Indoor Activities For Your Dog
Rainy days are awesome to stay in and cozy up. They’re great to go outside, splash about and get wet and muddy with your dog too! But if you’re dog doesn’t like the rain and if you don’t feel like going out, there are tons of things to do indoors with your dog. The following are some ideas to get you started!
This is a great game to play with your dog as it provides both mental stimulation and physical activity and it’s loads of fun! Make a big show of it with loads of praises when your dog finds you or whoever it is who hides. You can play the same with toys or treats. Show your dog what you are going to hide, it’s even better if your dog knows the name of the toy or the person.
2. Nosework
This is a really great activity to do with your dog as it really makes your dog use her brain and builds her confidence. Five minutes of nosework is equivalent to a twenty minute walk.
So what is nosework? It’s literally what it sounds like i.e. making your dog use her powerful sense of smell. And the more you do this, the better her sense of smell will become. To start off scatter bits of treats in front of your dog, let her find them and praise her well. You can progress with the level of difficulty, by scattering over a larger area, hiding the treats without your dog seeing it by keeping her in another room when you hide them, hiding them in different parts of the house and in new locations etc. Remember that the treats have to be of high value to your dog, and keep them bite sized.
3. Puzzles :
Doing puzzles with your dog helps to mentally stimulate her, it will make her a happier and more confident dog and it’s a great way of bonding with her. You can buy puzzles designed for dogs or even better, put your creative side to use and make them yourself. Remember to start any new activity at an easy level for your dog, don’t skimp on praises and treats and progress at your dog’s pace.
Check out Nina Ottoson’s site for inspiration- http://www.nina-ottosson.com/
Hide treats in boxes layered with paper, tissue,cloth. Put treats in bottles and you can make it harder by stuffing the neck of the bottle with peanut butter or something like paper or cloth that your dog call pull out to get to the treats. Put treats in a an old sock. Keep treats in a plastic bottle and tie the bottle up with an old t-shirt and let your dog figure out how to get the treats. Hide treats under tumblers and let your dog figure out where they are.There are so many things you can do!
Food dispensing toys also work as good puzzles.Kong has a variety of food dispensing toys and this is a good way to keep your dog occupied. Start with the Kong Classic or Kong Wobbler and progress to the more difficult toys.
5. Tag You’re It! :
This is a game which provides exercise and helps teach the recall command as it makes coming when called a lot of fun! You’ll need another person and both of you should have some treats . Start across the room from one another. One person calls the dog and rewards her with a treat, then the next person calls and rewards.Then get farther back so that soon you’re calling from different parts of the house. The more your dog runs around the house, the better! You can make the game more fun by calling her and then starting to run away, so your recall is also a game of chase. This is a great game to play outdoors too.
6.New Tricks and Commands:
Dogs love learning new things. So when you’re stuck indoors, what better way to spend time than teaching your dog something new! Be patient and remember, if you’re dog is not getting what you’re teaching it’s because you are not communicating well enough. Keep the lessons short and fun!
Here’s an example of what you can teach. You can teach your dog to help you clean up and make it into a game :)
Start with baby steps, by teaching your dog to pick up a toy, then to carry it to a basket, and then to drop it in. Praise her well and treat her when she gets it right. This itself will be a fun challenge for both of you.Then to play the game, scatter a bunch of toys in a small area, point to one and say “put it away” until all the toys are back in their basket. Increase the difficulty of the game as your dog gets better at it by scattering the toys farther around the room, scattering them throughout multiple rooms, or even hiding them!
7. Doggie Play Date:Have your dog’s pal come over or go over to their place so the dogs can play.
8. Drive:
Go for a drive with your dog when it’s raining. Make it more fun by getting an ice cream or stopping some place that is indoors and pet friendly.
9. Walk in the Parking Lot
Parking lots are a super fun place for your dog to walk around in when it’s raining. There is so much to sniff ,so many cars with different doggie pee smells :)
10. Indoor Obstacle Course:
Make a fun obstacle course for your dog at home by using chairs, pillows, stools, boxes , blankets etc. Show your dog how to navigate through it the first time, then see if she can do it herself.
There are endless fun things you can do with your dog indoors! It’s also a great time to cuddle up ,catch a movie or just laze about.
