Tricks with our dogs are fun to teach and fun to perform but did you know there are quite a few tricks that can be extremely useful in helping dogs with cooperative care; being checked over by the vet, having teeth brushed or nails clipped, being groomed or bathed, giving medication etc.
There are tricks that make a great foundation towards examination and tricks that actually are the same as the action we would ask for when helping our dogs with their health.
The main benefit with training tricks over training directly for the situation is that tricks are viewed as fun, informal, not needing to be perfect and we can therefore be more relaxed and enjoy the training. Sometimes when we are teaching our dogs something important for their health or welfare we can become more serious which then leads to frustration as we know it’s important and that can cause our dog to be more stressed or find the activity more unpleasant.
It’s not something we do intentionally but when we are concerned for our dogs our need to get it done takes over but of course our dogs don’t understand the importance l!
So how can tricks help towards examination, giving medication etc?
Tricks That Mimick Useful Actions:
These are Tricks that can be taught and used as they are to help with caring for our dogs.
✅ Give Paw – used to check paws for thistles or grass seeds, check and trim nails, wipe feet clean
✅ Hide Face in a Bucket – first step towards muzzle training or teaching to wear a buster collar for after an op
✅ Step Up – On to a platform Inc Vet Scales
✅ Bridge Target – Teaching dogs to place the top of the nose into your hand can help with checking teeth, face handling, checking eyes etc
✅ Open Mouth Trick – literally teaching a dog to open the mouth on cue so you can check inside for foreign objects, check gums etc
Tricks To Build Skills our Dogs can use:
These are Tricks that once taught provide foundations for our Dogs to build on for more specific needs.
✅ Chin Target – useful for face handling, adding to muzzle training, use while vets give vaccinations etc
✅ Stand / Straddle Stand (examination) – teaching a solid Stand means vets can examine more easily and you can groom your dog more easily too
✅ Paw Target (boots) – Teaching dogs to place a paw on a specific target can help with placing feet into protective boots following surgery.
✅ Give Paw again – can be used to work towards bandaging if your dog needs bandages changed during illness
✅ Play Dead / Roll Over – once used to this having a dog that happily rolls on their back means you can check the belly for injuries, check how a wound is healing after surgery etc
✅ Snoot Trick – to help with face handling, eye drops etc as it helps dogs choose to put their face into your hands
Some tricks are not directly linked to health but can help towards other skills. If your dog dislikes having their face touched you can work on different tricks that involve face targets such as chin, nose touch, bridge and snoot.
Sometimes having tricks that dogs enjoy doing can help make a necessary situation less worrying for them : for example if a dog needs to take a tablet but they have become suspicious of the food wrapped round it we can ask them to do a favourite trick first then give the reward. Something like a Give Paw, Spin or Fetch Toy that can be fun for a dog to do and they would expect a reward for doing it.
Case Study
When my Rescue Dog, Pepper Potts, first came to us age 10 months old she had matts in her fur, nails needing trimming, knots in her beard plus lack of muscle tone in her rear legs and core areas. However the focus was on building trust and a bond so diving in with a full groom wasn’t an option.
Once Pepper had settled in a little and had seen my other dogs doing some fun things in return for rewards and praise I started teaching Pepper some foundation tricks that introduced her to the concept of doing a ‘thing’ and being given rewards in return as well as introducing her to us handling her a little. It also gave us the opportunity to see what Pepper was comfortable with and if she was weary of any areas of her body being handled.
Some of the tricks I started with included Nose Touch, Chin Target, Give Paw and Give Other Paw, plus good old Stand and twist / spin so she was standing side on to me but my grooming table is pretty large plenty big enough for a small dog to turn on comfortably even when learning how to do it.
Then once Pepper was keen to do them on the floor anywhere we moved to on the table, although we had already spent time putting Pepper on the grooming table and just fussing her, giving her treats, licky mats with paste on, chew sticks etc so she liked being up there. Then we worked on the tricks on the table and kept sessions short and fun l; after grooming my other two dogs it was Pepper’s turn but just doing tricks on the table then back down.
Gradually Pepper would be happy to stay on the table and do some tricks as well as a little grooming such as combing the very tips of some other fur, holding her paw while I mess about closeby with the nail clippers, rubbing coconut oil on her teeth and gums to prepare for teeth brushing etc.
When Pepper hurt her neck she went to the vet who needed to palpate down her spine. This can be painful when there is an injury and I know myself pain can cause knee jerk reactions. I wanted our vet to be able to check Pepper properly without rushing or missing areas and the way to ensure this was to remove any concern with a bite response.
I’ve used the ‘hide face’ trick with every one of my dogs over the years to introduce muzzle training so I offered to pop her muzzle on and once on I asked for chin target and pepper remained with happy body language as it was all familiar to her. The vet could check her over, she wasn’t worried and the vet gave her a big fuss afterwards.
Tricks can help our dogs bond with us, become familiar with our body language, introduce them to skills and procedures for the future and provide ways to practise something at home we can use on walks and when out.
How to learn more Dog Tricks!!
If you’d like to learn some fun tricks with your dog and find out more about Tricks for husbandry, confidence building and more take a look at the Online Monthly Tricks Club hosted on Patreon. This is only £4.99 per month with over 60 tricks tutorials already published and new tricks added every month, feedback on your questions, option of having videos watched and help given when a trick needs adjusting and the chance to ask for specific tricks to be taught!
Free 7 day trial to check out the Online Monthly Tricks Club run by Joe Nutkins, Certified Dog Tricks instructor since 2013, founder of National Pet Tricks Day on 30th September and Author of two Dog Tricks Books; ‘Tricks For All Tails’ and ‘Super Skills for Senior Dogs’
Paperback Book “Tricks for all Tails” – Tricks tutorials for small dogs and for bigger dogs, not one size fits all!
Click HERE
Ebook on Amazon “Super Skills for Senior Dogs” is Free on Kindle currently:
Click HERE
Written by Joe Nutkins
Dog Training for Essex & Suffolk
Certified Dog Tricks Instructor
Assessor for Do More With Your Dog Tricks
Assessor for National Canine Trick Stars Titles
Founder of National Pet Tricks Day 30th September
Creator of Senior Dogs Progress Awards Scheme
