{"id":602,"date":"2019-09-11T14:46:42","date_gmt":"2019-09-11T18:46:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pawsitivestepsrehab.com\/blog\/?p=602"},"modified":"2019-09-11T14:46:42","modified_gmt":"2019-09-11T18:46:42","slug":"back-to-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pawsitivestepsrehab.com\/blog\/back-to-school\/","title":{"rendered":"Back to School"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Cathryn Adolph, LVT, CCRP, CCFT<\/h4>\n

Canine Enrichment Games for Our Dogs\"\"<\/h2>\n

Labor day marks the end of summer and the start of the new school year.\u00a0 With the start of busy after school schedules, our pets often see a large decrease in the amount of quality time.\u00a0 We can help the transition and keep our dogs mentally stimulated by providing canine enrichment games and toys!<\/p>\n

Meal Times<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Simple things such as switching out your dog\u2019s food bowls or taking 5 minutes to train a trick can make meal times an event!\u00a0\u00a0 In the morning, I use their breakfast to work on their fitness exercises and\/or other training projects.\u00a0 On average, it is 5-15 minute per dog.\u00a0 In the evening, I give my dogs their supplements, and I am unable feed their meals by hand.\u00a0 So, I have three different \u201cslow feed\u201d bowls that I rotate between my two dogs. What originally took them 30 seconds to eat now takes over 5 minutes.<\/p>\n

Nose Games<\/strong><\/h3>\n

It is currently estimated that over 40% of a dog\u2019s brain is dedicated to scent.\u00a0 Using canine enrichment games that rely of scent can be mentally exhausting for our dogs.\u00a0\u00a0 Snuffle mats are made of fleece strands tied to a rubber mat.\u00a0 The food falls between the strands and my dogs have to really search for each piece. The snorting and snuffling noises are quite hilarious!<\/p>\n

Teaching a toy-driven dog to find a hidden toy is another fun game!\u00a0 Start by letting your dog see you hide their dog in an \u201ceasy\u201d spot.\u00a0 Ask them to get their toy and have a good play session when they find it.\u00a0 Slowly work up to having your dog outside the room and the toy hidden in a harder, but still accessible spot.<\/p>\n

\"\"Puzzle Games and Food Toys<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Puzzle games and food toys can be considered nose games, but instead of just hunting for the food they have to interact to get the food.\u00a0 Food toys can be as simple as a stuffed kong.\u00a0 More complex food toys require the dog to roll toys around to work food out of the holes in the toy.\u00a0 Some examples include the Kong Wobbler, Pet Safe Busy Buddy, and Buster Cube.<\/p>\n

There are also specialty made puzzle in which the dog can smell the hidden food\/treats but have to slide or open compartments to open.\u00a0 Outward Hound has a large selection of these complex toys developed by Nina Ottoson for a challenge.<\/p>\n

Trick Training<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Trick training is near and dear to my heart.\u00a0 Tricks are a fun way to engage our dog\u2019s brain, teach concepts that carry over to \u201creal life\u201d, and they’re fun!\u00a0 Using a portion of my dog\u2019s meals, I will train a trick for 5-10 minutes each.\u00a0 There are some tricks I start and never finish or it might be too advanced at the time.<\/p>\n

Rehabilitation and Enrichment\"\"<\/strong><\/h3>\n

While trick training, may not be appropriate while recovering from surgery, food toys and slow-feeding bowls are a great way to help recovery.\u00a0 Rehabilitation exercises<\/a> prescribed by your rehabilitation veterinary team are a great way to also allow your dog to burn off some energy.<\/p>\n

Canine Enrichment Made Easy<\/strong><\/h3>\n

There are many more tools on the market that make adding regular enrichment to your dog\u2019s life easier.\u00a0 Regularly finding new things to add or rotating the old will keep your dog\u2019s mind engaged.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Cathryn Adolph, LVT, CCRP, CCFT Canine Enrichment Games for Our Dogs Labor day marks the end of summer and the start of the new school year.\u00a0 With the start of busy after school schedules, our pets often see a large decrease in the amount of quality time.\u00a0 We can help the transition and keep […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-602","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pawsitive-steps-news"],"yoast_head":"\nBack to School<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Labor day marks the end of summer and the start of the new school year.\u00a0 With the start of busy after school schedules, our pets often see a large decrease in the amount of quality time.\u00a0 We can help the transition and keep our dogs mentally stimulated by providing canine enrichment games and toys!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pawsitivestepsrehab.com\/blog\/back-to-school\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Back to School\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Labor day marks the end of summer and the start of the new school year.\u00a0 With the start of busy after school schedules, our pets often see a large decrease in the amount of quality time.\u00a0 We can help the transition and keep our dogs mentally stimulated by providing canine enrichment games and toys!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.pawsitivestepsrehab.com\/blog\/back-to-school\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Pawsitive Steps Rehabilitation & Therapy for Pets, Troy MI\" \/>\n<meta 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