12 brilliant play ideas for you, for your dog, for great teams!
In 2016, Good Dog Practice is featuring a dog-friendly activity once a month, by courtesy of guest author, Monika Stanzig (IDBTS, certified by Sheila Harper).
These are not meant as tasks or training ideas. Rather, they are a way of sharing relaxed, quality time together. Your dog can gain confidence by doing problem-solving activities as independently as possible, while enjoying your support and attention. Just for fun!
Consistent with the values of Good Dog Practice, we feel that our dogs are not obliged to be interested, nor should they be pressured to complete a task. If they prefer to do something else or just rest, that’s just fine! Maybe another time! 🙂 A tip: many dogs take a pause from a problem-solving challenge and come back to it later. If the dog looks for your support, you can of course assist him or her.
(These activities are chosen with care, but come without guarantee for correctness or completeness. They are meant as quality-time activities. Please be present with your dog while he is doing them, also for safety reasons. Please note, we take no legal responsibility for any mishaps, damage or injury. All rights to text and photographs reserved.)
You will need:
– an old blanket
– a few dog treats
Here’s how to do it:
Get an old blanket and put it on the floor. Crumple it up together to make as many folds as possible. Place the treats in the folds. Your dog will undoubtedly be curious as to why the blanket is lying around on the floor.
- Here I’m hiding a little treat for Leicester.
- What’s this doing lying around?
- This smells really interesting!
- Yummy! One of my favourite treats!
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