Smart pet tricks
Tristan has to learn a new trick because I'm very jealous. On Sunday after the trainer's dog was finished tracking, he (the dog, not the trainer) very casually pulled up the marker that is set at the start of the track and carried it off the field in his mouth. Pretty darn cute! The marker is a traffic reflector on a 3 foot stick so it's a great trick. I really got a kick out of it because the trainer is very serious about Schutzhund and it was fun to see him get a little silly with his dog.
Later Tristan got to show off his high five which I recently taught him. But big deal - the high five is one of the usual 'show him once' tricks. I just showed it to him and he had it. I know the marker will take a bit more work so that he knows he only pulls it up after he tracks and not before.
My neighbor's Australian Shepherd mix does a great dance that I'm also envious of. He stands on his hind legs and twirls around and around for a treat. I tried to show it to Tristan but he would have none of it. He tried to pretend that he was too big and heavy to do it but I notice that he stands up just fine when he's trying to get his ball. He knows he can't jump up on me but he'll pop up next to me being careful not to lay a paw on me.
For sentimental reasons my favorite trick for Tristan is cute puppy. He lays on his back and wiggles around for his tummy to be rubbed. This is a tribute to my beloved Rocky who I had for over 18 years. Rocky would do his cute puppy routine if he was excited or wanted attention. He'd wiggle madly but then stop and look up upside down to check out if you were paying attention to him before resuming his gyrations. Tristan does it on his own when he doesn't want to move from his (my) warm spot on the bed. He knows I'm a sucker for it and it gains him a few more toasty minutes. (No comments allowed that I'm breaking the cardinal rule about not letting your dog on the bed.)
I'll have to add the marker and dance tricks to Tristan's list of tricks to be taught. Tristan has almost 60 commands that he knows. I was surprised when I started a list* and kept finding more to add. The one I really want him to learn though is 'find the keys'. If he's so smart, he should be able to master that one.
*I'm not a compulsive list maker, however, I've never seen a spreadsheet that I didn't like.
Later Tristan got to show off his high five which I recently taught him. But big deal - the high five is one of the usual 'show him once' tricks. I just showed it to him and he had it. I know the marker will take a bit more work so that he knows he only pulls it up after he tracks and not before.
My neighbor's Australian Shepherd mix does a great dance that I'm also envious of. He stands on his hind legs and twirls around and around for a treat. I tried to show it to Tristan but he would have none of it. He tried to pretend that he was too big and heavy to do it but I notice that he stands up just fine when he's trying to get his ball. He knows he can't jump up on me but he'll pop up next to me being careful not to lay a paw on me.
For sentimental reasons my favorite trick for Tristan is cute puppy. He lays on his back and wiggles around for his tummy to be rubbed. This is a tribute to my beloved Rocky who I had for over 18 years. Rocky would do his cute puppy routine if he was excited or wanted attention. He'd wiggle madly but then stop and look up upside down to check out if you were paying attention to him before resuming his gyrations. Tristan does it on his own when he doesn't want to move from his (my) warm spot on the bed. He knows I'm a sucker for it and it gains him a few more toasty minutes. (No comments allowed that I'm breaking the cardinal rule about not letting your dog on the bed.)
I'll have to add the marker and dance tricks to Tristan's list of tricks to be taught. Tristan has almost 60 commands that he knows. I was surprised when I started a list* and kept finding more to add. The one I really want him to learn though is 'find the keys'. If he's so smart, he should be able to master that one.
*I'm not a compulsive list maker, however, I've never seen a spreadsheet that I didn't like.
posted by fpa at 9:28 PM
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