Tag: fun dog training

There are lots of dog sports that encourage dogs to use their superior sniffing abilities: Tracking, Barn Hunt, Scent Work, etc. Dogs’ amazing noses are also used for law enforcement, customs, even disease detection.

Whether or not you have any ambitions to try your luck with any of these dog sports, you and your dog can still have fun with at-home versions of sniffing games. It’s also a great way to expend some doggy energy when the weather isn’t cooperating outside. 

The “Sniff It Out!” game feels like cheating. There’s almost no training involved. Most dogs catch on quickly. Then the challenge becomes resisting your dog’s begging to play it again.

How it works

The first step for “Sniff It Out!” is deciding what scent your dog will be searching for. Any stinky thing is fine, as long as it’s not a normal part of your dog’s environment. For the Scent Work dog sport, the essential oils they use are Anise, Birch, Clove, and Cypress. You can use whatever you have around the house, as long as you know it’s not toxic for dogs. Don’t use artificial scents of any kind. You don’t know what chemicals are used in their manufacture, and you don’t know how your dog will react if they get a snootful.

When we first started playing this with our dogs, we had some nutmeg, lemon, and cinnamon essential oils around. We used an ordinary cotton round, put a couple of drops of scent on it, let the dog sniff it, asked someone else to hide it, and let the dog “Go Sniff!” 

At first, confine the “hunt” to a single room, with limited distractions. When introducing the game, leave the scent object out in plain sight. As soon as the dog goes over to sniff it, praise (or click) and reward. Do it again, each time moving the scent object a bit farther away and less visible. 

You’ll be able to tell when your dog connects the dots and starts using their nose. They may pick their head up, look around while sniffing, and move back and forth across the area to zero in on the scent. Try not to look at the scent object or stand right next to it. Let the dog “find it!” 

Variations on a theme

We have a particular area of the basement where we play training games. To challenge the dogs in this limited space, we scatter all kinds of objects around – bins, bowls, cones, broad jump boards. You can place the scent object inside things, under things, higher than the dog’s nose. Dogs’ scenting ability is up to the task, wherever you hide it.

If you’re concerned that your dog may grab the cotton round and eat it, you can use real food and put it in a bowl or dish for your dog to find. It’s a simpler version of the game that Booker, Fran’s 13-year-old Boston Terrier loves. Fran puts a dab of peanut butter on a target (a plastic lid) and uses that as his scent object. (In the photo, Booker’s target is under the cone that he’s pawing.) He’s so enthusiastic about playing “Sniff It Out!” that Fran has to take him someplace where he can’t see Hope hide the target. Booker would “cheat” if we let him.

Keep it fresh

Booker loves “Sniff It Out!” and would play it all day, every day if he could. As your dog grows more confident in the rules of the game, expand the search area to different rooms, levels, and scents. When you start the game, be sure to introduce your dog to the odor you’re using so they know what they’re looking for. 

Letting your dog use their instincts, ability, and brain for “Sniff It Out!” is a triple win. It’s also a game you can play with your dog when winter weather keeps you trapped indoors.

A post this week on one of our obedience/rally groups had someone ranting that their family was undermining their dog training. She constantly told her family members how she wanted to train her dog, showed them what to do, explained how to do it. And yet they refuse to comply with her wishes. Are you afraid that your family will undermine your dog training?

It’s actually pretty common. Playing training games with your dog is important to you, but may not have the same value for other people around you. 

That may frustrate you no end. But, in the words of a song, you have to let it go. 

It doesn’t matter

That’s easier than you might think for one important reason. Every person in your household has a different relationship with your dog. And there is nothing they can say, do, or try that can change that.

Dogs always have the closest relationship with the person who trains them. We’ve even heard from long-time dog owners who marvel at the difference between their previous pets and their current training partner. Training changes everything.

Stay ahead of sabotage

It is possible for other people to “poison” the cues you’ve used for your dog. “Stay!” is one of the most difficult behaviors. If other people don’t stick to your “Stay!” criteria, it may become compromised.

Fortunately, It’s easy to fix with a work-around. Let the other people continue to use “Stay!” and get sloppy performance. You switch cues and never say “Stay!” again. 

If you’ve used “Stay!” forever, it will take a conscious effort on your part to switch it to something like “Park it!” The other people certainly won’t make the attempt, so leave the word “Stay!” for them.

You start back at the beginning, using the cue “Park it!” (or whatever word you like). Stick to your criteria. And don’t tell the other people your new cue. They may hear it but we’re pretty sure they won’t give it much thought or bother switching.

Between You and Your Dog

No one can sabotage your training. One notable example for us was a couple with a challenging Chow Chow mix. The woman was on board with training and really enjoyed playing the games with her dog. The man was resistant and did not. 

Since the dog adored the man, her behavior deteriorated when he was around. He doesn’t expect much from her and that’s what he gets. Not much.

The woman, on the other hand, saw how her dog loved playing training games and how she blossomed with training. Next week they’ll be attempting to qualify for their first Novice Rally leg. 

Secret Language

You may have heard that twins often develop a secret language only the two of them know. You can do the same thing with your dog, your training partner. No one can undermine your dog training or your relationship with your dog. You don’t have to worry about the saboteurs.

There are lots of useful things to teach your dog. The Leg Weaving Game isn’t one of them. It’s just pure, unadulterated fun!

All you need for this game is yourself, your dog, and some treats. That’s it! 

What’s Leg Weaving anyway?

There are two ways of playing Leg Weaving. 

The simpler version, where the dog does all the work, is stationary. You stand still, legs apart, and your dog walks, trots, or runs in a figure-eight pattern around and between your legs. 

The more complex version puts you in motion and your dog going between your legs as you walk. This one takes time to get up to speed. Leg weaving builds on the body awareness exercises we talked about in the Doggy Dressage 2-Minute Tip. There’s potential for a lot of tripping, falling, and kicking your dog if you aren’t careful.

Note: if you play Agility with your dog, you may want to name this game something other than “weaving.” The weave poles are a required obstacle in Agility and once your dog has mastered it, you don’t want to mess it up. Because we train for Agility with our dogs, we call the stationary version “Legs,” and the moving version “Twine.”

Simple Leg Weaving

Have treats in both hands. Stand in front of your dog with your legs apart. The object of the game is for your dog to go between your legs, circle one leg, then the other. It creates a “figure 8” pattern, or an infinity symbol.

Reach behind your leg and show your dog the treat between your legs. Dogs can be reluctant to go under their people, so be sure it’s a really tasty treat and your dog knows you have it. As your dog moves to get the treat, bring your hand around your leg to the front. Don’t go too fast! Move at the pace your dog is going, keeping that tempting morsel right in front of their nose.

When you reach the front, give the dog the treat in that hand, while reach behind and between to show them the treat in the other hand. Do the same thing with the other leg. Draw the dog around your leg and reward in front. 

Most dogs catch on to this double-treat behavior really quickly. Some glitches can occur if you move the treat too quickly, switch hands too fast, or pull your hand back before the dog has completed the circle around your leg. Your dog will follow your hand, so be sure your motion reflects where you want your dog to go.

As your dog learns “Legs!” you can increase the speed and reward less frequently. Be sure you say the word for the game as you’re playing. In time, your dog will perform the behavior when you use the cue word. 

Get Moving

Leg Weaving in motion, or “Twine” is more complicated. Have treats in both hands. With your dog sitting at your side, step forward with the leg opposite to the dog. If your dog is on the right, step out with your left leg. Show the dog the treat with your left hand between your legs. Draw the dog forward and between your legs. Again, don’t move your hand faster than your dog is moving. Make sure they’ve reached your other side before you reward.

When the dog is on the other side (left, in this scenario), step out with your right leg and, with your right hand, show the dog a treat between your legs. Get them to move between your legs and reward when they’re completely on your right side. Rinse and repeat – as many times as you like.

Here’s Simon and Fran.

Stutter step

Don’t go too fast too soon. You may lose your balance, kick your dog, or get completely tangled up. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with sticking to the simpler version – especially if you have a tall dog. This is one of the few games where smaller dogs have a distinct advantage, although all of our students have been able to do it. Even the ones with Great Danes. 

Have more fun with your dog! 

When we were kids, our mom worked in Downtown Chicago, in the Loop. During the summer, we would take the “El” into the city to meet her for lunch at the Veranda Room in Marshall Field’s department store. No, there were no dogs there. What was at Field’s, above the first floor cosmetics department, was a magnificent mosaic ceiling, designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany. 

Why this trip down memory lane? Because it gave us great joy to stand in the cosmetics department and stare up at the ceiling made of more than a million pieces of iridescent glass. When our necks got tired, we’d look back to ground level and realize that everybody around us was staring up at the ceiling, too. People do that. If you really look at something, everyone around you will stop and look.

So will dogs. And that’s how you start playing the “Which Bucket?” game with your dog.

Variation on a theme

Quite a few of the games we play with our dogs involve them retrieving something and putting it someplace else – the Ring Stacking Game, for one. It’s also the nuts-and-bolts of “Put Your Toys Away.”

The dog only has one place to put whatever it is.

But what if there were two? Or more? And what will the dog do if both containers are identical? or different? All of these options are ways to refresh any “put it away” game. If you just want to add a fun challenge to your game, use any variation and let your dog have fun.

Directed aim

If you want to use the game to strengthen your training connection with your dog, try directing your dog to a specific container. There are a couple ways of doing this. The first is to just look at the container you want your dog to use. Just like staring at the mosaic ceiling, pretend that it’s the most fascinating thing you’ve ever seen in your life. Bend over, get as close as you can. 

Keep up a dialogue with your dog. Encourage them, talk to them. Invite them over to check out the neato-keeno container. Remind them to bring the toy/ring/block with them. Talk to your dog and project some enthusiasm and energy. Dogs respond to the atmosphere in the room, so make it fun.

Point it out

The other way to direct your dog to the bin you want them to drop the object in is to point at it. We’ve talked about how some dogs naturally follow a point. For others, it’s a learned skill. But all dogs are capable of it – it’s been part of Obedience competition for years. 

Put the two containers out and sit on the floor about equal distance from each one. Bring a bunch of objects you want your dog to put away. We used the dive rings from our ring-stacking game. Hand one of the objects to your dog and point, with one hand or both, to the container you want the dog to put it in. Be sure you also look where you want your dog to go, not at your dog. Facing your dog always stops them. Looking where you want them to go gives them direction. 

When the dog moves away from you, toward the container you indicated, celebrate! You’ve just opened another line of communication with your best friend.

Our obedience club recently had a “Tricks Title” evening. Hope and another club member, also an AKC evaluator, were the judges for the event. To get a Tricks title, the dog and person have to perform a specified number of tricks, depending on the level.

For the first (Novice) level, the tricks are mostly things that just about any dog already knows. If you aren’t familiar with the AKC Tricks program, it’s fun and you can get the title with a video submission. Getting that title certificate in the mail is special – proof that your dog can do things most don’t. 

One of the tricks we saw that evening was “Under” – the person went down on hands and knees and the dog ran under the person’s chest.

Seems simple, but it’s not

We hadn’t thought of doing that with our dogs, so the next morning we tried. Not one of them did it. As a matter of fact, the dogs tried everything they could think of to go around, behind, or even between our arms to figure it out.

You never know what behaviors will stump your dogs. This one didn’t seem confusing, but it was. We just had to find a way to explain it in steps our dogs would understand.

Hitting the Target Game  

The Target Game is fun by itself. It’s also the gateway to all kinds of behaviors and tricks for having fun with your dog.

We use it for many behaviors, from teaching dogs to go over jumps, to the “Stay!” and release, to the Obedience “Go Out!”

With our dogs in a “Sit, Stay!” we got down on hands and knees, putting the target on the floor opposite to our dog. We keep it within reach, so we can put a treat on the target when the dog touches it. 

For all of our dogs, the Target worked. The first time. They watched the set-up, and dashed “Under!” us to the target. 

Did we really mean it?

Just because the dog does it once, doesn’t mean they know it. Once the dogs went “Under!” in one direction didn’t mean they understood it from the other side.

It also took a few tries to convince them we really meant it. Again, they tried to go around our legs to get to the target, or in front of us, or between our arms. 

We’ll never know why our dogs were reluctant to go “Under!” us. But a few repetitions, rewards for getting it right, and a little patience has put a new trick in our repertoire. 

Just for fun

Adding tricks like “Under!” is just another way to expand your bond with your dog and enrich their life. In just a couple minutes at a time, your dog could be on the way to getting mail!