T is for Tricks!*

  Sit.
The default position, used for “please” when asking for any behavior. One of the first things he learned as a puppy, right along with house-training and “Leave it” doggie-zen.

  Down.
Really, what else is there to say? Except that often when he does this, he’ll fold his front paws, and it looks absolutely adorable.

  Bravo!
Also known as a play-bow. When we did this trick with Katy, we called it “curtsey” because “Bow” sounds too much like “Down.” We couldn’t use that for Chappy, though, because boys don’t curtsey, so we use “Bravo” instead, so he can take a bow for being so wonderfully cute.

  Hi!
We don’t use the “Shake” command for this one–it seems rude–we just say “Hi” and hold out our hand, and then Chappy puts his paw in ours. Much more civilized. And he’ll alternate between paws, too. “Other hand” generates an immediate switch.

  High Five.
We usually follow up the handshake with a high-five, which is usually only one paw, but it took us a few tries to get this picture, so . . . here we have a high-ten (grin). Or, well, eight, technically.

  Spin.
One of our favorites. On cue, Chappy will spin, clockwise, one full circle. He never goes in the other direction. (And I love the cool, action shot here.)

  Hmm. This trick doesn’t actually have a cue, other than holding a treat in the air. Chappy will balance on his hind legs for it OR will stand on his back legs and then spin around on them. Really, he’s very talented.

Other tricks he can do that weren’t photographed? “Back-up,” which really, he’ll only do for a step or two. And, he learned it at about the same time as “Bravo,” so he sometimes gets confused and does a combination of the two . . . backing up into a bow, with a flourish, or doing a play-bow and the scooting it backwards across the floor. But hey, he DOES know it. He can also catch tossed treats, and volunteered to do that as many times as necessary for the photo shoot, but, well . . . And then, I don’t think sitting and waiting for permission to eat his meals counts as a treat, exactly, but he DOES.

(And, he asks that you please ignore the glimpses of skin on his back because of the ointment matting down his fur, and want to be sure everyone knows that he is NOT going bald and that he REFUSES to do a comb-over no matter what. He was very firm about making sure you were all aware of that.)

* Oh, and thanks to Norma for the instructions on how to center something on Typepad!

• Tags: ABC-Along, Chappy • Permalink:T is for…. //