The Official Dog Blog

A standard hula-hoop fits pretty well in a doorway. Hold it there with one hand, a treat in the other so that the dog must go through the hoop to reach the treat. Say “Hoop,” offer the treat, and when the dog goes through, reward him.

Next time, move the hoop an inch or so in front of the threshold, and an inch or so more the next time. Do NOT reward the dog if he attempts to go around the hoop. He must return to his original position and walk through the hoop. Pretty soon he will do this in the middle of the room.

Now you can start raising the hoop an inch or two off the floor, and increase that amount gradually. CAUTION: Older dogs and some breed like English Bulldogs are simply not good jumpers. Your concern for your dog’s safety should take precedence over your desire to impress the neighbors!

Submitted by Francine Baskes

Teaching dog to handshake.

To teach your dog how to handshake is simple, the best way I taught my dog to do this was with the sound of a treat jar making a sound when being opened (as in a glass bowl where the lid makes a clinking sound when taking the top off). The dog will come running to the spot and demand him to sit and ask for his paw, over a period of a few times doing this the dog will think it is custom in sitting and reaching his paw out for a treat.

Submitted by Hubert Malvie

Training dogs takes time and patience. Best results are often achieved by training in short segments and trying to do only one thing at a time.

Rewards are very important and should be used for even the smallest step done correctly. Some trainers use food as rewards while others don’t believe this to be good and prefer to pet their dog instead. The majority of dogs will respond to either stimulus and many trainers prefer to use a mix of these methods so the dog does not come to expect a food reward all the time. Common food rewards are dog chews and cheese, both chopped into small pieces so as not to overfeed the dog.