These cold winter months can be painful for all of us. We can’t get outside to play and our dogs are saying a big old “nope” at the front door. To keep away those winter-time blues, keep your pups’ brains active with some mental activities in limited space.
Snuffle Mats
Snuffle mats are all the rage in the dog world right now. These simple mats are made of cloth with all sorts of little pockets and grooves to hide food in. This is a great option to keep a pup busy during dinner time or to play hide-and-treat with their favorite goodies.
LickiMats
LickiMat Wobblers are another great option! Licking is a natural behavior for dogs, licking releases pleasurable endorphins and can sometimes be done to excess so ideally we would want to redirect the behavior to a more appropriate outlet. Rather than the dog licking its paws raw or other parts out of boredom why not start them with a LickiMat Wobblers. Smear their favorite food (dog friendly peanutbutter, canned food, yogurt etc) on the mat and let them go to town working it out from cracks and crevices. Make it even more of a challenge by hanging it from their kennel or wall.
Puzzle/Treat Balls
Puzzle/Treat balls are another option for the bored canine. Fill the balls with their dinner ration, maybe mix in a few goodies as a surprise and watch them go to town, rolling it around trying to get it to drop its stash. These are better with the harder foods, if you want to use softer foods or mixture of, check out Kongs.
Teaser Wand
The teaser wand gives you a way to give your dog a little more high paced activity. This pole gives you the ability to drag so they may chase, or if they grab can turn into a game of tug. These are really great for terriers and their prey drive for vermin bot great for any breed. These are more ideal if you have a little extra room in the house or on a nicer brisk day for a quick romp in the yard. I’ll be getting me one of these!
Chews
Nothing beats a good-ol’ chew. Chewing is another behavior dogs find pleasurable. We can find it destructible so best to avert to appropriate chewable items such as Himalayan chews, Bully Sticks, Kongs etc.
Of course, always supervise your pooch as they enjoy their chews (& other items)