The famous saying ‘you can’t teach an old dog new tricks’ may not apply to this 11-year-old German Shepard husky cross.
Toby has been pictured balancing almost anything his owner could put on his head – including balancing balls, a Christmas tree and even the ingredients for a peanut butter sandwich.
The old dog also shows incredible self-restraint by not gobbling down the food that his owner Pat Langner gives him.
Mr Langner, 55, who works as a wheelchair bus operator, takes pictures of Toby at his home in Alberta, Canada.
Toby the dog was pictured getting into the festive mood and balancing a Christmas tree on his head
He said: ‘When I was very young, I saw a dog balance a biscuit on his nose and when given the okay, toss it up in the air and catch it.
‘I was blown away by that and could not believe it was anything other than magic.
‘Later, when I got my first dog, the biscuit trick was the third thing I taught her, after sit and stay.
‘I raised two other dogs from puppies before Toby. They could all do the same biscuit trick at an early age, like it was second nature, but not Toby.
‘He had no interest in it at all. So for years we forgot about it.
‘When he was almost seven years old, we were in the back yard and for some reason I had a couple of small cookies that he seemed quite interested in.
‘So I thought, “what the heck, see if you can do it now Toby”. I asked him to stay and the rest is history.
‘He doesn’t toss it up in the air. He just holds the things, in his mouth, on his head, or in his paws.
This bizarre image shows Toby, a German Shepard cross husky, balancing a colander with sausages attached to it on his head. There are also a variety of Halloween decorations in the background
Toby struggled to balance a ball on his head at first but soon managed to get to grips with it. These hilarious pictures show the talented pooch in all his glory
Toby poses for another picture while balancing a camera on his head with a microphone in his mouth. His owner Pat Langner manages has trained him so he can hold onto a number of different objects
Toby with his owner Pat Langner. Mr Langner, 55, who works as a wheelchair bus operator, takes pictures of Toby at his home in Alberta, Canada
‘I posted a picture of that second cookie on Facebook and my friends went nuts. It kind of grew from there.
‘He learned the word “balance” – and now I don’t even have to say it. He knows exactly what is going on.’
Once Toby got the hang of balancing one or two objects, he soon managed to balance others without trying too hard, although a ball proved quite tricky.
Mr Langner also claims Toby broke the milk-bone balancing challenge by carefully balancing 200 bones on his head.
The single father said: ‘A few years ago it seemed to be a fad to stack large amounts of milk bones on your dog.
Toby manages to balance a Christmas tree with ease (left) but more impressively is able to hold a piece of bread in his mouth while two jars on top of one another rest on his head (right)
Toby shows huge restraint when he is pictured in a chefs hat, holding a spatula and cooking a burger on a barbecue
With his tongue hanging out of his mouth, Toby is seen balancing a small pumpkin on his head. His owner Mr Langner said: ‘Basically if I can think of it he can pull it off, but food balances are by far his favourite, because they are their own reward’
‘Toby’s fans would post asking hi to do it, but I used to say no, because I wouldn’t ask him to stay still for that long while I stacked stupid bones on hi,
‘To placate people we eventually got two large boxes and he balanced both boxes. We broke the record in under 10 seconds.
‘The strangest balance was probably peanut butter and jam – the hard way, because it was the first that included four things, and one in his mouth.
‘Basically if I can think of it he can pull it off, but food balances are by far his favourite, because they are their own reward.’
Another picture of Toby getting into the Christmas spirit, where he is seen shoving his face through a silver, tinsel covered star
Toby’s holding onto a vine (left) and also balancing a tortoise on his head (right). His owner began training him when he was aged seven
Toby the dog balancing bark and balls on his head, however this is not the strangest thing he has been able to balance. His owner said: ‘The strangest balance was probably peanut butter and jam – the hard way, because it was the first that included four things, and one in his mouth’