Imitation (the “do as I do” game)

They copy a familiar action without hesitating.

• Stand or sit facing your dog, one step away, in a quiet room with no distractions.
• Show them, yourself and in full, an action they already know on another cue: spin on the spot if they know “spin”, touch the object with your fingertips if they know “touch”, or walk to the mat and sit on it if they know “go to your mat”. Choose the one that is easiest to mime with your body, then stay still and say “Do it!”.
• Give them two or three seconds to react, without helping and without repeating the movement.
• As soon as they reproduce the action, even roughly: mark it with a “yes!” at the precise moment their body is in the right position, then reward straight away.
• If they stay still, give their usual cue for that action right after “Do it!” (“spin”, for instance), and mark and reward all the same. On the following attempts, fade that helping hand little by little: say it more softly, wait two or three seconds longer before giving it, then give it only every other attempt, until they no longer need it.

Move on when: About eight successes out of ten, across at least two or three different sessions.

They understand the rule “redo what I have just done”, not “do your usual trick”.

• Pick four or five familiar actions for the session, and change the one you show at every attempt, in a different order each time, so they can never guess what comes next.
• Mark and reward every good copy, as in phase 1.
• If they always do the same action whatever you show, they have not understood the rule yet: go back to two clearly distinct actions and slow the pace down, without correcting them.

Move on when: About eight good copies out of ten, on actions drawn at random, across several sessions.

A spontaneous copy of a brand new action, the true signature of imitation.

• Show an action they have never worked on before, but of the same kind as the ones already learned: a simple new position (sitting rather than lying down), touching a different object, or a movement as simple as spinning on the spot. Avoid an acrobatic or complicated movement for this very first time.
• Say “Do it!” and watch, without helping and without showing the movement again.
• If they produce a recognisable copy, even a rough one: mark and reward, the rule is there.
• If they try nothing, it is not a failure: go back to phase 2 with more familiar actions, and try the test again in a few sessions.

Move on when: They attempt a recognisable copy on at least one new action out of two, tested across several sessions.

The trick holds with someone else and somewhere other than the living room.

• When a copied action becomes reliable, give it a word of its own (“jump” for a jump, for instance). Say that word just before your demonstration, at every repetition, for five to ten attempts spread over several sessions.
• Then gradually reduce your demonstration, a smaller and smaller movement, until the word alone is enough and they no longer need to see you do the movement first.
• Then change who demonstrates: another member of the household takes over.
• Change the room too, the position, the time of day.
• If they struggle with novelty, change one thing at a time (the place first, then the person), rather than everything at once.

Move on when: About eight successes out of ten with a second demonstrator, and in another context (place, time).