I’m reposting “Take a Bow for Teaching a Play Bow” from September, 2019 (because, well, see “Meanwhile” below). But I’m glad I found it, because I would love to start a conversation along the lines of: “If you could only teach your dog one “trick,” what would it be? Of course, that brings up the question of what is the difference between a “trick” and any other behavior we want to elicit, but we can add that into the discussion if we want.
Here’s from 9/2019: Our good friend Debby G came to visit recently, with a report on how her dog Monty was doing. Monty was found on a porch a year ago spring, starving and close to death. Here’s a photo of the poor thing soon after he was found.
Not surprisingly, although physically healthy now, Monty has a lot of fears, including even the sight of another dog. The good news is that Debby is a dedicated dog owner, and that she has a great team of trainers helping her. Her primary goal is to walk Monty down the street without him freaking out every time he sees another dog. They are making good progress, walking in parallel with one of those worth-his-weight-in-gold Goldendoodles who is stable, unreactive and probably hoarding dog food to deliver to rescue organizations if he could just get a hold of the car keys. I had only a few thoughts to add to the treatment plan, and one of them was teaching a play bow. As I said in a 3/19 post about working with fearful dogs:
It’s hard to be fearful when you’re playing, and that’s true for both people and dogs. One of my favorite cues to teach nervous dogs is to Take a Bow . . . “bowing” is a play solicitation gesture to dogs, and it’s hard to be nervous and playful at the same time.
Monty reminded me that my absolute, all-time favorite trick to teach ANY dog is a play bow. I’m not actually sure why we call it a trick, since it’s no different than a sit or down–we simply put something that dogs do anyway on cue, right? Sit and down themselves are interesting, in that they ask a dog, in some ways, to squelch it’s forward movement, to pause, to contain itself. They are great ways to get a dog’s attention, and, let’s be honest, to get him under control.
But a play bow? Ah, hello fun! The dog may move down and backwards, but the move is friendly, relaxed, and an invitation for lots of action in the near future. Putting a play bow on cue has so many benefits that if I were queen I’d decree it be a part of every dog training class in the universe. (Is it in yours?)
The benefits of putting a play bow on cue are many:
THEY RELAX NERVOUS DOGS As I mentioned earlier, asking a dog to do a play bow automatically leads to relaxation. I taught Willie to play bow on cue, and used it when we were working on his response to unfamiliar dogs. Not only was it successful in that context, but after a while he began doing it on his own when he was beginning to feel stressed. At least that was my strong impression. Besides being an action integrally involved in play, a play bow also asks the dog to stretch and relax his muscles, which leads to another one of its benefits:
IT’S GOOD FOR YOUR DOG’S BODY Dr. Chris Zink (PhD, DVM and goddess of canine sports medicine) writes and speaks often about the importance of stretching out a dog’s muscles before exercise. A play bow is a great way to do that. In “The power of the trick” she describes a range of exercises we can do to keep our dogs healthy, starting with a play bow before any physical activity. Dr. Zinke knows more than any one I know about canine physiology, structure and health, and if she says we should be asking our dogs to play bow before exercise, we would do well to pay attention. In her fantastic seminar at APDT in October, 2017, she explained that the vast majority of sports injuries are soft tissue injuries from over use, not from a specific incident, and are often undetected by both owner and GP veterinarian. Stretching can do a lot to prevent that kind of progressive injury.
ITS THE PERFECT “INCOMPATIBLE BEHAVIOR” Is your dog doing something you’d rather she didn’t? Barking out the window when another dog walks by? Scratching at the door to go outside? One of the best ways to deal with an unwelcome behavior is to teach the dog a different response to the trigger stimulus. See another dog out the window? Then do a play bow and good things will happen. Want to tell me you need to go potty? How about a play bow instead of etching into the door frame? Just be careful not to let it “say” too many things–be thoughtful about how you want your dog to use it to communicate with you.
IT MAKES US HAPPY Do you, or do you not smile when your dog does a play bow, even if just in your heart. Well, that’s enough right there, right?
If I wasn’t so happily busy training Maggie to run in Open, tending my ever expanding garden, and cooking things I probably shouldn’t (I’m talking to you, apple galette.) I’d have made a brilliant video for you illustrating how to teach a play bow. Ah, but I am, and I didn’t. Here’s one from Kikopup, my favorite source of training videos:
And if you have a dog who insists on lying down–here’s one on teaching a bow from a down:
And by the way, here’s Monty now… lucky boy, hey?
MEANWHILE, back on the farm, Spring 2025 Edition: Covid + COPD + Asthma + POTS + CFS . What could go wrong? It’s been a time. The great news is that I’m here and I’m breathing and only cough when I talk.
Jim got Covid too, but recovered fast. Along with his loving care and some great medical help, I had a dedicated nurse by my side almost all the time.
I’ll be fine, just gonna take some time. But Maggie Mae continues to delight me–here’s a photo from one of our great farm sitters, Dani P.
Seen along the road on the way to acupuncture. Adorsable.
The triumph of my asparagus planting: Six plants, planted two years ago. 5/6 plants dead, this one, trying its best.
Happy to say the strawberries are doing a lot better!
Liked the colors in this…
I’ll end with this, a pop up Columbine that should never have made it in such a high-use area. It gets smushed by the hose, stepped on, and abused daily, and yet, it’s thriving. A good reminder to us all.
Jump in with your favorite dog training tricks, we’ll all love to hear what you have to say.
Be well, friends.
English (US) · 