go get a suntan” on cue.

The photo on the left was taken during the first days of training the command to “got get a suntan” — as a puppy.

The photo on the right is the same dog, continuing the behavior as an adult. When told to “go get a suntan,” he now climbs up on the same chair and sprawls out as if to relax and enjoy the sunshine.

It’s all about giving a command name to something your dog already does!

puppy-on-lawn-chair.jpg adult-dog-on-lawn-chair.jpg

Once a dog associates a command (any word or phrase) with a particular behavior, he remember it and will continue to do it… just like a dog trick!

Kristie
Kristie

Our current dog family consists of 2 Beagle-mix sisters, Susie and Fluffy. Over the last 35 years I’ve had anywhere from 1 to 6 dogs at a time, so I definitely have tons of dog and puppy stories to share! By the way, our dogs are going on 2 years straight with absolutely NO commercial pet food or dog treats. I like to make my own food and treats for my dogs.

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Filed Under: Cool Dog Tricks, Dog Tricks & Training, Home & Garden Tagged With: Dog Tricks To Try, Indoor Fun With Dogs

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About Me

LynnetteI like to help Dog Parents find unique ways to do things that will save time & money -- so I write about "outside the box" Dog Tips and Dog Hacks that most wouldn't think of. I’m a lifelong dog owner -- currently have 2 mixed breed Golden Aussies that we found abandoned on the side of the road as puppies. I've always trained my own dogs and help friends train theirs, as well. Professionally, I worked at a vet and have several friends who are veterinarians -- whom I consult with regularly. (And just because I love animals so much, I also worked at a Zoo for awhile!) I've been sharing my best ideas with others by blogging full-time since 1998 (the same year that Google started... and before the days of Facebook and YouTube). My daily motivation is to help first-time dog owners be better prepared from the first day your new puppy enters your home. I like to help dog owners understand what's 'normal' and what you can expect in terms of living with and training your dog -- how to get through the ups & downs of potty training, chewing, teaching commands, getting your dog to listen, and everything else that takes place during that hectic first year! When I'm not training, walking, grooming, or making homemade treats for my dogs, you will find me at the corner of Good News & Fun Times as publisher of The Fun Times Guide (32 fun & helpful websites). To date, I've written over 500 articles for dog owners on this site! Many of them have upwards of 200K shares.

Lynnette: View My Blog Posts

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