5 dog tricks you can learn right now

Don’t believe that an old dog can’t be taught new tricks. Dogs are trainable at any age. Of course, puppies learn faster, but older dogs do not lose the ability to train.

New skills will add variety to your interaction.

To keep your dog interested, you will need a treat as a reward. Most pet tricks can be taught by encouraging him to make the necessary movement for a treat. So you can learn the tricks “Waltz”, “Snake” and “House”.

Trick “Waltz”

 The “Waltz” trick implies that the dog will spin on command.

To teach your dog to turn, stand in front of him and hold a piece of treat up to his nose. Squeeze the treat in your fingers, otherwise the pet will simply snatch it. Let the dog start sniffing the hand with the piece. Slowly move your hand in a radius towards the tail. To begin with, you can give the dog a treat when it has made half a circle. But for the next piece, complete the full circle. 

If the dog confidently goes for a treat, start encouraging a full turn already. The command can be entered when the dog circles easily behind the hand. Say “Waltz!” and tell the dog with a hand movement that she needs to spin.

Trick “Snake”

In the “Snake” trick, the dog runs at the person’s legs with every step. To do this, stand on the side of the dog and take a step forward with the foot farthest from it. Treats should be in both hands. In the resulting arch of the legs with the far hand, show the dog a treat. When she comes to take a piece, lure her to the other side and give her the reward. Now take a step with the other foot and repeat. If the dog is not embarrassed to run under you, add the “Snake” command.

Trick “House”

At the command “house”, the dog is asked to stand between the owner’s legs. This is a great way to teach shy dogs not to be afraid of being under a person. And in this position it is convenient to fasten the leash.

To begin training, stand with your back to the dog, with your legs spread wide enough for him. Show your pet a treat in the skylight and praise him when he comes to get it. If the dog does not try to get around you and without hesitation approaches the hand with a treat, add a command.

First say the command and immediately lower your hand with the reward. As a complication, you can get up to the dog at a slight angle. Then she will learn not just to approach the delicacy in a straight line, but to go under you.

Let’s take another look at learning two of perhaps the most popular tricks: “Give a paw” and “Voice”. For these commands, it is better to prepare a particularly tasty treat that the dog will try very hard to get.

Trick “Give a paw!”

To teach your pet to give a paw, squeeze the treat loosely in your fist: so that the dog smells the treat, but cannot take it. Place the fist with the treat in front of the dog, approximately at chest level. At first, she will try to reach him with her nose and tongue. But sooner or later he will try to help himself with his paw. 

As soon as the dog touches your hand with his paw, immediately open your palm, allowing him to take the reward. Repeat this technique several times so that the pet understands exactly what movement allows you to get a piece. Add a command before displaying a treat hidden in your hand.

Trick “Voice!”

To train your dog to bark on command, you need to tease it. Wave a treat or favorite toy in front of her. Pretend that you are going to give her a treat and immediately hide it back. Your task is to make the dog pronounce any sound with impatience. Let it be even a noisy sigh – immediately encourage your pet!

Gradually encourage more and more loud sounds until the dog gets excited to the first “woof”. Then, before teasing the dog with the next bite, say the command “Voice” and wait for the dog’s response. Reward her with a treat and praise her wildly.

With some dogs, learning this trick may require several approaches. Therefore, be patient.

We hope you have fun learning new tricks. Don’t forget to tell us about the results!