The Sims 4 Cats & Dogs: Pet Training Skill Guide

The Pet Training skill is a 5-level skill that comes with the Cats & Dogs expansion for The Sims 4. Sims can build this skill in order to teach their pets how to do a variety of things. Pets will be able to perform new actions on command if they have a skilled owner. While the Pet Training skill is largely dog-focused, cats are not excluded from this skill.

Let’s dive into this skill by taking a look at how it works in-game. The best way to learn about the Pet Training skill is to see it in action for yourself.

Pongo and Skye

Meet Skye Woodruff and her faithful dalmatian, Pongo. They’ll be showing you how to get the most out of the new Pet Training skill. Skye loves both dogs and cats equally. She actually has a cat named Cleopatra, but she’s going to start building this skill by teaching Pongo some tricks. You’ll see Cleopatra later, I promise.

You can see here that Pongo is a smart dog. He’ll learn tricks faster than most dogs. This will help Skye build the pet Training skill, too.

If we click on Pongo, we can see a Training option in the pie menu. Clicking it will show us all the tricks Pongo can learn right now. His owner hasn’t even learned the Pet Training skill, yet, so there are only a few tricks here. As Skye builds her Pet Training skill, she’ll be able to teach Pongo more complicated tricks. Let’s start by teaching Pongo the most basic of commands: Sit.

Trick Training

Only dogs can learn how to do tricks. Cats can’t partake in this aspect of the Pet Training skill, so it’s good to have a dog in the house if you want your Sim to start learning the Pet Training skill quickly. Dogs can learn how to perform tricks anywhere.

As soon as Skye starts teaching Pongo, she learns the Pet Training skill. The notification lists the tricks Skye is able to teach Pongo right now. When a dog learns a new trick, you’ll get a notification that the dog has learned a new trick. A new option in the dog’s pie menu will show up, called Trained Commands. When a dog learns a trick, that trick disappears from the Training category and moves to the Trained Commands category. Your Sim will be able to command their dog to perform that trick at any time now.

Successfully teaching a dog a trick gives your Sim a +1 Happy moodlet, called “Quality Time.” Sometimes, even the smartest dog will occasionally fail to perform a trick properly. When this happens, your Sim will get a +1 Tense moodlet, called “Stressed from Training.” These moodlets have a minor effect on emotion and only last for a short time.

Pet Training: Level 2

After Pongo learns to Sit, Skye begins teaching him how to Lie Down. This raises her Pet Training skill to level two.

At level two of the Pet Training skill, your Sim will be able to teach dogs how to Heel, Shake, and Play Dead. A new option opens up under the Training tab in the pie menu: Practice Tricks. This allows your Sim to teach their dog a series of random tricks. It’s useful for continuing to build the Pet Training skill after a dog has already learned every trick.

You can see the skill level required for a trick by hovering over that trick under the Training tab in the dog’s pie menu. As you can see here, hovering over the Heel trick on Pongo tells us that Pongo is able to learn this trick because his owner is at level two of the Pet Training skill. If we check the Trained Commands tab now, we see that there is a new trick there. Pongo has learned to Lie Down.

Pet Training: Level 3

Skye continues training Pongo. He learns how to Speak and how to Roll Over. At this point, Skye has reached level three of the Pet Training skill.

At level three of the Pet Training skill, no new tricks open up, but your Sim can now send their dog to explore. You might have noticed after the last base game update that all the worlds now have little dirt patches scattered around the neighbourhoods. Sims can dig at these spots, but so can dogs (for more information about that, see The Sims 4: New Collectable Spawners Added with November Patch).

Dogs can and do dig at these spots autonomously, but your Sim needs to have the Pet Training skill at level three in order to command their dog to dig at these spots. Clicking on any dirt patch around the world brings up two options: Dig, and Send Pet to Explore…

Clicking Send Pet to Explore… brings up a selection screen where you’ll see all the dogs in the household who are available. Select the dog you’d like to send over to dig. The dog will run to the spot and begin pawing at the dirt. Dogs can find treasures for your Sim at these spots, like collectables.

Skye sends Pongo to dig up a dirt patch near the park in Brindleton Bay. He returns with a cute little gift box in his mouth and sets it on the ground near her. Clicking on the box gives Skye the option to Open or Put in Inventory. It’s best not to leave these little presents lying on the ground too long. Other Sims like to walk over and snatch them up. How rude of them.

Skye finds some Volenton inside Pongo’s present. This is a handy way to collect elements without having to send metals and crystals to the Geological Council. Many things can be found in pet presents, however. It’s not just elements.

Pet Training: Level 4

Skye teaches Pongo how to Heel and Play Dead, which brings her Pet Training skill to level four.

At level four of the Pet Training skill, your Sim will be able to Show off Pet Tricks. They will also be able to command their dog to Attack.

The Attack command is located in the Trained Commands tab with all the other tricks your Sim’s dog has learned. If there are any eligible Sims nearby that can be attacked, you will be able to select them from a selection menu. Pongo has the Aggressive trait, so he is prone to attacking Sims all on his own. Aggressive dogs can attack Sims autonomously, but they cannot be directed to attack someone by a Sim unless the Sim’s Pet Training skill is at level four. Aggressive dogs can also learn not to attack if a Sim scolds them for doing so.

Take a Break

I used cheats to disable motive decay for Skye and Pongo in order to show you the Pet Training skill, but chances are, you probably want to learn Pet Training the proper way. It’s important to take breaks in between learning tricks. Just like real people and animals, Sims and their pets learn better when they’re healthy and happy.

It takes time and dedication to train a pet, so make sure your Sim’s cat or dog isn’t sick and has all their needs met before undertaking a training session. Don’t forget to take care of your Sim’s motives, too. Keeping both Sims and pets in tip-top shape will help ensure Pet Training success.

Skye and Pongo play a game of Fetch to relax after an entire day of training. Fetch is another trick that can be learned in the Training tab, so it’s not exactly a real break, but Skye and Pongo are still in a great mood with the help of some cheaty magic. Dogs cannot learn how to Fetch unless the Sim teaching them has a ball in their inventory. Make sure you purchase a ball from the Pets section of Build/Buy before heading down to the beach for a game of Fetch with your pooch.

The Obstacle Course

There are no official pet shows or competitions in The Sims 4: Cats & Dogs, but the dog park in Brindleton Bay has an obstacle course. Obstacle course pieces can also be purchased and placed on other lots in Build/Buy.

The obstacle course comes in several pieces, but the individual pieces can be connected to each other with strategic placement in Build/Buy to create a customised, seamless course. Sims can command their pets to use one specific piece of the course or they can ask their pets to run the entire course. Commanding a pet to run the obstacle course builds the Pet Training skill. A pet’s performance on the obstacle course is dependent on their owner’s Pet Training skill level.

Pongo has already learned every trick he can, but Skye isn’t a master of Pet Training quite yet. She has Pongo run the obstacle course in order to keep building her skill. The obstacle course is another great way to continue building the Pet Training skill if a dog has already learned all other commands.

When a Sim commands a pet to run the obstacle course, an event popup will appear in the top left corner of the screen. This popup keeps tracks of how many faults your Sim’s pet accumulates while doing the course. A pet gains a fault when they refuse or otherwise fail to complete a section of the course, so the fewer faults, the better. The aim is to finish the course with zero faults.

To successfully complete the obstacle course, pets will have to run through tunnels, jump through hoops (or “tyres” in proper dog agility terminology), navigate a set of weaving poles, and remain seated on a pause table for a set period of time. Pets with unskilled owners will have a much harder time completing the course than a pet with a skilled trainer. The tyres can be set on fire to add a bigger challenge, but pets with unskilled trainers will often refuse to jump through a flaming tyre.

When a pet completes the obstacle course, you’ll get a notification telling you how your pet did. If your Sim needs a higher Pet Training skill, their pet will not fare well and you’ll receive a notification telling you so. Since Skye is already a good trainer, Pongo achieved a perfect run with a time of 36 minutes. That deserves a big hug! Good doggo! When pets successfully complete the obstacle course, your Sim will receive a +2 Happy moodlet, called “Champion Pet!”

Pet Training: Level 5

After spending some time on the obstacle course and practising tricks, Skye masters the Pet Training skill. This skill only goes up to level five. It is not a full ten-level skill.

Mastering the Pet Training skill allows your Sim to have their dog Perform Tricks for passing Sims. They also teach dogs new tricks much faster from now on.

What About Cats?

I promised you would see Skye’s cat, Cleopatra, later on. I didn’t forget!

You might notice I kept using the word “pet” in The Obstacle Course section instead of “dog.” There is a good reason for this. Cats can use the obstacle course, too! It’s not just for dogs. This is where your beloved feline friends get to partake in the Pet Training skill.

Cats don’t learn tricks like dogs do, but Sims can build the Pet Training skill by having their cats run the obstacle course. Just like dogs, a cat’s performance on the obstacle course is determined by their trainer. Don’t worry, cat lovers! If dogs aren’t for you, you aren’t barred from the Pet Training skill. Just take your whiskered friends to the park and practice on the obstacle course. You can also build your own obstacle course for them at home.

You are the Master

That’s it! You are now officially a master pet trainer! You’ve learned all the nitty gritty details about pet training in this guide. Of course, it’s always more fun to try something yourself. Apply your newfound knowledge to your own furry companions in The Sims 4: Cats & Dogs, available everywhere now!