For most of us, sit, stay, heel and lay down are pretty much the only essential dog tricks. If you really want a little flair, you might even teach your dog to play dead, beg, roll over or shake. But for some pet owners, these tricks are just childâs play. These 11 dogs have mastered far more interesting tricks, from the useful to the totally bizarre.
Skidboot is quite the helper out on this horse ranch. He not only leads the horses around, he retrieves the phone and answers phone calls. As if that werenât enough, he also listens so well to his masterâs commands that he managed to win first place and $25,000 on Pet Star . After more than 10 years in the spotlight, Skidboot passed away.
Jumpy may not speak English as well as Skidboot, but his agility is second to none. He can parkour, surf, walk in a hand stand, skateboard on rough terrain and boy, can he jump.
Tret only has one real amazing talent, but when that skill is free running, thatâs all he needs to blow minds. His jumping, climbing and running talents are beyond compare and, best of all, he seems to have a blast practicing his technique.
For those who like a little more obedience mixed in with a set of agility tricks, itâs hard to beat Elee, who does whatever her master wants her to do, whether it means backing herself up a tree, rolling herself in a blanket, crossing her paws a particular way, or playing the drums.
Jesse is an utterly brilliant dog who specializes in tricks that are truly helpful. In his three part  âUseful Dog Tricksâ series, he opens the blinds, wakes up his owners, grabs what he needs for breakfast, makes tea and breakfast, makes the bed, grabs the paper and the mail, throws away trash, goes shopping, puts away toys, takes out the trash, folds and puts away towels, dusts, cleans up spills, vacuums, answers the phone, helps his owners relax after their days at work, and more. Heâs like a perfect 1950s housewife in an adorable Jack Russell costume.
Thereâs nothing like a pup that plans ahead. Chase understands that a dip in the pool means drying off later, so he knows to grab a towel before he dives in. He is even considerate enough to grab an extra towel for his French bulldog friend who doesnât seem to understand this whole process.
Itâs hard to tell if this dog was actually born in this barn, but either way, he still knows that itâs bad manners to just leave the door open.
Back in the eighties, Spuds MacKenzie was considered the ultimate party dog. But while Spuds was busy chugging all of the Budweiser, this handsome retriever gets busy helping ensure everyone has a fresh, cold beer in their hand.
As someone who could never master Double Dutch jump rope, I find Geronimoâs skills with the game simply mind-blowingâespecially considering that he has two extra feet to contend with while jumping.
Granted, this dog doesnât actually play Jenga (that would just be ridiculous), but she does provide an excellent building place for the game. Fortunately, her owners donât make her sit and wait for the entire game to be played before sheâs allowed to snack on all these tasty treats.
Sure, Oliveâs trick might not be all that useful compared to some of the other tricks on this list, but Iâd like to see you get a dog to cross its eyes even once, let alone on command.
Lest you think only dogs can be trained to perform such useful tasks, hereâs Patches the horse riding in a car, getting his owners some beers and answering the phone. Of course, if you do get a horse and try to get him to follow in Patchesâ shoes, I highly suggest not feeding it cheeseburgers.
While Iâve never had a dog that could do more than the basics, I have heard of a dentist who trained his dog to pull back his lips so he could âsmile.â What about you guysâwhatâs the weirdest pet trick youâve ever seen?
Loading recommendations... Please wait while we load personalized content recommendations