How to Teach a Dog to Play Piano With a Simple Cardboard Square

A very clever fox red Labrador retriever named Ruby Nance was taught how to play the piano by her equally clever human Ted, who explained how to train another dog to do this by using a simple cardboard square and lots of positive reinforcement.

How I taught my dog to play piano

Ted cut out a cardboard square, put it in front of Ruby and rewarded her with a treat whenever she sniffed it. He then glued the square inside the box from which it came and creatively attached the whole thing to the piano keys. When Ruby came to sniff the mounted square, she pressed the keys and played a chord.

Ruby’s Cat Sibling Also Learned a Bit

Ted Has Taught Ruby Other Useful Skills