4 Activities That Your Dog Can Do While You Are At Work
As a fellow dog owner I always feel a little twinge of guilt when I leave
my dog behind. That is one of the reasons I opened my own dog daycare
center, which is a great thing for you and your dog. Listed below are
some other activities you can do when you leave your house.
1. Toys are always a great way to occupy your dog’s time. Unfortunately,
most dogs lose interest in their toys as soon as we walk out the door.
Being social animals they have more interest in toys when we are around.
An excellent thing to do is to make the toy more enticing. This can be
accomplished with a little food. I am a big fan of Kong® toys. A Kong®
toy is a hard rubber toy with a hollow center. They come in different
sizes for big and little dogs.
A Kong® can be stuffed with a little peanut butter or cream cheese, a
biscuit or two can also get packed into the center. A stuffed Kong® toy
will keep your dog occupied for long periods of time and it can be
stuffed over and over again.
My friend Pete Manning stuffs Kong® toys for his three Rottiweilers
everyday when he leaves for work. He takes the Kong® toys and screws them
into his fence. He says that it has saved his wood shingles on the side
of his house. Kong® toys are available for about $14.95.
2. Another great toy for your dog is a buster cube. A buster cube has a
hole on one side of the cube. You can pour some of the dogs kibble or
treats into the hole. Once the food goes into the cube you shake it so
the food gets trapped in the center.
Your dog can smell the treats inside the cube. Now they have to figure
out how to get it out. You dog will push the cube around the floor. Every
once and a while a piece of food will pop out. This will keep your dog’s
interest in the toy.
My dog Sam will push her cube around the floor for 30 minutes at a time,
take a rest and start all over again. 3. Don’t forget daycare. Dog daycare is one of the best activities for
you dog. At a good dog daycare your dog will run and play with other dog
friendly dogs. Make sure that the dog daycare is always supervised and
provides plenty of water, treats, and special attention. 4. Teach your dog the “find it” game. Once your dog falls in love with
his Kong® toy and buster cube start to hide them. Here is how you do
this. Have a friend hold your dog’s collar while you place a stuffed
Kong® toy behind a chair. Before your friend lets go of your pup, tell
him “FIND IT!” Your friend lets your pup go and he goes right to the
Kong®. After a few times make it more and more challenging for him.
Have your friend hold his collar and go into the other room. Hide the toy
and let your pup in after you say “FIND IT!” When he gets real good at
the game, provide multiple hidden toys in different rooms.
Use his Kong® toys, buster cubes etc. When you get ready to leave, hide
the toys and tell him to find them as you leave the house. |
