As much as I respect this for being way cooler than anything I'll ever teach my dog, I can't help but think there are better things to teach them to make them seem more adoptable. Maybe train them to fetch beers from a minifridge, then package the adoption with a dog-accessible minifridge and a 30 rack for an extra $200. Boom, sustainable charity
I showed this comment to a shelter volunteer, and they were livid. They felt this would attract the wrong kind of people to adopt dogs: dogs need loving homes, not people who view them as kitschy party tricks.
This driving thing is already a kitschy party trick. And I teach my dog wacky tricks mostly to show friends when they come over, but it doesn't mean I don't love him.
I think the only reason it invites the idea that it would attract the wrong kind of people is because I used a beer example. But if dogs came knowing how to fetch drinks from the fridge, I think few would complain.