Difference between revisions of "Teach Your Dog to Play Dead on Command"

#Teach your dog the ‘down’ command before teaching him how to play dead. Playing dead involves your dog lying down. Before he can learn this trick, he should be comfortable with the command to lie down.<ref name="rf1">http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-train-your-dog-to-play-dead.html</ref>

#Choose a comfortable area to train your dog. Preferably, this area should also be quiet so that your dog does not become easily distracted.<ref name="rf2">http://www.petexpertise.com/dog-training-article-sit-down-and-stay-articles.html</ref>

#Command your dog to sit. If your dog does not already know this command, teach him by holding a treat high in the air with your hand. As he is looking up at the treat, push on his back end until he sits; firmly say the word 'sit' as you are doing this.<ref name="rf3">http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/training.htm</ref>

#* Once he is seated, reward him with the treat by bringing the treat to him instead of allowing him to jump up to get the treat. Firmly tell him 'No' if he jumps up.<ref name="rf3" />

#* Practice this several times a day for few days until he can sit without you pushing on his back end. Each practice session should last about 10-15 minutes.<ref name="rf3" />

#Stand directly in front of your dog while he is seated. Hold a treat in front of his nose, but do not allow him to eat it. Instead, slowly move the treat down to the ground while still holding it in front of his nose.<ref name="rf2" />

#* Say the verbal cue 'down' as you are moving the treat to the ground so that your dog associates the verbal cue with the action of lying down.<ref name="rf4">http://www.loveyourdog.com/laydown.html</ref>

#* Your dog should be lying down by the time you move the treat down to the ground.<ref name="rf2" />

#* If he gets back up, continue practicing until he lies down each time you move the treat down to the ground.<ref name="rf2" />

#* Reward with him a treat when he lies down without quickly getting back up.<ref name="rf2" />

#Guide your dog to lie down without a treat. Hold your hand in front of your dog’s nose as if you had the treat, but do not have a treat in your hand.<ref name="rf2" />

#* Use the same hand motion as if you had the treat to get your dog to lie down. <ref name="rf2" />

#* Once again, reward him with a treat when he reliably lies down without quickly getting back up.<ref name="rf2" />

#Continue practicing until your dog learns how to lie down at your command. You will need to practice this command with your dog several times a day for at least a few days.<ref name="rf4" />

#* If you want to challenge your dog, you can gradually decrease the visual cue until he learns how to respond to only your verbal cue to lie down.<ref name="rf2" />

#Teach your dog to stay before teaching him how to play dead. If your dog does not know how to stay, it will be challenging to teach him how to play dead. Make sure that he is comfortable staying in a certain position before teaching him the trick.<ref name="rf1" />

#Choose a comfortable area to train your dog. Areas such as his bed or a comfortable mat would be good choices. You could also choose a grassy area outside.<ref name="rf5">https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/teaching-your-dog-stay</ref>

#Command your dog to be in the position in which you would like him to stay. Teaching your dog to stay from the ‘sit’ or ‘stand’ positions will help him get ready for learning how to play dead. <ref name="rf1" />

#Stand directly in front of him for 1-2 seconds. If your dog begins to move towards you before that amount of time has passed, then start over again. Once your dog can stay for 1-2 seconds, reward him with a treat.<ref name="rf6">http://www.dog-obedience-training-review.com/training-a-dog-to-stay.html</ref>

#Increase the amount of time that you stand in front of him. Increase the amount of time in small increments until he can stay in the same place for at least 10 seconds.<ref name="rf2" />

#Add a verbal cue and a visual cue. When he is in the position in which you want him to stay, say the word ‘stay’ and hold your hand up like a stop sign.<ref name="rf2" />

#Increase the distance from your dog. Although you can practice having him stay when he can’t see you,<ref name="rf6" /> he will need to be able to see you when you teach him how to play dead.

#Command your dog to lie down from sitting/standing. Your dog may prefer to lean to one side or the other when he’s down, so make a mental note of which side he prefers.<ref name="rf7">http://www.petplace.com/article/dogs/behavior-training/training-your-dog/teaching-your-dog-to-play-dead</ref>

#* You can get him to lie on his side by gently pushing him with both hands from the down position. Once he is lying down, reward him with some positive reinforcement (eg, verbal praise, belly rub, treat).<ref name="rf7" />

#* You can also lure him with food to get him to lie down. To do this, hold a treat in front of his nose. Then, move the treat back to his shoulders (his left shoulder if he’s leaning to the right, or his right shoulder if he’s leaning to the left). As he turns his head to get to the treat, he will eventually lie down on his side. Use your clicker and other positive reinforcement when he lies down so that he knows he did the right thing.<ref name="rf8">http://www.dog-obedience-training-review.com/play-dead-dog-trick.html</ref>

#* Use your clicker and give him a treat when he moves from sitting/standing to the down position, and again when he moves from the down position to lying on his side.<ref name="rf8" />

#Add a verbal cue to get your dog to play dead. You will know when your dog is ready for the verbal cue when he automatically lies down on his side when he sees that you have a treat or when you lure him with food.<ref name="rf9">http://drsophiayin.com/blog/entry/play-dead-or-bang-a-dog-trick-thats-both-fun-and-can-train-calm-behavior</ref>

#* Be consistent with whichever verbal cue you use. You do not want to confuse your dog by using different verbal cues for the same command.<ref name="rf10">http://www.petsadviser.com/behaviors/teach-shoot-dog-dead-trick/</ref>

#Use the verbal cue more frequently than the lure of food. At this stage of teaching your down to play dead, your goal is to get your dog to be able to play dead just by responding to your verbal cue, rather than having to be lured by food as well.<ref name="rf8" />

#Use a visual cue (hand signal) to command your dog to play dead. A common visual cue to use for this trick is the shape of a pistol. Your dog will not immediately understand what the visual cue is, so it will be helpful to pair it with the verbal cue that you have chosen for this trick.<ref name="rf10" />

#* Give your dog the visual cue '' at the same time '' that you give your verbal cue.<ref name="rf11"> http://www.dog-obedience-training-review.com/play-dead-dog-trick.html</ref>

#* Alternatively, you can use the visual cue '' after '' the verbal cue. If you try it this way, use the visual cue before your dog responds to the verbal cue. If your dog responds to the verbal cue before you have the chance to use the visual cue, and continues to do so after repeated attempts, you can either stop using the visual cue at all or use it at the same time as the verbal cue.<ref name="rf9" />

#Use only the visual cue. Ultimately, you want your dog to play dead by responding to just your visual cue. Even after your dog understands what the visual cue is, it will take extra time for him to be able to respond to it without any verbal cues, commands, or the lure of food.<ref name="rf11" />

#Practice the trick in different locations. The fact that your dog has mastered the trick in one location does not mean that he’ll automatically be able to do it in other locations or situations. Practicing the trick in different areas, or around different people, will allow your dog to become even better at playing dead.<ref name="rf9" />

#* Other locations include different rooms of the house, a dog park, or in front of a crowd of people. <ref name="rf9" />

#Be patient with your dog until he masters the trick. He may learn this in a few days, or it may take him a few weeks. Whatever his pace is, reward him generously for his progress.<ref name="rf10" />     

* Spend 5-15 minutes each day practicing the trick. Learning how to play dead is a more challenging task, so you’ll need to practice with your dog for at least a few minutes each day until he learns each step.<ref name="rf7" />

* Because this trick involves your dog moving between multiple positions and responding to cues, practice only 1 new step at a time.<ref name="rf8" />

* Do not teach your dog this trick if he has arthritis or other joint problems. It would be very difficult and painful for him to move from position to position if his joints hurt.<ref name="rf7" />