Crawl

It’s important when teaching this trick to make sure the dog’s back stays level and their bottom doesn’t pop up into the air. It’s best to lure with the treat at the height of their nose, not on the floor, to prevent this. It’s also important not to reward the dog when they stop to be able to build longer crawls- either set a location as a target and mark and reward them for reaching it, or mark and reward them while they’re moving.

To teach the trick, start with the dog in ‘down’ and begin luring them forward. Start to move your hand and click and reward when the dog begins to move forward, even just leaning forward is plenty at first. Gradually build up the distance the dog is crawling.

If you’re struggling, click for any movement, even leaning forward. It’s best not to push too fast and have the dog either pop up their bottom or start to stand.

You can vary the distance you’re asking the dog to crawl so they don’t to lose motivation as they begin to crawl further.

Before you add a verbal cue make sure the dog is moving the way you want them to- it’s difficult to change the association with the word after it’s been made.

To add the verbal cue, say your chosen cue and then lure as you have been doing.