Teach a dog to ‘shake hands’
Lift up the dogs hand and literally shake his paw yourself. At the same time say “shake hands” and then give him a treat. Every time they do it, praise them and say words like “well done” and “good boy/girl”.
As you do this, they will realise that they must be doing something right and will eventually be glad to shake your hand.
Keep repeating this process and your dog ‘should’ get it eventually. Once you have taught your dog how to shake hands, you can move on to the ‘wave’ command.
Offer to ‘shake hands’ then lift your hand up so that the dog has to raise his paw higher – wave your hand at the dog (signal) say the word ‘good wave’ or whatever you choose. Your dog will be confused at first but with patience will understand the difference between ‘shake’ and ‘wave’.
Here at my house we’ve combined the two to have a ‘High Five’ trick too!
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Richard and Dogs | Nov 6, 2007 | Reply
Great information. I thought one of my dogs how to shake hand and was trying to teach the other with no luck. I will try this method.
Dianne | Nov 13, 2007 | Reply
Yes, it’s pretty easy to teach a dog to do this shaking hands thing, especially if they are very keen to get a treat from you, but be warned: it is harder to teach them not to do it when you have had enough!
It’s such a cute thing for a dog to do, I agree, and it’s fine with a little dog like the one in the video. I once taught a Great Dane to do this and yes – it was so cute to show off to people, but I really wished sometimes I hadn’t encouraged him to do it! A massive Dane paw swiping at you for a treat doesn’t always go down so well!
Steve Viccica | Dec 12, 2007 | Reply
It’s a lot of fun to teach your dog tricks. Not only do you feel good about your dog actually doing what you are teaching him but you are also bonding and having fun with him. Good info.
John Bear | Feb 19, 2008 | Reply
I was so happy that my dog shadow already know how to shake hands.. thanks for your guide.. it really helps a lot.
Anonymous | Mar 9, 2008 | Reply
grat i learnt alot
Mark | Mar 31, 2008 | Reply
I’ve never had a problem teaching any of the dogs i’ve had how to shake hands. The advice given here is how i’ve always done it too and they’ve always learnt to do it very quickly. The dogs always enjoy learning new methods to bond with us..
Russ H | May 31, 2008 | Reply
Good Info. Probably one of the easiest things to teach a dog to do. Great Blog!
George | Jul 13, 2008 | Reply
We used the word “paw”. As long as you are consistent in your actions and words they will pick up on tricks and training pretty quick.
George’s last blog post..Is Your Labrador Retriever a Chewer?
jessica asidera | Aug 12, 2008 | Reply
good job on writing about dogs
Buddies | Aug 12, 2008 | Reply
Simple advice – I will try this with my kids who just love the idea of a dog shaking hands.
Tessa Handcock | Sep 12, 2008 | Reply
I just had a quick question for people that have taught their dogs to shake hands. How long did it take for them to pick it up?
Christina | Sep 26, 2008 | Reply
It took me about four days with my dog to do it pretty much on his own. I’ve found that if I get him when’s he hyped up, he’s much more ameniable to it. And, I was only doing it 4-6 times a day so as not to get him bored of it.