Think outside the hoop! Creative dog trick training with shaping

If you are still wondering what to do for Task 1 of the International Trick Dog Competition, here is a slightly different way to approach it.

Brainstorm trick ideas together with your dog!

Instead of coming up with the trick idea yourself, put a hoop, ring or another suitable object in front of your dog and see what they come up with.

This is a simple training technique called shaping, and it can be a brilliant way to discover tricks you might never have thought of yourself.

What is shaping?

Shaping simply means rewarding your dog for small steps towards a behaviour rather than showing them exactly what to do.

There is no luring, no physically positioning the dog and, at least initially, no instruction.

Your dog tries something.

You mark and reward it.

Your dog thinks, “Hmm… what did I just do that earned that treat?”

Then they try something else.

It turns training into a little problem-solving game, and sometimes the dogs have much better ideas than we do!

How to use shaping to come up with new tricks?

Step 1: Choose your prop

Start with something safe and easy for your dog to investigate.

It could be:

• a hula hoop

• a smaller ring

• a ring-shaped dog toy

• a tyre

• a wreath

• a large plastic ring

• or any other Task 1-appropriate object with a hole in the middle.

Choose something your dog is comfortable around and place it on the floor.

Then… do very little.

Yes, really!

Step 2: Reward curiosity

Watch what your dog does.

They might:

look at the hoop…

walk towards it…

sniff it…

touch it with their nose…

put a paw on it…

step over it…

put one foot inside…

walk around it…

pick it up…

or do something you hadn’t considered at all.

Pick up on those little moments.

Use your usual marker - a clicker, “yes”, or whatever your dog understands, and reward.

At this stage, you are not looking for an impressive trick. You are simply telling your dog:

“Interacting with this object is interesting. Keep experimenting.”

Step 3: Give your dog time to think

This is probably the hardest bit for us humans!

Try not to immediately point at the hoop, tap it, tell your dog to touch it or lure them into position.

Give them a few seconds to work it out.

Some dogs will start enthusiastically offering behaviours straight away. Others may stand and look at you as if to say:

“Well? What exactly do you want?”

That’s fine too.

You can make the first few rewards extremely easy. Even looking towards the object can count.

Once your dog understands that their own actions are making the rewards happen, you will often start seeing more experimentation.

Step 4: Notice an idea worth developing

After a while, you may spot something interesting.

Perhaps your dog keeps putting one paw inside the hoop.

Great — you could start rewarding that more often.

One paw may become two paws.

Two paws might eventually become all four feet standing neatly inside the hoop.

Or perhaps your dog noses the edge of the hoop and accidentally moves it.

That could develop into pushing the hoop deliberately.

A dog who picks up a small ring might eventually carry it, hand it to you, put it over something or deliver it to another location.

This is where shaping becomes really fun.

You aren’t necessarily teaching the trick you imagined before you started.

You are developing the idea your dog has offered you.

Step 5: Start being a little more selective

Once you have decided which behaviour you want to develop, gradually stop rewarding everything else.

For example, imagine your dog has discovered that putting their feet inside a hoop earns rewards.

You might progress like this:

One paw inside → two paws inside → three paws → all four feet inside.

Or perhaps your dog has started putting their head through a ring:

Look through the ring → nose through → head through → hold the position for a second → hold it while you move the ring slightly.

Don’t rush from the first step to the finished trick.

If your dog suddenly seems confused, simply make the next step easier again.

TRAINING TIPS

When playing shaping, keep the sessions very short and do not confuse your dog. If you are looking for ideas reward your dog for more ideas. If you are looking to develop an existing idea, then reward your dog for offering you anything in the direction of that idea, gradually narrowing down the criteria.

To keep the shaping sessions short, I usually use the rule of 10 treats: only have 10 treats with you. Use them as normal to reward your dog. As soon as the 10 treats are finished, end the session.

Step 6: Add the cue later

You don’t need to name the trick immediately.

First, let the behaviour become predictable.

If you put the hoop down and your dog confidently walks over and puts all four paws inside it, then you can start adding your verbal cue or hand signal.

That way, the cue becomes attached to a behaviour your dog already understands.

Step 7: Play with the idea further

Now you can start getting creative.

Can your dog do the behaviour from further away?

Can you change the position of the hoop?

Can the hoop be upright instead of flat?

Can you combine the behaviour with something your dog already knows?

For example, a dog who has learned to stand inside a hoop might:

stand inside and spin…

put their front feet outside while keeping their back feet in…

sit or bow inside…

move from one hoop to another…

or perform another favourite trick while remaining inside the hoop.

Suddenly one very simple shaped behaviour can become the starting point for a very original Task 1 performance.

Two dogs can give you even more ideas

If you work with more than one dog, try giving them the prop individually first.

They may interact with exactly the same object in completely different ways.

One dog might naturally carry a ring while another loves putting paws on things.

That could eventually develop into a trick where one dog holds or carries the prop while the other interacts with it.

Again, you don’t necessarily need to decide what the final trick will look like at the beginning.

Experiment first.

There is no single right answer

One of the nicest things about Task 1 is that the same object can produce completely different performances.

Your dog’s age, size, physical ability, personality and previous training will all influence the tricks they offer.

A confident young athlete may leap, weave and balance.

Another dog may create something wonderfully precise using nose touches or paw targets.

An older dog could produce a beautiful sequence based entirely around walking, positioning and interacting with the prop.

Creativity doesn’t mean the trick has to be difficult.

Sometimes the most memorable ideas are the simplest ones.

So grab a hoop, loop, ring or something similar, put it down…

…and ask your dog:

“What do you think we should do with this?”

You might be surprised by the answer!