Dogs are known to be very loyal animals. They love their owners unconditionally and they are always ready to give them a helping hand.
This makes them perfect companions for humans. However, dogs don’t necessarily follow human rules or customs.
If you want to train your dog to perform certain tasks, then you should start from the basics. One of the customs that dogs do not follow is when we shake hands when greeting someone.
Shaking hands shows that you are polite when greeting others. There is nothing more we humans want than our dog to be polite when greeting people!
All joking aside, teaching your dog to shake its paw is a great trick to be able to impress your friends and family.
Also, having your dog shake its paw or at least willingly give its paw to you can be very beneficial if they have a problem.
Dogs can even learn to shake their back paws!
If you want to learn how to teach your dog to shake its paws, then you’ve come to the right place.
I have created a fun guide for you to follow so you can easily learn how to teach your dog to shake.
The Benefits Of Teaching Your Dog To Shake
You might be a little skeptical about the benefits teaching your dog to shake has. This is completely understandable!
We often see teaching your dog to shake its paw as a fun and entertaining trick. In fact, most of us think it is adorable when we see a dog give its paw to others.
However, there are some benefits from teaching your dog how to shake, they are just not as obvious as the benefits from teaching your dog how to sit.
One benefit of teaching your dog how to shake is that they willingly hand over their paw to you. This is perfect for when you need to clean their paws, or if they have a problem such as a thorn stuck in that paw.
It can also help when you take your dog to the groomers or vets. In fact, teaching your dog how to shake gets them used to holding their paws which is great for when their nails need to be trimmed.
Another benefit of teaching your dog how to shake is that it allows you to teach your dog other tricks with their paws. These could be tricks such as waving.
If you teach your dog to shake its back paws it will help them learn to have better co-ordination in moving their back feet. Training your dog to shake there back paws can also increase their strength.
How To Teach Your Dog To Shake
Since we have more of an awareness of how awesome teaching your dog to shake its paws is, it is now time to move on to how to teach them to do this trick.
Prepare For Training
As with all dog training, the first thing we want to do is make sure that you are prepared. This means making sure the environment you are training your dog in has no distractions.
It is also a good idea to have a lot of high-value treats with you when you are teaching your dog to shake.
You may also want to put your dog’s favorite toy nearby while you are teaching.
Method One
The easiest way to try to teach your dog to shake is to hold your hand out to your dog. Don’t worry if your dog starts to snick or lick your hands, they might just be puzzled by what you are asking.
The key here is to be patient. Don’t try to encourage them vocally, just wait to see what they do.
Most dogs will eventually try to put their paws on your hand. When they do that you need to reward them straight away. If you are using a clicker then click as soon as they place their paw on your hand.
Repeat this until your dog is putting his paw in your hand five or six times in a row. Then you can add the command ‘Shake’ and put your hand out.
Reward your dog if they put their paw in your hand. You can also build on the amount of time your dog keeps their paw in your hand.
For example, ask them to ‘Shake’, hold your hand out, and then wait until you reward them.
It’s important to make sure you repeat this with the other hand so that your dog knows how to shake both paws.
Method Two
For some dogs, they might not understand what you want them to do when you hold out your hand. If this is the case, don’t worry!
There are other methods you can try to encourage your dog to place their paw on your hand so you can teach them to shake.
The first way is to have your dog in the down position. Then you can start to place a treat in your hand and move it around in front of your dog’s paw.
This should excite the dog and eventually, they will place their paw on your hand.
The second they place your paw on their hand you should open your fist and give them the treat. Keep repeating this action until they start to place their paw on your hand automatically.
From here you can try to hold out your hand to your dog and they should place their paw on your hand.
However, some dogs will get a bit too excited and frustrated when using a treat to encourage them to put their paws on your hand.
You may find that they try to lick your hand to get to the treat. Instead, you should use one of their favorite toys such as a ball.
Cover the toy with your hand and wait for your dog to put their paw on your hand.
Once you have done this method, you can follow method one to teach your dog how to shake.
Things To Consider
When you are training your dog it is important that you always remain positive.
Due to the fact that you are possibly exciting your dog while teaching them how to shake their paw, they might become frustrated.
If this does happen, end your training session on a positive note by having them follow a command they already know.
It is also important to consider that this trick might take a few attempts for your dog to understand.
However, with positive training and patience, they will eventually understand the command.
This is also why it is important you reinforce this trick by repeating the training. Try not to train your dog for more than 10 minutes at a time.
To further challenge your dog you can start to ask for the ‘Shake’ command in an environment where there are distractions.
This will test your dog’s obedience and will help them to listen to you in any environment.
Final Thoughts
Dogs are very intelligent animals and teaching them tricks such as shaking their paw can help them to stay entertained.
However, dogs learn at different rates. Some dogs take longer than others to pick up new commands.
However, even if you think your dog isn’t picking things up quickly enough, there are still plenty of ways to help them learn.
So keep trying and remember that patience is an essential part of any successful dog training program.
We hope that this guide has helped you to learn how to teach your dog to ‘Shake’.
Please share our article with friends who would benefit from reading about this topic. Thank you for reading!
When it comes to dog training, it is important for the owner to be taught the simple but correct techniques, and the way in which you communicate with your dog is vital to this process. I recently decided to set up this blog to share my knowledge and skills with a wider audience.
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