Welcome to the Intermediate Trick Dog course!

A brief overview of the differences between the Do More With Your Dog! and AKC Intermediate Trick Dog titles.

Some tips for filming your trick dog title assessments quickly and easily.

Some tips on how to select the right tricks for your dog.

Many Intermediate tricks ask for a little more duration, distance, or fluency. This section will show you how to get there.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to use marker cues and positive reinforcement effectively to clearly communicate with your dog.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to use proof your tricks against real-world distractions.

In this lesson, you’ll teach your dog to rest their chin gently on a target like your hand or a pillow using luring or shaping.

In this lesson, you’ll shape your dog’s ability to hold a nose touch to your hand or a target for a full 4 seconds.

In this sweet and silly trick, your dog “whispers a secret” by targeting their nose near your ear.

In this lesson, you’ll teach your dog to boop their nose through a heart shape made with your hands using shaping or gentle luring.

You’ll teach your dog to tilt their head on cue by capturing a natural, curious behavior using fun sounds and positive reinforcement.

You’ll teach your dog to turn their head side-to-side by capturing natural movements between your treat-filled hands, then shaping the behavior into a cue-able trick that looks like they’re saying “no.”

You’ll teach your dog to place both paws on your arm using positive reinforcement and gradual shaping.

You’ll teach your dog to move into and stay between your legs using luring, shaping, and clear verbal cues.

In this lesson, you’ll teach your dog to weave through your legs using treats, motion, and clear cues.

In this lesson, your dog will learn to jump through a circle formed by your arms, using positive reinforcement and gradual shaping.

In this trick, your dog becomes your adorable selfie partner by standing behind you and placing their paws on your shoulders, holding the pose long enough for a cute photo.

Lick lips on cue is a charming little trick that starts by capturing a natural behavior and shaping it into a response to a verbal or visual cue.

For the "Hold" trick, your dog will calmly take an object into their mouth and hold it for a few seconds without chewing, mouthing, or dropping it.

“Carry” builds on the “Hold” behavior by teaching your dog to walk while calmly holding an item like a basket or bag.

"Pull Toy on Rope or String" teaches your dog to tug and move an object using a rope. Whether it’s dragging a toy across the floor or opening a cabinet.

“Open Door” teaches your dog to use a rope or tug to open a cabinet, crate, or interior door on cue. This is a useful and impressive skill that builds off your dog’s understanding of the “Pull” behavior.

“Open Drawer” teaches your dog to tug open a drawer using a cloth or rope, building on their “pull” skills in a practical and impressive way.

Target Mark (Foot Touch) teaches your dog to move to and stay on a designated target, building foundational skills for distance work.

This trick teaches your dog to use their paw or nose to activate a button, touch lamp, or talking device on cue.

"Go to Place" teaches your dog to move to a designated spot like a mat or crate on cue, building calm behavior, impulse control, and reliable distance work.

“Close Door” teaches your dog to shut a door using their nose or paws on cue. It’s an impressive trick that encourages body awareness, targeting skills, and problem-solving.

“Close Drawer” teaches your dog to use their nose or paw to push a drawer shut on cue. It’s a practical and impressive trick that builds confidence, body awareness, and fluency with targeting behaviors.

Directional casting teaches your dog to move between two or more targets (like mats or platforms) based on your cues.

This trick combines directional casting with a hoop jump, as your dog confidently moves between two platforms while jumping through a hoop on cue.

2-on/2-off with a fitness peanut teaches your dog to place their rear paws on a stabilized peanut while keeping their front paws on the floor or a low target.

This trick teaches your dog to confidently balance all four paws on a stabilized ball or fitness peanut, helping improve core strength, coordination, and focus.

“Go Around” teaches your dog to confidently move away from you and circle an object, building directional focus, distance skills, and engagement for sports, freestyle, or fun.

In this fun recall-based trick, your dog finds you after you've hidden out of sight.

In this intermediate-level trick, your dog will manipulate an interactive canine puzzle or treat-dispensing toy to earn a reward.

Crawl Tunnel is a fun intermediate trick where your dog moves low to the ground through a narrow tunnel made from household items or agility gear.

In the Shell Game, your dog uses their nose to identify which of three containers is hiding a treat.

In this classic trick, the dog lies down and then rolls over completely onto their opposite side on cue.

In this impressive trick, your dog selects a card from a fan of playing cards and hands it to you on cue.

Now you learn how to put everything together and how to chain tricks together for smoother video submissions.

This lesson covers examples of passing video submissions for trick titles and how to create your own.