Keeping your dog’s brain stimulated is just as important as getting him the physical exercise he needs! 

Quite often I will go to a private consult or talk to someone on the phone and they will say to me: ‘I think he’s bored’ and they are probably right at least to some extent. Mental stimulation can prevent a lot of unwanted behaviours like chewing furniture, digging in the yard and/or excessive barking. It is also a mandatory element of any behaviour modification plan I put into place for clients whose dogs are having behaviour issues. I’m certainly not saying it’s a ‘be all, end all solution’ but it is an absolute must, in my opinion, for behaviour change to occur. There is absolute truth in ‘a tired dog is a good dog’ and keeping their brain engaged is a great way to tire them out along with appropriate physical exercise. Whenever I go into a private consultation setting, I explain to people that their dogs are learning whenever they are not sleeping so instead of looking at training as a job or chore for you to practice two to three times a day 10-15 minutes per session, I look at ways I can help people incorporate training their dog into everyday life while making it fun for human and canine alike.

I’m a big believer in dogs not eating out of bowls (free feeding). Your dogs need to eat so why not use meal times as a way to keep their brain working and also using it as a way to reinforce all the great behaviour their offering you. Afterall, behaviour that is reinforced is going to happen more often! These ideas are also great for those numerous dogs that 'Hoover' their food!

1. Set aside 30 pieces of your dog’s kibble to use as random rewards when he’s doing things you like! The food can be in little bowls or bags all around the house. When you notice him doing something you like, give him a piece of food. Let me define this a bit… it might be coming over and sitting in front of you, giving you eye contact, being quiet when he hears a noise that he would normally bark at, lying down and settling on his mat (if he’s sleeping, ‘let sleeping dogs lie’ but if he chooses to go to his mat while you’re making dinner in the kitchen for example, that is a rewardable moment). This would typically be behaviours that he chooses to do without an ‘ask’ (cue) from you although there is no reason to not be reinforcing him for cued behaviours as well!
   
2. Play ‘Kibble in the Middle’: this is a great way to get your dog both physically and mentally tired as well as reinforce recall and impulse control! Stand in one spot in your house or yard and call your dog to you. When he approaches, wait for him to offer a sit and the toss a piece of food away from you so he can chase it. Once he finds it, call him back and repeat throwing the food in all different directions or even up and down a few stairs (if your dog is ok on stairs – please be careful with puppies, elderly dogs or dogs with any type of joint issues). If you do this in the yard or into an area where they can’t ‘see’ the food, they are getting the added value of seeking it out with their noses instead of ‘looking’ for it. And nosework is one of the best mental stimulation exercises you can give your dog!
   
3. Find It: This can be done on walks (which will also help reinforce check ins and loose leash walking – BONUS!). Take your dogs kibble in a pocket or bait pouch on your walk. Every half a block (more or less), get your dog’s attention, say ‘find it’ and scatter a handful of his food in the grass or snow and let him seek it out – essentially finding it. This in another great exercise for engaging his nose and he will check in more often anticipating that the game will happen again!
   
4. Treasure Hunt: put your dog in a stay or have someone hold them while you hide bits of kibble all around the house. This might be under furniture, behind doors, under mats, etc. Then go on an exploring adventure with him! 
   
5. Food dispensing toys: There are so many options out there for giving your dog an opportunity to figure out how to get his food! I really believe everyone with a dog should have a good ole rubber kong. You can soak their food so it's a bit mushy and shove it in so it’s a challenge to get it out, mix it with some wet food. This is also a great option if you feed raw! You can also freeze it ahead of time as your dog gets better at it for an added challenge. (If you put dry kibble in this one, it’s just going to fallout and that is neither fun or challenging for your dog). I personally love the kong wobbler for hard kibble to gain confidence and you can easily make it harder by adding one or two golf balls inside to occasionally block the hole. It’s easy for the human part of the equation since you can just unscrew the bottom, fill it with kibble, screw the bottom back on and let your dog go to town! Our friends at Beddington Pet Planet carry all sorts of kong toys as well so feel free to pay them a visit at #110, 100 Beddington Blvd NE or give them a ring at (403) 226-5326. And of course, snuffle mats are one of the more recent additions to the food dispensing toy family and they are great for feeding as your dog also really engages his nose. I use this one a lot for behaviour modification as well as feeding meals! 

So how about those dogs that just aren’t food motivated? A funny thing that I’ve discovered is that often (not always but often enough to mention) is that once you give your dog a ‘game’ to do with their food, they can suddenly become quite motivated by it. Could it be that they were telling you they were bored all along? ‘Food’ for thought! 😊