You know your dog is the coolest canine on the block. Want your friends and family members to know too? Whether your pooch is 7 weeks or 17 years old, he can learn flashy tricks and enjoy performing them too. Better yet, these tricks can also help train Fido to be calm.
Bang (a.k.a: Lie on your side)
Start with Fido lying down with his belly on the floor. The "trick" to this trick is training him to turn his head to the side so that he will shift his weight onto one hip without your having to physically position him since that can cause many dogs to resist.
We will train this in little steps.
First, place the treat to the side of his nose just enough so Fido will turn his head a little.
With each step, lure with the treat so that he turns his head more. Soon he'll turn his head enough so he has to roll over onto his hip and then lie on his side. Once on his side, give a string of treats low enough so that he remains on his side. At first have the sequence of treats come frequently, then increase the interval between treats so that he learns to stay in that position for longer amounts of time for the same amount of treats. You can even have him lie on his side for extended periods of time.
When you get to the point that it's easy to present a treat and have him immediately lie on his side, where he stays, you can start pointing your finger like a toy gun if you're going to call the trick "bang." Then reward him once he's lying on his side.
Next add the cue word. Say "bang" and then immediately follow by pointing with your hand and give him the treats on ce he lies on his side. You can then start expecting him to lie down for longer periods before he gets a treat.
Play Dead (Lie on Back)
Then once on his back give him a string of treats. The rest of the steps are the same as "bang," except that you can use a different cue word such as "play dead," "sunbathe," or your own unique word.
Head Down (A.K.A Rest Your Head or Go to Sleep).
You'll do this by sitting on the floor to the side and front of Fido. The hand farther away will distribute the treats. First, place your ceiling hand parallel to the ground, in front of Fido's head and close enough to the floor so that Fido has to place his head flat on the floor to get his head under. Once under, give a sequential string of treats quickly enough so Fido keeps his head flat on the ground and learns that this is a great position. When you finish the string of treats, remove your ceiling and your treat hand and start again.
Practice this over 20-30 times so Fido thinks sticking his head under your hand so it's lying flat on the floor is fun. Wait a few seconds to see if Fido places his head under your hand on his own. If he does, quickly start giving him a string of treats. If he does not, then go back to the last step where you just lured him.
Say "head down" and then place the visual hand cue out. By saying the words before you show the visual cue, the words will come to predict to him that you will show the hand cue and want him to place his head down. Alternatively you can just tell him "head down" right before you think he's going to lay his head down on his own. Ultimately when you think he might know the behavior, test by walking away a few steps, saying just the verbal cue and then waiting to see if he places his head down.
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