- April 12, 2020
On this Easter Sunday, we enter another week of social distancing, working from home and our new lives with a scary pandemic. I think all of us, our dogs included, could use something new and different as a little distraction. As much as our dogs are enjoying having us around more to let them out of the house and back into the house and then back out of the house ALL day long, I thought I’d share some fun ideas for different ways to keep our pups entertained. So, I’ve complied a list of ideas and resources to get you started. Feel free to add something new you’re teaching or doing with your dogs to the comments below.
- Scent Games
Our dogs sense of smell is 40-50 times greater than ours. We all know of the amazing feats search and rescue dogs perform. So why not teach your dogs some fun games using this amazing ability of theirs. I enjoy playing a version of “Hide and Seek” with my dogs by hiding treats around the house and then sending them off to find them. I start by letting them watch me hide them in pretty obvious places and then fairly quickly make the hiding places more challenging. They think it’s super fun and it can keep them busy for a long time. For more scent games you can play I’ve included a couple of links below.
https://suzanneclothier.com/pdfs/Scent%20Games.pdf
https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/training/indoor-scent-games-for-dogs/
- Tricks
Tricks are not only fun for our dogs to learn, they’re fun to show off to your friends. Some, such as “sit up” and “bow”, are even great to keep them strong and limber. Try a few from the list below.
https://dogtime.com/reference/dog-training/34027-10-fun-impressive-tricks-can-teach-dog
Need more ideas and in-depth instruction, “The Everything Dog Training and Tricks Book” authored by my friend and guru Gerilyn Bielakiewicz and photographed by me đŸ™‚ is an awesome resource.
https://www.amazon.com/Everything-Dog-Training-Tricks-Book/dp/1605500224
- Training Games
While my dogs love to play fetch and chase their frisbees, we all especially love brain games. Shaping (the process of teaching a behavior in little steps) games are great since they are such an amazing mental workout for our dogs. “101 things to do with a box” is one of my all time favorites. Give it a try and let me know what you think.
https://www.clickertraining.com/101-things-to-do-with-a-box
- Food Toys
There are more ways to feed your dog than in a simple, boring old bowl. There are puzzle toys, slow feeding bowls, snuffle mats and the classic stuffed kong toy. You can even just scatter their food in your house or yard and let them hunt it up. These ideas are perfect for when you have work to get done and want to keep your dog quiet and busy. Below are some food toy stuffing ideas.
https://www.kongcompany.com/learn/stuff-a-kong
- Virtual Training Group
Looking for a positive training group for more enrichment and play ideas. My friend and fellow trainer Jenny Stieglitz has started a FB group just for you. Check it out at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SavvyCanineClub/
- Reading List
What? You haven’t taught your dog to read yet…. what have you been doing all this time :-). Okay, these ideas are for the humans here. Two of my favorite non-fiction dog books that will offer great insights into our dogs and how they feel and think are: The Other End of the Leash by Patricia McConnell and Bones Would Rain from the Sky by Suzanne Clothier. For some other ideas:
https://us16.campaign-archive.com/?u=4c2848b623ab6cf1f28959e5a&id=b9120b0fa0
