A good owner is obliged to take his dog out every day, regardless of the weather conditions. For anyone who isn't a fan of going out in the snow or mud and doing a thorough paw wash (or even a full bath) after each walk - we're here to give ideas on how you can keep your walks short and bring much of the fun home.

 

For 90% of dogs, these games are naturally loved and provide the opportunity to teach them useful skills such as Let Go, Hold On and Fetch. In the meantime, they provide the opportunity to efficiently expend their physical energy without the need for a long walk in the cold.


 

There are various games to develop your dog's search skills, as well as to satisfy his needs in this regard, even in a home environment. The easiest search game is to tell your dog to wait in his bed while you hide a reward (maybe more than one in different places), then release him to find them. Don't worry, this doesn't encourage a habit of eating off the ground. Because of the structure of the exercise, the dog knows he is allowed to search at any given moment.

 

There are different ways of feeding to stimulate your dog's brain and vary the eating process. This is an often overlooked aspect by many owners, but it is important to know that expending a dog's mental energy is just as, if not more important, than expending physical energy. Things you might consider for alternative feeding are KONG, Snaffle Mat, Lickie Mat, and a number of different dog puzzles or toys that can be stuffed with food.



 

The truth is, most of the time we all want our dogs to just lie around and do nothing. Winter is a great time to encourage calm in your dogs. When you see them relaxing, don't take it for granted, but show them that when they feel relaxed, they get rewards. You walk past them and without saying anything, let a reward drop in front of their nose and go on your way. Exercises like this at home, give us the opportunity to keep our dogs calm, even when they haven't had their daily dose of play. (The different types of chews that Dogaine offers help a lot here too.)

 

Even if none of these things appeal to your dog, nowadays there is tons of free resources to give you ideas on how to spend time with your pet in a fulfilling way. You can learn a new trick or recall and improve an old hacked command.

Partnered with our friends - Doggo Friends

 

No matter what you choose to do with your dog, a variety of activities will show him that it can be fun at home, too, and help him to be less dependent on long walks or extended playtime outside.