Lights out, step on a perma bone, cuss a few times… That’s how I started my morning until I taught my dog to pick up her toys.

We have a lab mixed with a wameriner that we picked up from the Flowermound animal shelter about a year ago. She, Lilly, is easy to train because she loves attention and any bacon flavored treats.

• I started by pointing to a toy and say “Toy”, and if she picked it up, then I would reward her with her favorite treat. I think I drove my girlfriend crazy by saying toy every minute. If I said toy, and she did not pick up the toy, then I would ignore her for 15 seconds.
• Once she started picking up toys on command, I would walk over to the toy box and say toy again. If she followed me with the toy, then I would reward her. If she dropped the toy before getting to the toy box, then I would ignore her for 15 seconds and start over (trying this for 5 or 10 minutes a day is enough).
• If I stand over the toy box saying toy, and she even accidentally drops the toy in the toy box, then I would reward her. Lilly caught on quick, and I would go on to the next toy and do the same.
• The next step was to stand over the toy box saying “Toy”, pointing to the toy box, and if she brought a toy and dropped it in the toy box, then I would reward her.

After a few weeks of training, no more stepping on perma bones!