MunchsUncle
New Member
This is a dog-owner specific way to teach a dog to count without any reward, or at least not a reward all of the time.
The dog I had who is now deceased and will never return was Ed. Ed was a mixed breed of two mixed breeds. I would not guarantee any results with any other breed of dog. Ed was the male (neutered) child of a Lab mom and a Chow mix dad. He was long haired and blonde with a longish tail. The only photos of him that exist are as a puppy with my dirty underwear over his head and with him smiling like that at the camera. I am not posting that photo. His tongue was pink like his mom. He could round up the horses when they got out of the gate by his own initiative. I talked to Ed from the day he was born until the day he died, so he was able to at least detect human inflection. I did raise my voice at times, but I mostly simply conversed with Ed as a child. I say all of this to demonstrate how the man-dog relationship is set up for a dog that can count without a treat and even enjoy it without a treat only a good patting. He loved the attention that counting for me brought.
Now I will tell you how to teach your dog to count.
1) Hold both hands behind your back. You must have two arms and two hands to teach a dog to count. Hold the treat in your right hand and nothing in your left hand.
2) Stand in front of the dog and make eye contact.
3) Instruct the dog to sit. As soon as the dog's butt hits the ground, (It is best to do this on a sunny Spring day.) continue to hold your left hand behind you, and give the dog a treat out of your right hand. Immediately return your right hand back behind your back. Keep both hands behind your back. Repeat until the dog will sit and wait for the treat. If necessary instruct the dog to sit longer and longer so that it will get used to sitting in front of you with no treat and you and the dog looking each other in the eye.
4) Once the dog will sit on command, you are in business. Always remember to maintain eye contact. Remember that this will only work on dogs that have been raised as a person. I used to joke that Ed was an CPA in a past life.
5) OK now is the big problem, but it won't last long if you do it right. Tell the dog to sit. The dog sits. Then with both hands behind your back you have to think that the dog wants your right hand to come out with the treat when it sits. I hate to put it this way, but you have to give the dog the impression that all it is going to do is sit while you make eye contact. Bring out your left hand and hold up three fingers. Keep your right hand behind your back the whole time, as the dog will associate the right hand with the treat. Now show the dog the three fingers on your left hand. Say, (the dogs name) "How many fingers, (the dogs name)? Hold the fingers up like you have a sign in your hand, and then as you ask how many move them closer to the dog. Remember this is your dog that you raised from a pup and is a Chow Lab mix, and you have had hundreds of conversations with the dog if not thousands.
6)The dog should bark. Once the dog barks three times, put your left hand behind your back and simultaneously give the dog a treat out of your right hand, and return your right hand back behind your back. Repeat the whole process in a timely manner, but don't try to do it over and over the first time.
Make sure the treat is something the dog likes and make the dog's training fun.
Most of the time this will do it, and you don't need any more treats once the dog gets a kick out of doing it. I wasn't even as good to Ed as I should have
been, but he always loved counting.
The dog I had who is now deceased and will never return was Ed. Ed was a mixed breed of two mixed breeds. I would not guarantee any results with any other breed of dog. Ed was the male (neutered) child of a Lab mom and a Chow mix dad. He was long haired and blonde with a longish tail. The only photos of him that exist are as a puppy with my dirty underwear over his head and with him smiling like that at the camera. I am not posting that photo. His tongue was pink like his mom. He could round up the horses when they got out of the gate by his own initiative. I talked to Ed from the day he was born until the day he died, so he was able to at least detect human inflection. I did raise my voice at times, but I mostly simply conversed with Ed as a child. I say all of this to demonstrate how the man-dog relationship is set up for a dog that can count without a treat and even enjoy it without a treat only a good patting. He loved the attention that counting for me brought.
Now I will tell you how to teach your dog to count.
1) Hold both hands behind your back. You must have two arms and two hands to teach a dog to count. Hold the treat in your right hand and nothing in your left hand.
2) Stand in front of the dog and make eye contact.
3) Instruct the dog to sit. As soon as the dog's butt hits the ground, (It is best to do this on a sunny Spring day.) continue to hold your left hand behind you, and give the dog a treat out of your right hand. Immediately return your right hand back behind your back. Keep both hands behind your back. Repeat until the dog will sit and wait for the treat. If necessary instruct the dog to sit longer and longer so that it will get used to sitting in front of you with no treat and you and the dog looking each other in the eye.
4) Once the dog will sit on command, you are in business. Always remember to maintain eye contact. Remember that this will only work on dogs that have been raised as a person. I used to joke that Ed was an CPA in a past life.
5) OK now is the big problem, but it won't last long if you do it right. Tell the dog to sit. The dog sits. Then with both hands behind your back you have to think that the dog wants your right hand to come out with the treat when it sits. I hate to put it this way, but you have to give the dog the impression that all it is going to do is sit while you make eye contact. Bring out your left hand and hold up three fingers. Keep your right hand behind your back the whole time, as the dog will associate the right hand with the treat. Now show the dog the three fingers on your left hand. Say, (the dogs name) "How many fingers, (the dogs name)? Hold the fingers up like you have a sign in your hand, and then as you ask how many move them closer to the dog. Remember this is your dog that you raised from a pup and is a Chow Lab mix, and you have had hundreds of conversations with the dog if not thousands.
6)The dog should bark. Once the dog barks three times, put your left hand behind your back and simultaneously give the dog a treat out of your right hand, and return your right hand back behind your back. Repeat the whole process in a timely manner, but don't try to do it over and over the first time.
Make sure the treat is something the dog likes and make the dog's training fun.
Most of the time this will do it, and you don't need any more treats once the dog gets a kick out of doing it. I wasn't even as good to Ed as I should have
been, but he always loved counting.
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