Zoro the dog makes his mark - painting

WHEN Zoro the dog makes his mark at the North Coast National, it won’t be with a sword.

WHEN Zoro makes his mark at the North Coast National, it won't be with a sword.

The Tenterfield terrier-poodle cross is a budding artist and will be wielding a paintbrush in his mouth when he visits the Lismore show this week.

His owner Sophie Thomson runs Sophie's K9 Park at Alstonville and has been practising painting with him for about a year.

The seven-year-old dog has been a willing pupil and loves to learn new tricks.

Zoro the painting dog will be at the North Coast National this year. Photo Cathy Adams / The Northern Star. Picture: Cathy Adams

"So you can teach an old dog new tricks," Ms Thomson joked. "Trick training and complex skill training is so much fun."

The method of rewarding a desired behaviour with a treat is used regardless of the trick she is teaching, but Ms Thomson wanted to teach Zoro something a bit different, so chose painting.

"Zoro loves the reward system, but he loves doing something together with me more," she said.

Ms Thomson hopes to sell some of Zoro's artwork in the future, but in the meantime Zoro's work adorns various local vet surgeries' offices in the region.