How to Teach a Dog to Stand

Showing your friends and family the tricks your dog can do can be a rewarding experience. One impressive trick you can teach your dog is how to stand on its hind legs. Your dog will learn this trick in no time as long as you are consistent with the training and make it a positive and exciting activity for your dog.

Things You'll Need

  • Dog treats
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Instructions

    • 1

      Command you dog to "sit." The dog must have mastered the "sit" command before trying to teach it to stand on its hind legs.

    • 2

      Take a small treat into your hand. Hold the treat in front of the dog so that it can smell the treat.

    • 3

      Move your hand up and above your dog's head. This should cause your dog to look up at the treat.

    • 4

      Say the command "up" or whatever word you want to use to get the dog to perform the trick. While saying the command, slowly lift your hand higher over the dog's head so it will have to stand in order to reach the treat.

    • 5

      Once the dog begins to stand on its back legs, give it a treat. Give a treat even if the dog only lifts its front legs off of the ground.

    • 6

      Raise the treat higher over the dog's head each time so the dog will stand more upright. Eventually, you will be able to get your dog to stand completely on its back legs.

    • 7

      Increase the time the dog stands before giving it the treat. Once the dog has mastered standing on its back legs, you can move the treat in a circular motion to teach them to turn around while standing.