Discover Trick Dog

Trick Dog is a titling framework for trained tricks. At lower levels, a team performs a fixed number of behaviors from a published checklist — spin, paw target, hand touch, get in a box. At upper levels, those tricks get assembled into a choreographed routine, with an optional theme. Handlers cue with voice, hand signals, and body language; the dog works on leash at novice and off leash as difficulty climbs. There is no time pressure, no precision heeling, no scoring out of 100 — just a behavior performed reliably enough on cue for an evaluator to check it off.

The sport suits a wide range of dogs because tricks adapt to size, structure, and age. Food-motivated dogs who like to problem-solve progress quickly, but cheerful persistence from the handler matters more than drive. Reactive dogs find Trick Dog comparatively friendly: AKC evaluations run as small scheduled blocks at training centers, and DMWYD's video pathway means many teams never set foot in a busy show ring. Physical readiness comes from trick selection — low-impact targeting, balance, and nose work tricks for puppies, seniors, and orthopedically compromised dogs; jumps, vaults, and handstands reserved for mature, sound dogs cleared by a sports-medicine vet. Trick Dog also functions as cross-training: many handlers use it to build engagement, body awareness, and reinforcement history before moving into agility, rally, or scent work, and shelters and rescues use it as enrichment for kennel dogs and confidence-building for shy or under-socialized dogs.

A Trick Dog evaluation is structured around a checklist at most levels and a routine at the top. AKC and DMWYD use the same general arc: novice tricks performed with food or toy lures, intermediate tricks performed with reduced luring, advanced tricks performed without visible luring, and a routine-based capstone that asks the team to chain everything together.

AKC Trick Dog launched in 2017 as the registry's accessible-titling entry point, anchored to the Canine Good Citizen evaluator network. It is the most widely available Trick Dog program in the US: any AKC CGC Evaluator can administer the test, and most of the country can find a local titling option through a club or a private trainer. Titles are recorded on AKC pedigrees, which matters to handlers already showing in conformation, agility, or rally and who want tricks on the dog's record. Eligibility is broad — purebreds, mixed breeds via Canine Partners, and unregistered purebreds via PAL/FSS are all welcome, with no breed-group or size restriction. Title progression runs five levels: Novice Trick Dog (TKN), Intermediate Trick Dog (TKI), Advanced Trick Dog (TKA), Trick Dog Performer (TKP), and Trick Dog Elite Performer (TKE). At Novice, the dog performs 10 approved tricks, or 5 tricks plus a CGC title on AKC record. At Intermediate and Advanced, the dog performs 10 tricks from each level's list with progressively reduced luring — none at Advanced. At Performer (TKP), the team performs a routine of at least 10 previously learned tricks, including at least two Intermediate and two Advanced tricks. Elite Performer (TKE) raises the bar on complexity and originality.

Do More With Your Dog (DMWYD) is the dedicated trick-titling organization. It predates AKC's program by several years and standardized the trick lists, levels, and evaluator credentialing that other programs eventually borrowed from. DMWYD evaluates titles through Certified Trick Dog Instructors (CTDIs); handlers can attend a CTDI in person or, more commonly, submit titling videos through DMWYD's online platform. That video pathway is the practical reason DMWYD reaches handlers in regions without local CGC evaluators and across international borders. Eligibility is fully open — any breed, any mix, any registration status. Reactive dogs and dogs in regions with sparse club infrastructure benefit most from this model. Title progression runs five levels: Novice Trick Dog (NTD), Intermediate Trick Dog (ITD), Advanced Trick Dog (ATD), Expert Trick Dog (ETD), and Trick Dog Champion (TDCh). NTD requires 15 tricks; ITD, ATD, and ETD each require 12 or more tricks at their respective difficulty levels. TDCh is routine-based and asks the team to assemble a themed performance from prior tricks. DMWYD also offers Masters titles at every level (Novice Masters, Intermediate Masters, Advanced Masters, Expert Masters) for handlers who want to demonstrate breadth at a level before progressing to the next.

AKC and DMWYD are the two programs handlers in the US encounter. Many run both — the trick training transfers cleanly across organizations, and there's no rule preventing the same behaviors from earning titles in both systems. The choice comes down to where the title lives, how the evaluation happens, and what's accessible nearby. Titles do not transfer across organizations: AKC does not recognize DMWYD titles for its Trick Dog ladder, and DMWYD does not require AKC titles as prerequisites. Some trainers informally treat DMWYD levels as readiness benchmarks for AKC equivalents — recommending NTD-level skills before attempting TKN, for example — but that's a cultural practice, not a rule. The skills themselves transfer fully; the credentials don't.

Trick Dog has the lowest entry friction of any titling sport. Day one is a clicker, a handful of treats, and a behavior the dog already does — capture it, name it, repeat. Most teams formalize that work through a foundation trick class with a CGC Evaluator or CTDI, then book an evaluation when 10 (AKC Novice) or 15 (DMWYD Novice) tricks are reliable on cue. A surprising number of teams self-train with online resources and book a video submission with a CTDI without ever attending an in-person class.

Trick Dog evaluations look more like a private lesson than a trial. Dogs work one at a time in a quiet ring or training room, the evaluator runs a checklist, and the whole thing is over in under fifteen minutes for most novice tests. There is no audience, no scoring out of 100, no running-order anxiety. DMWYD video submissions remove the room entirely — handlers film at home, edit if they want, and submit through the platform.

Trick Dog is among the cheapest titling sports to enter. The tricks themselves require almost no equipment, the evaluations are short, and DMWYD's video pathway eliminates travel for handlers willing to film their own work. Annual budgets stay low for casual participants and only climb when handlers chase Performer-level routines, multiple titles per year, or CTDI credentials of their own.