I well remember a couple who came to puppy class with their pup. They were very controlling and expected far too much of their youngster. When I told them in Week 1 that they’d be learning some tricks later in the course, everyone in the room was excited and enthusiastic - except for this pair.
They looked stony-faced and said, “We do not want our dog to do tricks.”
How sad!
What they completely failed to realise was that it’s all tricks for the dog! All of it!
SIT is a trick. DOWN is a trick. WALK BESIDE ME is a trick.
What we tend to label “tricks” are usually the things that aren’t necessary for daily life with your dog - but hugely enhance your relationship, and are FUN!
So SIT is a trick to your dog. And SIT PRETTY is just an extension of that trick. The big difference is how people respond to the dog. And if your dog can give you a Sit Pretty (Sit up and beg) on cue, this is guaranteed to produce smiles all round - including from your dog!
Hidden benefits
Now there are a lot of hidden benefits to these tricks.
Sit Pretty requires some body conditioning to achieve, and is particularly useful to teach correctly to long dogs and heavy dogs. It strengthens their back muscles and their balance, thus helping to avoid injuries.
Don’t forget that catching and retrieving is a useful and enjoyable trick to exercise your dog - and yourself!
And if your dog is focussing on waving his paws in the air for you, he can’t be stealing the cake, barking at the other dog, or losing interest in you and running off.
Add to this the fact that you can adapt the trick to the dog’s body shape and ability. So one dog will hold the paws up over her head, while another will dangle them prettily in front of her. It’s all a question of what works for you and your particular dog.
Here Rollo demonstrates he can even do it when sitting in a pond!
And you can make a start teaching your dog some tricks in the Brilliant Family Dog Academy! You’ll find the program introduced in this free Workshop.
Have a look at Trick Dog Champion Coco enjoying his performance here. And yes - look at that waving tail! He loves his tricks. And we use a lot of them daily.
Useful tricks!
Add to this the fact that many “tricks” are Assistance Dogs’ bread and butter. It’s not just for amusement, but is genuinely helpful.
Changing a duvet cover is hugely eased with a dog gently hanging on to the cover while you pull out the duvet.
And dragging the bedclothes off a teenager then jumping on them for a game is a great way to dig them out of their beds!
Picking up socks, pulling socks of your feet, fetching your shoes or jumper, loading and unloading the washing machine, collecting up the food bowls, tidying up their toys, handing you a tea-towel or the oven gloves when you need them - all very useful tricks.
How sad that that little dog at class was going to be denied this fun!