In Nintendogs, the Obedience Trial uses the AR Camera and AR Cards to display your puppy in the real world. The goal of the obedience trial is to get your puppy to perform the tricks that it knows.

Using the AR Camera

To use the 3DS AR camera, you have to have the AR Cards that are included with the 3DS. If you lose your 3DS AR cards, you can get a PDF of the AR Cards from Nintendo's web site.

You can practice with the AR Camera that is automatically included in your Nintendogs supplies. Just choose AR Camera and the game will tell you what to do. You have to be in a well-lit place, and you have to put your AR Card somewhere on camera. Make sure that there aren't any bright lights reflecting off of your card, and make sure that there isn't anything in front of the card. If you did it correctly, your puppy will show up on top of the card.

Preparing for the Competition

To prepare your puppy for the Obedience Trial, you have to teach it tricks. The different levels of the Obedience Trial require your puppy to know specific tricks, so if your puppy doesn't know those tricks, your puppy won't be allowed to enter that level of the competition.

Once you have taught your puppy the required tricks, you have to just practice these tricks over and over until your puppy responds quickly. If your puppy has a lot of trouble understanding a particular command, you can make your puppy forget that trick by going to the puppy's information screen (tap your puppy's picture then tap the brown button that appears,) and then tap the green Tricks button. Find the trick that you want your puppy to forget, then tap the trash can icon. The game will ask if you really want to make your puppy forget that trick. Say yes and you can teach your puppy that trick all over again.

In your training, be sure to occasionally give your puppy treats for doing well. The treat icon might even flash and make a noise at times when your puppy is especially deserving of a treat. The more you practice the tricks, the quicker your dog will become at responding.

Be sure to have your puppy practice holding the different poses of the tricks (in other words, performing a trick and staying in that position for a while,) because this is required in the competitions.

How to do the Competition

In the competition, Ted Rumsworth will ask you to have your puppy perform a series of tricks. The touch screen will display the current trick that you are supposed to make your puppy do. Sometimes you are asked to perform a single trick. Sometimes you are asked to perform a sequence of tricks. Sometimes, you are asked to perform a trick and have your puppy stay in that position for the specified number of seconds. All you have to do as the trainer is say the commands.