Dogs are meant to live active, engaging lives working, running or swimming all day. These jobs involve physical and mental exercise. These days most dogs these days spend a great deal of time sleeping on fluffy beds and eating out of bowls with little effort waiting for us to come home. As a result they are bored and under stimulated, and ripe for getting into trouble. Dogs need stimulation and that is not always easy with our busy lives. I work to keep Pilot engaged and busy. We cuddled, played fetch, did nosework, and practiced obedience between my family dog classes today.
Here are some
tips on ways to keep your dog a healthy and happy pet.
AT HOME
Providing jobs for your dog while you are busy or away from
home will help them from becoming bored and inventing their own entertainment.
Instead of getting into the garbage, barking or chewing on your favorite couch,
they could be working to earn their breakfast.
Treasure hunts
can be set up by hiding kibble or food stuffed toys around your home or in your
yard instead of feeding them in a bowl. They will have good time hunting and be
a better pet for it.
Food dispensing toys
are a wonderful for busy work. They are sturdy rubber or plastic toys that hold
food inside. Dogs need to lick, chew, paw, shake or roll them to get the food
out of them. These toys include Kongs®,
Buster Cubes®, Kibble Nibble®, Tug-a-Jug®,
Bob-A-Lot®, and Busy Dog Ball®.
Puzzle Toys can
be a good outlet and are especially good on a rainy day. Nina Ottossson makes
some creative and colorful puzzle toys that provide new challenges. If you’d
like to make your own fill a muffin tin with toys and balls in each
compartment. Put a treat under each toy then stand back and let your dog work. Video Links: The Muffin Tin Game Box Pushing
Chew toys are
essential for good jaw health and clean teeth and help relieve anxiety.
Appropriate chew toys can be Kongs, natural marrow bones, bully sticks and
Nylabones®. Providing plenty of legal
chew toys will help keep your dog from chewing on the wrong things.
Games like Fetch, Tug, Find it, Hide & Seek, and Chase are all great fun
and easy to do almost anywhere in any weather.
OUT & ABOUT
There are many
interactive activities that you and your dog can get out of the house and do
together.
Walks, hikes, jogs or car rides can provide a dog with new smells, sights,
sounds and friends. Being around other dogs and people and relaxing out in the
world are important aspects of caring for a dog.
Dog Sports you can play with your dog provide mental
and physical stimulation and social opportunities. Exercise can be the most
important form of stimulation for a dog. There is a sport for everyone
including agility, nosework, treibball (ball driving), lure coursing,
go-to-ground, rally, dock diving and musical freestyle.
Training with reward-based training classes can increase your dog’s mental
stimulation and improve the bond between you and your dog. It also helps the
dog learn to understand what you expect of him or her. Contact a reward-based
trainer for group or private obedience for classes in your area.
There are many ways to stimulate dogs and every dog will prefer different things. Find what rocks your dog's boat and get out and play.
Let us know how you are engaging your dog with games indoors and outside on these rainy days.
Life is short, play with your dog!
by Sandi Pensinger (c) 2012
