During this challenging time of shelter in place and stay at home orders, we're all looking for ways to help our dogs stay engaged and active, not to mention ourselves. A sudden new routine can be hard on everyone, especially our dogs. We need to make sure there's enough stimulation to help them deal with boredom and anxiety because our being home is simply not enough. To help you find fun ways of making the most out of quarantine with your pup, we’ve put together a list of the best dog toys and enrichment games that they’ll love.
Trixie Windmill Activity Strategy Game Dog Toy
Credit Petco.com
If you’re looking for ways to keep your pup entertained while you’re trying to work from home, look no further than this windmill activity toy from Trixie. With four tubes and two different sets of tube covers for different levels of difficulty, it really keeps your dog entertained. My dog loves this game! They have to figure out how to move the windmill blades in order to get the treats to fall out, whether it be using their paws or their mouths. The more the blades move the more treats fall out, so they’re rewarded for creating a winning strategy.
Shyla loving her likimat, credit BTB
Hyper Pet LickiMat Boredem Buster Slow Feeder Dog & Cat Mat
Two likimats are better than one, credit BTB
These likimats area huge hit in our house. Designed with different ridges likimats engage your pup’s senses when they lick the tasty treats off of them. Repetitive licking has been shown to produce a calming hormone therefore reducing your pup’s stress. My dog loves to lick things and the more she licks the more tired and relaxed she gets. You can spread peanut butter, yogurt or even some bananas on these mats to give your pup something to do while you’re taking that work conference call on Zoom. Throw these in the freezer to make them last even longer. If your dog is a chewer or a puppy who is still teething then you’ll want to get the Likimat Solmo. The Solomo is virtually indestructible and can be cleaned in the dishwasher after use.
Nina Ottosson by Outward Hound Dog
There are a variety of different toys by Nina Ottosson for Outward Hound Dog that can keep your pup busy while also giving them the mental exercise they need. Each toy has varying degrees of difficulty from level 1 to level 3. You can start at level 1 and if you find it too easy for your pup then you can up the level of difficulty by locking certain features of the toys. Here are a few of our favorites.
Credit Outwardhound.com
Dog Brick: You can hide treats inside and the dogs have to use their paws or nose to slide the bricks in order to reveal the treat. You can also make this activity even more difficult by adding white blocks in the middle therefore making the ability to slide the bricks even harder. This a great intermediate level toy.
Credit Outwardhound.com
Twister Interactive Dog Toy: This interactive toy is challenging and fun for your dog. Your pup will have to find the hidden treats by moving the blocks in different circles. As with most of these toys by Nina Ottosson you can increase the difficulty by locking the blocks with bone-shaped blocks, which are placed in the hollows of the game. Dogs have to learn to unplug the blocks by lifting the pegs one by one in order to be able to move the blocks and then find the treats.
BTB Member Luna trying to figure out how to get the treats out of her Dog Casino
Dog Casino: The Dog Casino is a great game for you and your dog. Hide treats in the appropriate slots and watch your dog look for treats using their nose or paws pulling out the flaps. Like most of the Nina Ottosson toys you can increase the level of difficulty by locking the flaps using the bone-shaped pegs on top. Even BTB member Luna can’t figure out how to unlock the pegs on this toy.
Trixie Activity Poker Box Interactive Dog Toy, Level 2
Credit Trixie.de
Your pup will have to use all their smarts to get the treats out of this toy. With four different boxes you can hide kibble or treats inside them. Your pups will really have to challenge themselves as the activity uses lids, flaps, knobs, ropes, and drawers. Your pup will have a blast trying to figure out how to pull the ropes in order to gain access to the hidden treats. They’ll challenge themselves trying to work the knobs and flaps. If your dog is anything like mine, they’ll do just about anything to get at the hidden food.
Towel Treats and Nose work
If you're thinking, ”ok but I have plenty of toys already,” then give towel treats a try. Towel treats are a great way to keep your dog active and having fun. Did you know that dogs have 200 million olfactory cells? It’s true! This is the reason why dogs are used to sniff out contraband at airports and work with police. Nose work is really great for dogs it helps bring out their natural ability to hunt. Putting treats in a towel and rolling it up for your pup to uncover the treats is a great way of intellectually stimulating your dog and tiring them out in a good way. If you want to know more, Whole Dog Journal offers a great step-by-step for nose work and scent games.
Scavenger Hunt
From our Halloween meetup, credit Brendon Curtis msitphoto.com
Who doesn't love a scavenger hunt? This is fun for dogs, kids and even adults too. The first step is to have your dog stay in place while you hide treats around the house. If your dog is like mine and won’t stay that’s okay too, you can have someone hold your dog while you hide the treats. The second step is to bring your dog out to where you have hidden the treats let them try to find the treats on their own. Don’t worry if they don’t find them all right away that’s totally normal even with a hyper food motivated dog. You can bring the dog around to the different places where you’ve hidden treats so that they get them all. This is a great way to bond with your dog. They’ll look to you for guidance and to show them where the food is hidden.