101 Dog Tricks: Step by Step Activities to Engage, Challenge, and Bond with Your Dog (Dog Tricks and Training) Kindle Edition

Other reviewers are correct that there aren't enough intermediate steps for many dogs. For very responsive dogs, this might be enough. For instance, there is a trick where the dog fetches a tissue and the first step is "point at the tissue until the dog picks it up". For my dog, it's going to be a very long wait to get that tissue.

I cannot even bring myself to get past the first couple of pages. It starts really well, explaining timing (as in rate of reinforcement), why ending on a high note is essential, that dogs aren't robots, etc. So far, so good. Then we get to the basic cues. Or, as Ms Sundance calls them, commands. For a reward based trainer, she sure uses a lot of outdated verbiage. I thought, ok, she's been in the business for a long time and some habits die slowly. But then I get to the basic cues, and when I saw how she wants the reader to teach a sit, I almost flung this book against the wall. Pressing down on the hips?? That method has been outdated and condemned by the American Veterinary Association of Animal Behavior for years. "Command" your dog to sit before he eats so it "reinforces you are the pack leader"??? I thought this was a joke. This is so far outdated, and has such tremendous negative effects on animal welfare, that I cannot believe it has made it into the year 2018.There also seems to be a lot of other body wrangling and pressuring going for some other tricks that I've leafed through.Wish I could give this zero stars.

I got my first puppy a few weeks ago. I bought this book in anticipation. By 10 weeks old he has learned sit, down, stay, come, roll over, shake paws and fetch. Granted he is a collie and very smart but this book lays an easy to follow step by step guide to every trick.

Wow! I have had dogs for 50 years, but this is definitely the best, most fun, training book I've had. The instructions are clear, and I have a number of successes already even though my Shih Tzu puppy is still only four months old. To add to the fun, many of the commands include the hand signal as well. Since I purchased this, I've also bought several other books by this author. She definitely has a gift for giving clear, easy to follow instructions.

I bought this book when I realized my rescue dog enjoyed doing tricks as we worked on agility and obedience training.I have a number of trick training books and this has a lot of tricks in it and some of the basics. The book covers basics tricks or obedience work through to more circus type tricks. In the hope of being helpful for other pet parents, the tricks in this book are:1. Sit2. Down3. Stay4. Come5. Shake hands (left and right)6. Fetch/Take it7. Drop it/Give8. Balance and catch (balance a cookie or a toy on the nose/head)9. Sit pretty/Beg10. Speak11. Roll over12. Play dead13. Fetch my slippers14. Get your leash15. Walk the dog (walking themselves or another dog)16. Newspaper delivery17. Say your prayers18. Kennel up19. Carry my purse20. Tidy up your toys21. Roll yourself in a blanket22. Honk a bike horn23. Peekaboo24. Doggy push ups25. Act ashamed26. Limp27. Pickpocket pooch28. Play the piano29. World's dumbest dog30. Get the phone when it rings31. Turn off the light32. Open/close a door33. Ring a bell to come inside34. Pull on a rope35. Bring me a beer from the fridge36. Mail carrier37. Find the car keys/remote38. Push a shopping cart39. Bring me a tissue40. Soccer41. Football42. Basketball43. Hockey goalie44. Hide and seek45. Go hide46. Which hand holds the treat47. Easter egg hunt48. Ring toss49. Shell game50. Dog on point51. 3-2-1 let's go52. Jump over a bar53. Jump over my knee54. Jump over my back55. Jump into my arms56. Summersault/handstand vault57. Baton jumping58. Rope jump59. Beginning disc dog60. Disc vault off my leg61. Hoop jump62. Jump through my arms63. Couple hoop sequence64. Hoop jump over my back65. Disobedient dog under the hoop66. Rolling hoop dive67. Through a hoop lying on the ground68. Paper covered hoop69. Tunnel70. Crawl71. Touch a target72. Under/Over73. Teeter-totter (See-Saw)74. Weave poles75. Climb a ladder76. Roll a barrel77. Heel forward and backward78. Back up79. Spin circles80. Take a bow81. Place (circle to my left side)82. Side (swing to my left side)83. Leg weave84. Figure 8s85. Moonwalk86. Jump for joy87. Chorus line kicks88. My dog can count89. Discern objects names90. Directed retrieve91. Directed jumping92. Pick a card from a deck93. Food refusal94. Find the object with my scent95. Contraband search96. Track a person's scent trail97. Kisses98. Paws on my arm99. Head down100. Cover your eyes101. Wave goodbyeKyra Sundance is very well known for her skill in dog training for animal actors, circus performances and more. Her Do More With Your Dog(TM) program is even recognized by the American Kennel Club for Trick Dog Titles so having some books by this trainer is very useful if you are embarking on a Trick Dog title training program with your dog.Some reviews of this book and other similar types of book complain that the tricks need props and it's true many of the tricks in this book require props so be prepared! If this is something you are considering for your dog as part of a Trick Dog title then you will need to get used to props being necessary for your tricks.A number of the tricks need YOU to be in good form too. There's some tricks requiring summersaults or a handstand. Which, quite frankly, are way out of my capabilities at the moment but for a fitter dog owner may be right up your street! Other tricks are needing strength on your part to support your dog like jump into my arms. That might not be a trick you do with your 150lb Great Dane but maybe one you do with your Teacup Poodle.Know yourself and your limitations as well as understanding those of your dog. I would not be having my 17 yr old Border Collie doing ladder climbing or vaulting off my leg to catch a flying disc or ball. My elderly dog is more suited to find the object with my scent or more likely, taking a nap. But my 4 year old dog on the other hand will happily jump hurdles, vault off a stand, run through a tunnel and chase livestock until the sun comes down. Knowing your dog is really key! As is making the trick training a fun game for them and having a lot of small, tasty treats.The pros of the book:- Easy to read instructions with pictures.- The book identifies foundation tricks or skills needed to accomplish the more complex tricks.- Verbal cue and hand signal suggestions are included but not what you need to follow. Use what makes sense to you, your training technique and your dog.Cons:I wish the flow of the book was more based on skill building rather than by type such as Funny Dog or Love Me, Love My Dog for chapters or groups of tricks. I find that I'm flipping all over the book looking for the prerequisites for a trick because they are not in a skill building order like other trick books.Some of the tricks feel like they are missing steps or pictures to help you out with the training. The troubleshooting boxes that go with the trick are helpful but may not have the specific issue you are dealing with. For example, on pull a rope: My dog loves to pull on a rope when I have it in my hand but will not pull a rope attached to a gate or a box or a door yet. This seems like it would be a common problem for this type of trick but it is not mentioned in the troubleshooting box although tug of war aggression is. The steps for teaching this trick are small and seem like further explanation might be needed between using a rope to play tug of war and tying it on a box. I use this as an example of course, but there are other incidences in the book for other tricks where there seems to be a gap in the steps or knowledge for the trainer.This is where I start to look for other resources to help me as a trainer understand the steps to help my dog succeed. Perhaps it is tying the rope on the object and rewarding the dog every time they sniff the rope out or touch it with their nose and move on from there. Sometimes looking at other people teaching a similar trick can help you move forward.Some of the circus or elaborate tricks have more pictures available and it seems that if that depth of step by step was applied to more tricks in this book, it would open up to a lot more people working with their dogs.On the whole, this was a good book to have along with other trick training books. It sparks lots of ideas of tricks to try but I often find myself looking to other books or resources on how to train it which is ultimately why I gave it 3 stars. I'm not a novice dog owner by any means and I feel that a new owner or trainer looking to move into this type of training will benefit from a variety of books on trick dog training so they can find a training style that works for them and their dog as well as get the benefit of ideas of tricks if the decide to persue a Trick Dog title.This is a good book to have even if you are new to dog ownership. The time you spend with your dog working on the tricks together helps to foster trust and build that relationship between you. There is definitely a wonderful feeling when your dog gets it and does the trick right!

This is a great book. Great photos, great descriptions, the tricks are listed by difficulty, and it even lists prerequisites for advanced tricks. The author also gives some "troubleshooting" advice in little bubbles on the page. Well written, not wordy. You can read about a trick, conveniently laid out across 2 pages and get the gist using the narrative or skip it and go right to the photos, which show every action. Really a very clear, powerful and well organized training resource book. It gives suggestion for voice commands and hand signals. It's almost as powerful as a video, and it achieves this using just 2 pages per trick!

I like ...- step by step instructions- visual cue pictures- some useful tipsDon't like - too many steps are missing! The leap from taking a basic step toward the end trick is fairly significant in some cases. I also purchased a book on scent-oriented games, which detailed some of the same activities (ie find the keys) in much greater detail -- and, in my mind, more effectively.I think this book might be a starting point if you have a highly motivated and intelligent dog (poodle, lab, etc.), but the tricks explained are not great for me and my hound.

I received this as a gift, and also purchased for a friend. It's very detailed with photos and step by step instructions plus troubleshooting tips, so very easy to use for first time dog owners, and even kids. Teaches verbal cues as well as hand motions. All the basics like sit, stay, lie down, come, drop it, and heel are included - as the rest of the tricks build on those - so can be used to begin basic manners training before fun tricks. Friend liked it as well.

Any dog lover, or anyone who has an ounce of compassion in them, should not buy this book. I was appalled by the training techniques instructing you to ‘bop’ your dog on the nose for non compliance. The instructions on training your dog to refuse food, made by blood boil. I’m a behavioural scientist and most of the research out there supports positive reinforcement for dog training. If there had been the option, I would have given this book zero stars.

Really disappointed that this book and training methods still exist in this day and age. In the first chapter it's suggested that in order to get your dog to sit you push his bottom down whilst pulling his neck up with a lead at the same time. it also talks about reinforcing being a pack leader. I gave up after that and decided it wasn't suitable as a gift for a friend who wanted to do more with their dog as I don't want to encourage this outdated method of training. That apart there are indeed a lot of tricks to teach your dog. It appears you need to be extremely athletic though if you are going to do a lot of them. Doing the splits in the air whilst you dog jumps between your legs is not going to be doable for most people I wouldn't think!Annoying that I also have to pay to return as I wouldn't know until opening the book what was written would I?!

I was a little unsure of this book as I was not keen on the idea of turning my dog into a stunt dog or becoming a 'look how clever my dog' is owner. Thankfully the ability to look inside before you buy allowed me to see the value of the book and look past the title. It starts from the basic commands and allows the reader to go as far as they, or their dog, may wish to go. The pictorial stages for each command are clear and easy to understand while the 'what to expect' and trouble shooting sections for each command are extremely useful and often missed in training books. I recently homed a dog from a rescue centre who was abandoned and clearly had some patchy training for while he walked well other basic commands were not understood. He also did not know how to play. This book has been a real gem and luckily he soon learnt to respond and to come using his new name (as his first name was unknown) which was a real plus when he was spooked a few weeks later on a walk and backed out of his harness and bolted. If it had now been for my purchase of this book I may never have seen him again.If you need a training book for your dog this really should be at the top of your list.

An excellent book for teaching dogs tricks. There are other books in the series by Kyra Sundance. They are all highly commendable. They all have easy to follow instructions with plenty of photos.

The cover boasts 'more than 150,000 copies sold' unfortunately 2 of which were bought by me! I got the kindle version thinking it would be easier as a quick reference when training. Sadly I found the format really unusable, as the tricks are organised by type e.g. Chores and games rather than difficulty. I was constantly having to go between the index and contents page to identify the 'easy' rated tricks and then find them in the book. This is a really good book with loads of well explained steps to teach you dog and lots of images, but I strongly recommend buying the book not the kindle version. The kindle version is so expensive as well, I feel really disappointed that I've had to pay twice!!