Nobody likes being bored. When I’m bored, I find myself eating all the snacks that I have in the cupboards! It’s not just us humans who fall into bad habits though.
Dog boredom exists too. And trust me, your dog eating everything they can get their mouth on is much worse than you emptying your cupboard.
One of the easiest ways to keep your dog blissfully busy is exercise. Even if you don’t have time for a full-length walk, you can play a game with your dog in the garden. Luna loves to play chase with me in the garden. However, the game gets even better when her best friend comes over so they can race around faster together!
While physical exercise is important for dogs, they also need to keep their brains busy too! Here are some quick tips to enrich your dog’s environment to help them stay mentally and physically active – and out of trouble.
Tip #1 Try A Game Of Hide And Seek
Families that play together, stay together! I make sure to spend at least 30 minutes playing with Luna every day. We get to have fun together and build our relationship as well as practicing her cues which is important because not only does she get to practice in a fun way but we also both get hits of dopamine and oxytocin by playing together. These two hormones help us both to feel great!
Luna’s favourite game is hide and seek. This game can be played in your home or out and about. Simply get your dog to wait in one place (or get somebody to hold them), go and hide somewhere and then call them to you and wait for them to find you!
Start easy and let your dog have some quick wins. Once your dog gets the hang of the game make the hiding places harder to really work their brain.
Luna loves playing this in the woods as there are lots of trees and bushes for me to hide behind and she gets to sprint around trying to find me. Hide and seek is great for practicing recall as your dog gets used to coming to find you when called.
Luna absolutely loves this toy. She will roll it all around until she’s got every last crumb or drop out of it. I love the Toppl as you can freeze them, making the activity last much longer (Luna loves a bit of frozen peanut butter in hers!).
They are also dishwasher safe, saving you from having to hand scrub any sticky bits in the crevices. Don’t forget to leave your dog plenty of fresh water to wash their treats down with.
Pro tip – If you use this, consider using it with some of their regular meals, so the calories don’t go crazy and make mealtimes more fun.
Tip #3 Play Some Relaxing Dog Music On YouTube
There are plenty of relaxing dog soundtracks on Youtube. Consider leaving some on when your dog is alone to promote relaxation instead of boredom. Some of them have quite a relaxing effect on humans too!
Every dog is different so play around and see what your dog actually likes. Some dogs may prefer having a nature documentary on or even just a radio station.
Tip #4 Show Them The World!
Before I leave the house, I make sure to give Luna lots of options of things to do and places to sit. She’s got a chair near the window, a cushion near the patio door and her bed near another window so she can spend the day watching the world go by if she chooses.
As well as lots of places to sit, she has access to some of her toys and usually a puzzle toy, so she’s got a variety of ways to spend her time alone.
Tip #5 Go High-Tech
Of course, in the modern world, leaving to go to work doesn’t have to mean a boring day for your dog anymore. The industry is exploding with high-tech tools and toys that do everything from monitor your dog’s food intake, to watch and speak to them to enriching their lives! Have you seen Furbo? You can throw treats for your dog when you’re out of the house!
Do you have a trick up your sleeve for relieving dog boredom? Let me know!
