Make Your Dog Work for His Food
When it’s time for his meals you can use a treat dispensing toy or simply make him do a few tricks to work for it. If you feed kibble you can also try hiding pieces around the house. Studies have found that dogs prefer earning treats to simply being given extras. It goes back to the fact that dogs have been bred to work alongside us; working is not only something to keep the occupied – it gives them a purpose.
Not all dogs are naturals at relaxing. The relaxation protocol is a useful technique to teach your dog to sit and stay in a variety of situations. Sometimes a nice simple belly rub is enough to soothe and relax your dog – it’s also a great bonding experience.
Arrange a Play Date For Your Dog
Give your dog some meaningful interaction by having a dog play date with your friends or family. If there’s some friendly dogs in your neighborhood even better – no need to make any special arrangements.
How to Stop Boredom
You know your dog best. Try a few different strategies to stimulate your dog. Theres no harm in trying a few techniques at once. Its likely that actively aiming to stop the boredom will help.
Puppies get bored with the same old toy day after day. If you have multiple dogs, be sure each has several toys. Aim for three to four minimum per pet, so they don’t need to argue over them. For a singleton pup, eight to 10 toys are even better. Rotate the toys to keep them fresh. Set up a schedule and swap out the toys every two or three days.
Offer puzzle toys like the Orbee Tuff Mazee that engages the pup’s attention for long periods. The types of toys that have places to hide treats are big favorites. You can rotate the kind of treat for even more boredom relief. Peanut butter, liverwurst, cream cheese, and commercially produced treats all work.