Mentally Challenging Your Dog

As humans we get bored from time to time and so do our pets. When pets get bored they start to do all of those lovely naughty things that irritate us; such as getting into the trash, chewing up shoes, and even hoping the fence. One way to curb these unwanted behaviors is to give them something that will challenge them mentally, which will tire them out as much as if you took them on a long walk. I am definitely not saying that you should dumb the walks and use one of the following toys instead; dogs have an inherent need to travel, so walking is a must no matter what size dog you have. Interactive dog toys can be used as a way to drain energy during the day while you are at work, to keep dogs busy, or as a bonding experience between you and your dog. Dogs of all ages can use these toys. They are especially good for people who have high energy dogs and puppies.

If you don't have the money to spend on these toys you can make your own. My dog loves tennis balls, so what I like to do is wrap the tennis ball up in an old towel or blanket, and let her figure out how to get the ball out. After a couple of times, she is panting like crazy. My dog also enjoys a good game of hide-and-go-seek. I put in one room and tell her to stay, then I go into another room and hide her ball somewhere. I give her the release command, and she comes running and starts to look for her ball. She is very proud of herself when she finds it. You can also do both of these games with treats, but you need to make sure that you let your dog smell the treat before you hide, so that they know what they are looking for. Also, if you are going to use treats, I would recommend starting with larger treats, which are easier to find. Once your dog gets the hang of it you can go to smaller treats. Below, I have listed a few interactive dog toys, for a complete list visit my amazon store at: http://astore.amazon.com/interactivedogtoys-20

Instead of using treats you could also use dog food.