National Train Your Dog Month: Teach Your Dog to Give High-Fives

Trick training is a great way to build stronger communication and connection between you and your pet dog. January is National Train Your Dog Month, which is why it is the perfect time to teach your furry friend some fun and interesting tricks to perform.

It can be something as simple as teaching your dog to wave or sit tight when you want it to. However, one of our favorite tricks is the “high-five”. The possibilities of teaching your dog these tricks are plenty, which makes it an ideal opportunity for almost every dog mom/dad.

We are going to discuss how you can teach your dog to give high-fives and several other fun tricks. Before we do so, let us talk about the debate regarding obedience training.

Why Does Consistent Obedience Training Matter?

You shouldn’t punish your dog if it does not wish to perform tricks or indulge in training exercises. It is quite common for dogs to show this “stubborn” behavior.

In most cases, the reluctance to learn tricks has more to do with your training methods. Therefore, you should start by making changes in your training approach.

Dogs, like people, need to feel valued and connected. Ensuring you provide consistent training to condition your dog towards tricks plays an essential role. However, this consistency has several factors, and you need to fulfill them all. Consistency in dog training depends on the following factors:

  • Language consistency
  • Consistent actions for communication
  • Consistent and structured training to avoid making your dog feel stressed

Some Fundamental Training Trick Suggestions

Another important aspect of training your dogs for a high-five requires taking things slow and following a step-by-step approach. You cannot expect your dog to fulfill your commands in the first go, as it requires constant mental conditioning. Here are some fundamental training suggestions that you should try first.

Sit

  • To teach your dog to sit, start by holding a treat in your hand and placing it over your dog’s head.
  • Move the treat over its head and wait for your dog to crouch
  • Say “Sit” as they sit and give them the treat as a reward.

Watch Me

  • Hold the treat in front of your dog’s nose
  • Slowly move the treat towards your face and say, “Watch Me”
  • Repeat and reward your pet each time it follows.

Down

  • Hold a strong-smelling treat to your dog’s nose and hold it there.
  • Next, place the treat on the floor while your dog watches it
  • Say “Down” while its belly is on the floor and give it a treat as a reward.

Note: This trick can also help you control your dog when it is super exciting and jumpy.

Stay

  • Start by making your dog sit and slowly back away from your dog
  • Say “No” if they try to move and say “Stay” when they stop moving
  • Say “Come” and give them a treat as a reward for listening.

Come

  • Put a comfortable leash on your dog and ask them to come to you.
  • Reward them with a treat when they come to you.

Note: It can save your pet’s life and ensure safety in case it wanders into an unsafe area.

Training your dog with these fundamental training sessions will help you build the necessary communication and bond for more advanced tricks. Now we are going to talk about how to teach your dog to high-five.

Teaching Your Dog to High-Five

You need to give your dog a name and a natural action when you wish to teach them to hand their paw to you as a high-five or a handshake. However, you should never grab your dog’s paw in an attempt to teach it how to high-five. This is because several dogs have sensitive paws.

Try the following steps to teach your dog how to High-five.

  • Place a treat near your dog’s nose and wait for it to get impatient. The dog will naturally paw on the treat. Say “Yes” or another indicator as soon as they do this, and give them the treat as a reward.
  • Now, place another treat in your hand and hold it near your dog’s nose as before. Say “High-five” as soon as they reach out to paw the treat. Say “Yes” as soon as the dog touches your hand and reward them for this. Repeat this step a couple of times.
  • Next, try changing your hand shape more into the high-five shape. Place your hand in front of the dog and hold your hand flat, facing their nose. Say “High-five”, followed by “Yes” when they touch your hand. Reward them and repeat.

Once your dog starts to follow, reduce the frequency of treats in your hand until they start understanding and following the command without a treat.

Some Extra Tricks That Are Super Fun for You Both

Once your dog learns to high-five, there are several other fun tricks for you and your furry friend to master over time.

Fetch

Fetch is a common and fun trick to try with your pet. However, some dogs may not follow the command right away. Therefore, you need to start by playing the actual fetch game with your dog until it becomes accustomed to it. You can try the trick indoors afterward.

Roll Over

You need to get your dog down on its belly for a roll-over trick and let it move around its body a couple of times until it learns the trick completely. However, this may take some time, which is why you must remain patient.

You can keep trying more tricks with your dog and create a special bond with your furry friend day by day.

Training your dog how to high-five this month shouldn’t be difficult with the tips we mentioned in this article. Ensure you take your time and do not force your dog to learn because every dog is special and has its learning pace. You can always reach out to us at SCPS for more info and find the perfect dog trainer for more tricks.

Melanie Haynes

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