Take a Bow: Training Challenge
A few minutes of Trickovation each day can help keep both you and your dog motivated. You can complete this challenge on your own or join our online community to share videos, ask questions, and connect with other trainers.
This week’s challenge focuses on building duration with the take-a-bow trick (cue word: “Bravo”). The goal isn’t just teaching the trick itself, it’s learning how to build a behavior into something more polished, thoughtful, and reliable over time. If you can do that with this trick, you can do it with others.
For this challenge, we’re aiming for:
A 15-second bow position
The handler standing at least 3 feet away
No feeding during the 15-second hold
Don’t worry if you don’t reach the final step this week. The focus is on the training process and improving our skills as trainers. Progress matters more than perfection.
Participation is completely free, and while you do not have to share your progress publicly, I highly encourage it. Support and feedback can make a big difference.
This week, we’re also going to collect simple training data throughout our sessions. If you’re willing to share your completed charts with me, we’ll be able to visualize patterns in how dogs learn and perform during duration work. Names will not be shared as part of this process.
Handler Proximity Zones
For the purpose of this challenge, let’s define a few handler distance zones:
Zone A:
You are leaning close to the dog, likely reinforcing near the dog while they remain in the bow.
Zone B:
You’re able to stand upright while your dog maintains the bow position.
Zone C:
You’re able to step approximately 2-3 feet away from your dog.
As part of the challenge, we will track:
How long the dog holds the bow position
Which proximity zone the handler worked in
Approximately how many treats were used during the session
You can count duration in your head at first. As your dog improves, recording your sessions can help you measure duration more precisely and observe details you may miss in real-time.
While this may sound like a lot of steps, most sessions only take a few minutes. Along the way, your dog gets mental stimulation and practice focusing, and you may begin noticing new patterns in your own training skills too.
Free Training Resources
Getting Comfortable on Camera
Learn how to record your training sessions.
Blog Post Here
How Many Treats?
Learn how to track treat usage during timed training sessions.
Blog Post Here
How to Teach a Take-a-Bow with a Lure
Find Videos Here After 5/16/26
How to Teach a Take-a-Bow Without a Lure
Find Videos Here After 5/16/26
How to Teach Duration for Trick Training
Find Videos Here After 5/16/26
The Results
If enough people submit their worksheets, I will share the insights from the data as well.
USE THIS WORKSHEET TO TRACK PROGRESS
Don’t forget to submit it here: info@mjspettrainingacademy.com
Each row is a separate session.
What’s Next?
You can begin training right away. If you’d like to share your progress videos or completed charts, join the free Trickovation Skool group and upload them there.
