Pet Tricks Day – September 30, 2024

History of Pet Tricks Day

In 2021, dog trainer Joe Nutkins created National Pet Tricks Day to honor the joy that pets can bring to us. The day was created to honor the joy of spending time with pets of all kinds, sizes, and talents. Every year, according to the Humane Society of the United States, 13 million cats and dogs enter shelters. People who have pets should take good care of them and spend time with them.

Tricks are behaviors, and teaching them to your pets puts them in a learning state. Tricks are activities that can be done for fun, such as praying, or for physical activity, such as weaving poles or spinning, or as valuable practical skills. Trick training is becoming increasingly popular, and many Canine Good Citizen Testers include a few tricks in their seminars.

‘Trick dog training’ as we know it started in the 1920s with Rin Tin Tin, the cinema dog. “Lassie” was produced for feature films in 1943 by a Rough Collie named “Pal.” Rudd Weatherwax, Pal’s trainer, published a trick dog training textbook in the 1940s. Positive reinforcement and food rewards for correct behavior were used in the handbook, which was an unusual training strategy at the time. Captain Arthur Haggerty trained dogs for movies in the 1960s and co-authored the book “Dog Tricks” in 1977. There are at least 10 trick dog training books and D.V.Ds available now.