Useful but stupid dog trick ideas needed

[dogmelissa]

My homework for agility class is to teach my dog a "stupid pet trick" (that he doesn't already know). I've got 2 limitations (well 3, as I only have until next Wednesday to perfect it); his physical abilities and my imagination. As he's a Maltese, he's got a few limitations (ie, he can't open the fridge, he can't reach door knobs, and he can't lift many objects), but my imagination is completely stuck. Need help!! I also want something that's not just a "party trick" but that actually has some use to it, like perhaps fetching slippers or something.

Here's what he already knows:
Sit, down, wait, stay, rollover, jump (straight up), shake (a paw), other (the other paw), leave it, crawl (sort of), come. (There's probably more, but I can't think of them right now.)

So, anyone have any ideas what kind of not-too-complicated, useful (or semi-useful) "stupid dog trick" I can teach a small dog?

Melissa

[Puppyluv]

what about "sit pretty"?

[Prin]

ooo sit pretty... Or Wave? Or whisper? Or gimme a hug? My doggies put their arms around my waist and that's a hug. They even do it to strangers now, which is a little awkward.

My doggies are the masters of messed up tricks...

you could just teach them a sentence or two, like this: (btw- I've already posted these, so if you saw them already, don't bother )
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...00020805746965

Boo whispering, waving, putting his head down and being dead:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...94642260733069

More Boo whispering: http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...51834551657504

Jemma sitting pretty and shuffling:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...13164873973970

[jessi76]

my friend's maltese can "play dead" and hop around on his hind legs.

play dead: she points her finger at him, like a gun, and says "BANG". he flops over on his side.

I taught my own dog "take a bow" quickly. just the front end of him down - toosh up in the air.

and "cover" is easy too. Cover his eyes w/ paw. I used scotch tape. put scotch tape on the nose - when dog tries to get it off, repeat COVER, and reward.

[dogmelissa]

Awesome, keep 'em coming!!

I like "sit pretty" (even though he's a boy and shouldn't really be doing anything "pretty"!), but it's not useful. I do like the idea of take a bow, though, even though that's not really useful either. It is awful cute, though. Cover would be cute, though Cube only has one eye, and I think the scotch tape might be too much of a distraction for him. He'd be so intent on getting the tape off that he wouldn't notice me praising him for putting his foot on his nose!

Can't do gimme a hug, cause he's a little dog... he can't even get his feet around my neck, let alone my waist! But that would be so cute to see a dog do that to a stranger.

Prin: How in the world did you teach the shuffling?

Oooooh, what about a side-step (like walking sideways)? Wonder if I could teach him that?
Oh look, my imagination is starting to wake up! Keep the suggestions coming, I need lots of options (so I can teach him lotsa things over time, not just this week).

Melissa

[Skryker]

How about "Back up"? You tell him to, and he walks backwards away from you? Mine have semi-learned that one from me walking towards them and saying back up (to get them out of my way in the kitchen ). It's a stupid trick, but very useful. Or "Nose"? He would touch your hand with his nose instead of his paw.

My dobbie actually hated to shake a paw, and would put her nose in my hand instead, so "Shake a nose" came out of that. People were very surprised when they said shake and got a muzzle instead of a paw! I could also put a treat on her nose and she would wait until I said OK before she would flip it in the air and eat it.

Oh, or a saw a shih tzu on Pet Stars once that could play the shell game-he would watch his owner put a treat under one of three cups, mix them up and then pick the right one! It was very cute!

[jessi76]

Originally Posted by Skryker

I could also put a treat on her nose and she would wait until I said OK before she would flip it in the air and eat it.

We've been working on that one.... tucker has a good leave it, when "it" isn't ON him. otherwise, it's a free for all. any tips for that one?

[Prin]

Honestly, to teach the shuffling, I just stood there and said, "Do something new..."

The whispering is handy, especially if you live in an apartment.

I like the back up idea too. All you have to do is create a narrow path where they can't turn around and then make them go through it backwards. Boo learned it in our old bathroom where the tub was a foot from the wall. It was so useful for him though- my dad had a solarium on his balcony of his old condo and they left a tiny walk space around it, and Boo, the twit, went all away around it and got stuck. To get out, he had to back up the side, then the front of the solarium until he was on the open side of the balcony (about 30 feet of backing up).

ooo another one I taught Boo was to be moldy.. I mean, to stay rigid and I'd move his head around and he'd just hold it in that position. Like a mannequin.

[Prin]

Originally Posted by jessi76

We've been working on that one.... tucker has a good leave it, when "it" isn't ON him. otherwise, it's a free for all. any tips for that one?

I hold the muzzle shut and say "wait"... I also have to hold the chin up because they just stare at the cookie and gradually end up looking down and the cookie just falls off.

[jessi76]

Originally Posted by Prin

ooo another one I taught Boo was to be moldy..

I was envisioning Boo pretending to be month old bread.... eeeewwww....

Originally Posted by Prin

hold the muzzle shut and say "wait"... I also have to hold the chin up because they just stare at the cookie and gradually end up looking down and the cookie just falls off.

yup cookie falls off, and he simply can't "wait", especially when it's an OMH cookie on his snout. maybe I should use a moldy boo?

[Prin]

Use a wellness kibble.. A lot of dogs can stand having that on their noses without even imagining eating it.

[dogmelissa]

Originally Posted by jessi76

I was envisioning Boo pretending to be month old bread.... eeeewwww....



yup cookie falls off, and he simply can't "wait", especially when it's an OMH cookie on his snout. maybe I should use a moldy boo?

That was my first thought on "moldy boo" too.... like, um, he went out of the room, got a green cloth and laid it on his head? LOL Mannequin Cube.... that'd be cute, but pretty much impossible to teach him. He isn't very good at stay (or wait) cause he seems to always be in motion (when awake).

Jessi; perhaps you can use something other than a treat to start with, just as a baby step, like an eraser or something, and then praise him for the "balancing" part of it. I dunno. My trainer is huge on rewarding (click-treat) for baby steps. She says that you should break an action into a list of what baby steps you're going to run your dog through (and then you have a game plan), and reward for each baby step they take.

I'm glad to see so many choices, but I'm still not sure what to teach Cube. I'm leaning toward "bow", but that doesn't seem very useful or unique, either. Trainers dog knows how to point out North... I'd *love* to teach Cube that, I think it's very useful! But I have no idea how I'd even begin to mark out baby steps for that and get it trained.

Edited to add: I found a couple others here: http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/L...44/TRICKS.HTML (the book balancing sounds cool, but Cube is so little I think all books would be too big for him)

Melissa

[jiorji]

well I don't have a dog but I teach all my pets to speak when I make kissy noises. My guinea pig does it , she squeaks really loud when she hears me do kissy noises, and my cat meows at me.

And I taught one of my cats to come when I call her, and most cats don't do that so I think i'm ready for my dog now

AND...i taught them WITHOUT any treats. So how do you like that doggie trainers?? hehe

[jessi76]

Originally Posted by dogmelissa

Jessi; perhaps you can use something other than a treat to start with, just as a baby step, like an eraser or something, and then praise him for the "balancing" part of it. I dunno. My trainer is huge on rewarding (click-treat) for baby steps. She says that you should break an action into a list of what baby steps you're going to run your dog through (and then you have a game plan), and reward for each baby step they take.

yes, we do baby steps. we're getting there slowly but surely. this time next year I'll have him be able to watch the cookie lower to his nose... it's ok if he can't or won't do it. we'll still have fun trying. (I doubt tucker will object w/ all the cookies)

Originally Posted by dogmelissa

I'm leaning toward "bow", but that doesn't seem very useful or unique, either. Trainers dog knows how to point out North... I'd *love* to teach Cube that, I think it's very useful! But I have no idea how I'd even begin to mark out baby steps for that and get it trained.

we use bow alot actually... at the end of an agility fun-run, when we meet pretty girl dogs and Tucker wants to impress them, etc.. oh! another one I thought of, teach Cube his left & right. start by teaching "touch". then teach directions. my trainer did this w/ his dog, and it was COOL. and it's VERY usefull...

[jessi76]

Originally Posted by jiorji

And I taught one of my cats to come when I call her, and most cats don't do that so I think i'm ready for my dog now

you are ready! I actually clicker-trained one of my old cats. it was EASY. (easier than the dog) and he (my old cat) played fetch too. cats are fun to train.

[dogmelissa]

Originally Posted by jessi76

you are ready! I actually clicker-trained one of my old cats. it was EASY. (easier than the dog) and he (my old cat) played fetch too. cats are fun to train.

My cats all know how to sit before they get fed (with the exception of Aubrie who was always sitting and I couldn't get her out of it, and she is free-fed anyhow). Taz comes when he's called, Rusty sometimes does, and Aubrie will if she's in the mood.

Taz is extremely food motivated (I can even use his kibble as a lure) so I've been trying to think of what I could teach him to do. I didn't think of clicker training him until last night, but I know I could. Taz is very smart. Rusty is one of those cats that's too smart for her own good (the things she's learned to do by herself!!!) but isn't really motivated by treats or pets or praise, so I'm not sure how I'd train her to do things. I think I will work on it. She likes catnip & cheesewhiz, so maybe I can use those.

All that stuff that you can't teach a cat things is baloney... most ppl don't bother cause they don't see the purpose. I think I should teach Taz to jump through a hoop. That'd be great!

Melissa

[alanbl]

How about dealing with telemarketers? When I get a telemarketing call, I tell the caller to "please hold while I get the lady of the house." I then hold the cordless phone down to eye level of Idgie, my Border Collie Mix and say: "Phone call, Idgie." She then starts barking ferociously into the receiver!

I know. It's cruel to the person on the other end who's just doing their job. But these intrusive calls are so aggravating.

---------------------------
Dogs can fly.
http://www.flyingmutts.com

[Skryker]

You'll notice that the treat on the nose was not one of my current babies, right? No way I'd even get the treat close to the labbie noses yet! That's a future plan.

I can't remember how I ended up training Rusty to do it. She was (supposedly) my sister's dog when I was about 11 or so. I think we started with wait for it and progressed from there. I could put a line of treats on the floor, too, and she would take them one by one as I told her OK. If I tried that with my puppies, I'd get run over as I put the first treat on the floor! We're working on it.

[technodoll]

ah yes the famous cookie trick



a fun one (ok not useful, just fun!) we taught dakotah is "go touch"... that means go find one of those little door stopper springy things that go booooiinnng boooiiinnng when you paw at them, and make some noise! he used to love playing with those as a puppy so we turned it into a trick we touched it with our hands to make the noise he loved, encouraged him to paw at it with the command "go touch", and when we got the booooiinnnnng sound he got a treat and lots of happy praise. easy peasy!

[Melei'sMom]

Don't know about useful...but the 'unusual' trick I have taught Melei is 'model walk' ( on her hind legs and will walk around...a variation on the simpler dance one) she can also play 'which one' with a treat hidden in one of my hands and she has to guess which one and tap my hand with her paw. She can also 'shake' and 'high five' and my favorite is 'reach for the sky'(imagine Woody)

She does the standard sit, stay, down, speak. Instead of whisper, my hubby asks her 'so what do ya figure?' and she does a cute growlly voice.

We have hit a brick wall with the 'roll-over' though and I don't want to add anymore until we get this one figured out.

Hope 1 or more of these tricks help Good Luck

[Sam I Am]

I taught my dog to wave goodbye when someone is leaving the house. He just picks up his front foot and paws the airs in front of him.

[Lissa]

Even though your dog is small, he can still open cupboards or turn on/-off lights or even open doors (all things that my cat does) - just tie a rag or rope at his level and teach him to pull.

Aside from opening doors, cupboards and turning on/off light, Dodger's useful tricks all centre around retrieving objects I ask for - phone, bottle, can, keys, remote, money (bills or coins) and even food (so long as it is not too small !!)


Good luck with agility!

[Prin]

ooo Lissa! Post the pic of Dodger with the dime again! There's a useful trick- he'll make ya rich!

[Lissa]

I wish I could say it has made me rich he seems to prefer bringing home rocks!!

[dogmelissa]

Originally Posted by Lissa

Even though your dog is small, he can still open cupboards or turn on/-off lights or even open doors (all things that my cat does) - just tie a rag or rope at his level and teach him to pull.

Aside from opening doors, cupboards and turning on/off light, Dodger's useful tricks all centre around retrieving objects I ask for - phone, bottle, can, keys, remote, money (bills or coins) and even food (so long as it is not too small !!)


Good luck with agility!

Can't teach him to open cupboards, they are all baby-gated to keep the cat out. ha ha ha ha
Lights.... way too high.
Retrieving things is a nice idea, but he's just not the kind of dog who normally retrieves things, so not sure if it would work.

I have to decide by tomorrow morning, so I can start working on it. It's driving me crazy cause there's lots of things I think he can learn, but not in a week! Guess I will settle for something like bow or see if I can get him to sneeze on command.

Thanks all.
Melissa

[Prin]

There he is! That's still an awesome trick though.

[Lissa]

Originally Posted by dogmelissa

Can't teach him to open cupboards, they are all baby-gated to keep the cat out. ha ha ha ha
Lights.... way too high.
Retrieving things is a nice idea, but he's just not the kind of dog who normally retrieves things, so not sure if it would work.

For training sessions you just take the baby-gates off - it is a really fun! I taught Dodger to get me a drink from the fridge and people always like seeing that kind of trick.

For the lights, just attach a string and tie a ball (I use abouncy ball) or other easily grabbed object to the end. It doesn't have to be permanent - just something to train with. I can't have Dodger scratching walls so this is what I do! This trick is fun and easy too!

What about ringing a bell before he goes outside?

Good luck with your trick training! For Dodger's OB class, I had Dodger get a kleenex for me (my "sneeze" was the command).

Thanks Prin - just like Jemma's shuffling, picking up coins is something Dodger did by himself. I never would have asked him to do that because I would think he would swallow it but he has mastered it on his own!

ETA: Bow is actually a very useful trick - particularly in agility, not only is it a great stretch but it is necessary when teaching to hit contacts properly! It can also be used as a calming signal around other dogs.

[dogmelissa]

I've decided to teach Cube to "dance" for class next week. It doesn't serve a lot of purpose but I've decided the tricks that are useful will take longer to teach.

After he's mastered this one, I'm going to get started on teaching him to "be a compass" though I have to think about how the heck to do that. I'm then going to work on play dead, bow, circle me, "get dizzy" (he always spins when excited so I just need to put a word to this), wave, hide your eye (he only has one eye), sneeze, and depending on him, I'd love to teach him how to do a back flip. Not sure if he'll be able to do that, though. I'm sure there's lots more things that I'll think of to teach him in the next XX years (he's 2.5 now), so I'm looking forward to lots of fun!

I'm also going to work with my kitty and see what I can teach him--he's very food motivated and doesn't chew anything so I'm sure I can do this with his dinner! I'd like to see if I can teach him how to jump through a hoop, possibly play fetch, and cute things like shake-a-paw (which will be nice when I want to trim his claws!).

Melissa

[PetFriendly]

Originally Posted by dogmelissa

I'm also going to work with my kitty and see what I can teach him--he's very food motivated and doesn't chew anything so I'm sure I can do this with his dinner! I'd like to see if I can teach him how to jump through a hoop, possibly play fetch, and cute things like shake-a-paw (which will be nice when I want to trim his claws!).

Melissa

You should be able to teach the cat all those things on top of sit and stay. They catch on really quick once you find something the like. I had better success with a clicker.

[chico2]

Melissa,my cats will shake a paw,usually because I have a treat in my hand they will also ever so carefully take a treat from between my lips(don't taste good),they also know the"sit" command,if they feel like it