5 tricks to teach your dog

Teaching your dog tricks is not that difficult. Your pet is very intelligent. Training a dog is much easier than training other animals. We know that sometimes it’s hard to find inspiration and ideas, so we’ve put together a list of 5 must-try tricks to teach your dog!

Dogs are very attentive to their environment; they are able to learn several commands and quickly assimilate what you tell them. However, you will need to be patient and rely on rewards and encouragement to get results. Never spend more than 10 minutes on an exercise per day and make sure you are in a good head space to praise your dog. Frustration must be put aside or your dog will feel it and may perform less well.

Do you know that the tricks and exercises taught to your dog will stimulate him physically and mentally? They also allow you to enrich the bonds that unite you.

This list is far from exhaustive and we assume that your dog already knows “sit”, “down” and “stay”.

1- Pawing or shaking hands

As you may have noticed, dogs sometimes instantly raise their paws when they ask for food. So this trick is not fundamentally complicated to teach your dog. The key is you just have to find the right word or the right signal to give your dog so that they obey your command.

Omlet’s tip: Keep the treat in your hand, show the treat to your dog and tell him/her to wait. Slowly lower your hand and when your dog lifts his paw, make the sound you want to associate with the command. “Shake”/”Paw” is an easy sound for your pet to remember, so use short words. Add emphasis to the word and enthusiasm. Once the dog has the treat in his mouth, congratulate him with a pat.

Gradually, you won’t need to lower your hand too much. Each time you repeat this command, make sure you raise your hand a little higher so that your dog’s paw is raised to chest level. Repeat with the same paw.

Once your dog has mastered this command, you can train him to lift the second paw. However, the sound/word should be different from the previous one. Use the word “other” for example.

Afterwards, you can easily teach him the “high five” command. You will have to show him your palm and encourage your dog to go even higher with his paw. Once your dog does this, reward him.

2- Rolling over

This is a trick that many owners want to teach their dog, but many don’t know how.

Omlet’s tip: First, you get your dog to “lie down”. Place a treat in your hand and let your dog smell the treat without giving it to him. The goal during this exercise is that your dog should not get up. If it does, don’t get frustrated just try again.

Use your hand to guide your dog. You must make the movement and the trajectory that you want your pet to follow. Use your hand to turn your dog’s head and make a backward movement. As your dog tries to turn his head to grab the treat, he will end up rolling. Repeat the exercise several times, but don’t spend more than 15 minutes doing it. You can come back to the exercise later in the day.

3- Speak

This command can be easy to learn for expressive dogs but a little more complicated for calm dogs.

Omlet’s tip: Excite your dog a little with your voice. Ask him/her to sit and put a treat in your hand. Wave your hand but don’t give him/her the treat. Repeat the word/command you want him/her to learn several times, perhaps “bark” or “speak”. Wait for him/her to bark or whine. After a few seconds give your dog the treat and praise your pet. If you want your dog to calm down, repeat the word “quiet” or “enough” and walk away.

Never encourage or praise your dog when he barks out the window or at people. Barking can be frightening to some people.

4- Dance

Good news, your dog can also learn to dance! Maybe he can even dance better than you…

However, this trick is easier to learn for small dogs. Larger dogs have a harder time standing on their two hind legs. This trick is also not recommended for dogs with back problems.

Omlet’s Tip: Ask your dog to sit. Put a treat in your hand and put your hand over your dog’s muzzle slightly backwards. Your goal is to get your dog to sit on his hind two legs, and he/she will only do so if he sees no other way to get his treat. Once both front legs are up, praise and encourage your dog. Repeat this trick several times until he/she can quickly stand on both paws.

Once he/she does, you can move on to the next step. When your dog is on its two feet, hold the treat and move your hand in a small circle over its head. After a few seconds your dog should be able to twirl or at least move both paws on the ground. As you do the movement, remember to say the word you want to associate with the command. In this case that word could be “dance”. Once your dog has taken several small steps, give your dog the treat and praise him/her.

5- Playing dead

This is a challenging trick! It’s a great way to impress those around you, although it is not so easy to teach your dog, especially if he tends to be dynamic. However, nothing is impossible, you will just need more patience.

Omlet’s tip: As with the “roll over” command, have your pet lie down. Take a treat in your hand and put it over his head. Once your dog turns around, stop the process by asking your dog to stop moving. Repeat this process several times until your dog understands that it should not move. It is very important to say the word you want to associate with the command. For this trick it could be “Bang”.

This trick is not easy to describe, a video is sometimes worth a thousand words. We advise you to watch this video to teach your dog to play dead.

No matter what tricks you teach your dog, patience is the key and the only way to succeed and achieve your goals. Never forget to congratulate and encourage your pet. Finally, never force him/her. If your dog doesn’t want to learn a command or doesn’t understand it, don’t be stubborn with your pet. If you are afraid of doing the wrong thing, many resources are available on Youtube. Don’t hesitate to watch several videos to find the best technique for your dog.

Tag us on social media if you manage to do one of these tricks with your dog. We would love to share your pet’s achievements.

Tag us on Instagram @omletusa or send us your video to the following address: blog@omlet.co.uk

This entry was posted in Dogs