COLUMN: Enriching your dog’s life

• Nadine Whittal, dog trainer writes:

Very clearly, I am a big proponent of dog training and socialisation. However, I am aware that life sometimes gets in the way of us being able to do everything we want to do with our animals every week. If we do absolutely nothing with our animal, they become bored and frustrated and generally get up to all sorts of mischief. Obviously, it becomes important to our sanity that we prevent this from happening.

The best way to keep your dog entertained is not to go outside and throw a ball for a few minutes. The best way to keep dogs entertained and to ensure they get appropriately tired is to exercise their brains. This is where enrichments toys, games and exercises come into play.

Also read: COLUMN: What to do when dogs fight

Enrichment devices includes devices designed to stimulate the dogs’ various senses. These includes sight, smell, taste and hearing. There are a number of enrichment ideas that you can make yourself and then there are a number of fancier things that you can purchase from pet stores.

One great idea for puppies is to feed them via a Coca-Cola bottle. So, what you would do is put the pup’s cubes in the bottle and cut smaller holes into the bottle. The puppy then needs to learn to roll the bottle to get the cubes out. This is great for slowing down a dog’s eating and for getting them to problem-solve.

Another option is turning a section of your house or your garden into a little maze for your dogs. Have different, safe, objects like boxes and other things they can climb under or over. Have different textured materials and things that crinkle and make noise. Then all you do is you hide treats in the area and allow your dog to find them in his own time.

Whatever you decide to do, the best way to stave off boredom in an animal is to exercise their brains rather than just their bodies. Physical exercise remains important but a good balance of the two will do you and your dog some good.