Who says blondes are dumb? Your Golden Retriever is regularly on the top 10 list of intelligent, trainable dogs! Golden Retrievers are smart, motivated, people pleasers and are easy to train to do tricks. Training your Golden to greet friends and family by shaking a paw is an easy and charming trick. Because it is relatively simple to train, it is a good starting point that can lead to more complex tricks and behaviors. Your lovable pooch will be the friendly favorite at any gathering with the shake a paw trick. Just try to make sure he didn’t go thru a swamp or play in the mud first, or this trick can be pretty messy!
Usually, this trick is performed with your dog starting in a sitting position, raising a front paw, placing it in your hand and vigorously pumping it up and down, then returning his paw to the ground. A treat or praise is customarily provided to reward this fun trick.
This is a very simple trick, and can easily be learned with minimal setup. Using treats to reinforce the behavior is always appreciated by your food-loving Golden! Many owners also use a clicker to help shape the behavior and this method is very effective with Golden Retrievers, who pick up on clicker training readily.