How to teach your dog the trick "take off your sock"
The dog trick “taking off socks” is not only fun, but also has a useful background : service dogs learn to help people with disabilities.
Here you can learn from @die_appenshepherds how to teach your dog this funny trick.
This is what you need for the trick
- treats as a reward
- Optional: Clicker (for confirmation)
- A sock that is as wide and loose as possible
How to take off socks
You can practice all training steps individually in short training sessions (approx. 15 minutes) - even spread out over the course of the day. Always in such a way that your furry friend is not overwhelmed.
Step 1:
Hold the sock in your hand and let your dog make contact. Then you can start offering the sock in a playful way. As soon as your dog starts playing with the sock, immediately praise him and give him treats.
You can now also incorporate the command “sock” or “pull”.
Step 2: Let the sock slip from your hand
Once your dog has understood that he should take the sock from your hand, you can teach him to pull the sock with slight resistance. Your dog needs a little more strength to pull the sock off his foot.
Put the sock over your arm and clench your hand into a fist so that the dog has enough space to pull on the sock. Don't forget: reward your furry friend immediately when he pulls on the sock.
Step 3:
As soon as your dog has understood the principle, you can go a step further: Now pull the sock over the top of your foot (important: do not pull it completely over the heel yet). If the dog pulls the sock off, you can test whether he can pull it off while it is completely on.
This trick is easy to learn and useful if you are having trouble moving.
