I always think it’s cool when dogs can do “cool animal tricks.”  You know…jumping through rings, high-fiving, finding Timmy when he’s fallen down the well.  All those fun “extras” that dog owners teach their dogs to show them off and make them stand out from the other dogs at the dog park.

Or maybe it’s just cause the owners think the tricks are cool.

But any dog owner will tell you that though it is great to have a dog that can do backflips while catching a frisbee in his mouth, there are other “dog tricks” that they must be trained in first.  Things that every domesticated dog NEEDS to learn.

Photo Credit: Getty Images – Rick Lew

They aren’t the glamorous things either.  They aren’t the pretty ones you show off too much about (unless they are the only tricks in Fido’s repertoire!)  They are the basics of being a pet.

Things like not going number one OR number two inside the house.  Not throwing your food all over the kitchen.  Sitting and staying when told to protect little puppies from danger or visitors from a huge Lab jumping up on them to “give kisses.”  Oh, and there’s the very important “don’t hump the neighbor’s leg when he comes to borrow a cup of sugar” one.

These tricks take a LONG time for dogs to grasp.  I mean, they have brains what…the size of a ping pong ball?  Habits take a while to settle in there.   But whether it’s using your own instincts, buying a book from the Dog Whisperer himself or going to a doggie obedience class the new dogs HAVE to learn the old tricks.

It’s kind of like business.  There are always flashy and spiffy new ways to do things.  They are great ways to show off your brand/company.  They attract consumers.  They might even be an upgrade from the prior tricks of the trade.

But for EVERY position there are “old tricks” that us new dogs have to learn, no matter how much fun it is to pick up our food and huck it at the cabinet to hear it make that fun noise or hump the neighbor’s leg when he comes over.  The old tricks have sustained most industries for hundreds of years.

Sure, we shouldn’t be afraid to show those old dogs how cool it is that we can balance our dog dish on our noses, but let’s not forget that someone somewhere had to have thought Microsoft Excel was a good program at one time.  And one day, it might come creeping onto your desk and knowing that old trick sure would be helpful.

How about you?  Any “old tricks” you learned the hard way or wish you had known when you became the new dog in the kennel?

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