How to Train a Greyhound to Do Easy Dog Tricks

Hello Quinn, I suggest a different approach. With pup sitting in front of you, tap the back of pup's front paw until they light it slightly off the ground, while happily saying "Paw or Shake". As soon as they move it at all, praise enthusiastically and reward with a treat. Repeat this until pup starts to lift the paw all the way off the ground - then reward. When pup is lifting the paw up, require pup to lift it higher before rewarding with a treat. Continue to praise for attempts though. When pup will lift the paw a couple of inches off the ground when you tap and say shake, start to tell pup to Shake, then wait seven seconds, then tap to remind pup if they don't lift on their own. Do this until pup starts to lift the paw consistently without needing the tap a few seconds later. When pup can lift when you say paw, place your hand under their paw when they lift it, praise and reward right when their paw touches your hand - even though you caused it to. Repeat. Next, place your hand slightly below where pup's lifted paw is, wait until pup lowers their paw a bit - accidentally touching your hand on their own (by accident on their part at first), as soon as pup touches your hand on their own because your hand was under the paw, praise and reward. Repeat until pup starts to intentionally touch your hand because they are associating it with the treat being given. When pup starts to understand that touching your hand is what earns them the treat, wait until pup puts their paw all the way into your hand, rather than just touching it slightly, before you reward. Practice this often for lots of short training sessions frequently, rather than fewer long ones to help pup focus and not get as distracted during training. Expect this to take several days or weeks to teach, not just one or two sessions. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Feb. 7, 2022

Hello Wesley, Generally, paw should be taught from the sitting position first. Try having her sit before beginning the training to get her to lift her paw. Wait until she knows the trick really well before you try to transition to doing it standing. How long the training takes depends on several factors. For example, it can depend on how many repetitions that dog or breed of dog generally takes to learn something new (A Border Collie is said to be the most intelligent breed, and a Greyhound is ranked as #46 out of 79 ranked breeds). A Border Collie for example may learn something as soon as 5 repetitions, a Labrador in about 20 repetitions, and a greyhound may need 30-40 repetitions. These number can vary a lot depending on your teaching skills, your individual dog, and whether they are physically capable of doing the trick behind performed - or need to develop the balance or muscles for that trick overtime - such as standing on hind legs. The general point is that you most likely need to keep practicing and be patient with pup - knowing that it's probably normal for her to need a lot more practice still. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Dec. 29, 2019