He knew his left from his right. But to me, his most endearing performance was when he would sit as still as a statue after a dog biscuit had been placed on his nose. Golum would balance the biscuit, without wincing a single one of his powerful muscles, until permission was given to move. As soon as I said, Okay, Golum, he d flip the biscuit into the air and catch it in his mouth. He never seemed to tire of this routine, and we never tired of initiating it to show friends how clever Golum was.
Young dogs learn easily.
With understanding and patience, they can be taught remarkable and sophisticated skills, far beyond the more common feats of heel, sit, lie and roll over. Recently dogs also have shown an amazing talent as ears for the hearing impaired. Of course, for centuries dogs have been trained to pull sleds in Alaska, herd sheep and cattle, rescue hunters trapped on mountains and guard both people and property. The reason dogs are able to accomplish all of these missions is because they re teachable . And contrary to the popular myth, most dogs never totally lose this capacity.