The following is a recap of how I taught Bella to perform PLAY DEAD with the simple command BANG! (Sometimes repeated as BANG! BANG!) See video at the end of the post.

After seeing Stacia’s dog Macey perform this trick, I wanted to see if Bella could do it. I hadn’t really tried for many months and then finally decided to give it a go. Here are the steps:

• First, make sure your dog knows how to lie down on command. Bella had already mastered this.
• Second, gently push her over on her side while saying “Bang!” and motioning with a finger gun at the same time.
• Reward and repeat!

After several times of rewarding (I use toys and lots of praise) have her in the down position and bang until she goes over on her own. Once this is mastered start from a sitting or standing position. This may require a few “bangs!” but that is fine. Maybe you missed the first time!

This is just a fun trick to show off to your friends. It isn’t meant to scare with a loud noise or replicate any sort of gun violence towards the dog. This trick shows how dogs can learn many commands and hand motions in a relatively short time so long as positive reinforcement is used and you make a game out of it.

Here’s the finished result! Bella is such a happy dog she’ll end up wagging even while “playing dead” but we are trying ways to get her to freeze completely.