3 Fun Games to Play with Your Dog
Why It’s Important to have Fun with your Dog…
Having fun with your dog should be a priority- something you do every day together.
Here are just some of the things having fun together does:
- Builds Your Relationship
- Improves Communication
- Effective Training Tool
- Mental Stimulation
- Physical Exercise
- Builds Confidence
You can find videos of each of these games on my Facebook and Instagram (@rosypawsedinburgh).
Game 1: Find the Toy
This is a great game for dogs that are less food motivated.
- Put your dog in a different room.
- Give them something to do while you are hiding the toy (e.g. food sprinkle on the floor, Lickimat, Snuffle Mat) as this will prevent them getting frustrated.
- While your dog is busy with their mini activity, go and hide a special toy that your dog LOVES.
- Let your dog into the room where the toy is and tell them to ‘find it’
- Give them a big fuss when they find the toy and have a play with them!
Remember to keep the game easy to begin with and don’t hide the toy anywhere too tricky until your dog has had some practice at the game!
Game 2: Destroy the Box
This is a great game for dogs who like to destroy things.
- Fill a Cardboard box with bits of paper, other pieces of cardboard, a few treats and a couple of toys.
- Give to your dog and encourage them to explore the box.
- Some dogs will really shred the box, others will sniff around for the treats/toys- both ways of playing the game are fine!
Be careful if your dog likes to eat cardboard- shredding is fine, but eating is not!
Game 3: Interactive Fetch
Fetch can be addictive for some dogs and can sometimes result in injuries and obsessive behaviours.
Interactive fetch is a much more cooperative and bonding game.
- Throw a longer toy away from your dog
- Call your dog to you
- When they return, play a game of tug with your dog
It is also great to work on impulse control when playing fetch. Practice asking your dog to wait when you throw the toy so they don’t immediately run after it.
Need some one-on-one help?
Book a phone call with me and we can work together to find out what games your dog loves and how to use them for training.
References
Dogs Trust: building confidence.pdf (dogstrust.ie)
Bradshaw, J.W., Pullen, A.J. and Rooney, N.J. 2015. ‘Why do adult dogs ‘play’?’ Behavioural Processes 110: 82-87.
Hiby, E.F., Rooney, N.J. and Bradshaw, J.W.S. 2004. ‘Dog Training Methods: their use, effectiveness and interaction with behaviour and welfare’. Animal Welfare 13(1): 63-70.
Kennel Club: Brain Training for Dogs: Fun and Educational Games for Dogs (akc.org)
RSPCA: 5 training games that will help build your dog’s trust - RSPCA
