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8 Ways to Engage Your Dog Indoors

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Often, you and your dog can be disappointed if stranded at home. We all know that an active dog is a happy dog.  According to ASPCA, indoor enrichment activities keep your dog buddies happy, healthy, and on best behavior. There are lots of things you can do indoors to keep your dog engaged and entertained.

 Check out some suggestions for keeping your dog entertained indoors. 

1. Hide-and-Seek 

Dogs like being cognitively and physically challenged. This is exactly what a game of hide-and-seek can provide. This should be a simple game to teach your dog if they already know how to sit and stay. It’s an enjoyable game while outside, but it’s equally entertaining to play indoors. All you have to do is train your dog to sit in a corner and wait until you call them. Find a hiding spot in your house and, after you’re comfortable, call your dog so it can begin hunting for you. After it has found you, reward them with a treat, then repeat the process. 

2. Nose Work

If your dog is like others, he or she enjoys sniffing out unfamiliar scents when out walking or hanging out in the yard. It’s understandable, given how quickly things change outside. However, things don’t change nearly as frequently inside as they do outside. Your dog is unlikely to spend nearly as much time examining every area of your home as they do in the yard.

 You may adjust that by concealing little treats in unexpected areas throughout the house. Some of the best spots to hide your treat include corners, behind a couch cushion, beneath a tablecloth, and in their dog bed. Then allow your dog to explore the entire house and gather all his or her rewards.

3. Exercise Your Dog’s Obedience Skills

Even if your dog already knows basic obedience skills, it never hurts to brush up on them. Especially if they aren’t used daily. Within the boundaries of a house, practicing basic directions like sit, stay, wait, and high-five is simple. 

Obedience training is an excellent choice for individuals who live in small apartments because it takes up only a few feet of space. So, you won’t have to worry about anything breaking.

4. Get Your Dog to Help You Clean Up

Because you’re both confined inside the house, you may as well clean it together. It’s true: You can educate your dog to help you with duties around the house. This helps to keep them occupied while you work on your own.

 Picking up their toys should be the first lesson you teach them. Teaching dogs how to execute the job is an enjoyable pastime. After a few days of practice, your dog should be able to pick up their toys whenever you tell them to. You may even teach your dog to put dirty clothes in the basket and fetch you a drink from the kitchen!

5. Tug of war

If your dog is currently attempting to lose weight, you may want not to use treat-based indoor engagement.

Tug of war is a terrific indoor activity that takes up little room. The game is quite demanding and rapidly exhausts dogs.

Tug of war will not only delight your dog. It will also encourage you and your dog to engage in physical exercise when you may not go outdoors and run about as much.

It also allows you to develop trust and a stronger bond, which will transfer over into your training sessions and other aspects of your shared life.

6. Treat puzzles

Toys are one of the few indoor dog pastimes that don’t involve any movement on your side. And what could be better than a brand-new toy? A toy that gives your dog a treat when he plays with it!

Treat puzzles to keep your dog entertained while also keeping him well nourished. From a simple stuffed Kong to interactive and hard treat puzzles, they come in a range of styles.

The mental activity will help your dog’s relax and the tasty food incentive will keep them coming back for more.

7. Teach your dog the names of its toys

It’s not as tough as it seems to teach your dog the names of their toys. This may be a fun hobby, especially if you have a lot of toys for your dog.

Begin with naming a toy and instructing your dog to retrieve it by name. Praise your dog when it returns with the correct item. While playing with each toy, you may use treats to reward your dog while stating the toy’s name.

Finally, try if your dog can identify a toy by name from a pile of toys. Try a different toy and continue the procedure once he understands the name.

8. Put your dog’s detective skills to the test

Unlike the other alternatives, this one will need some planning and preparation ahead of time. If you have children, incorporate them into the planning process as well.

Set up barriers and activities around the house for your dog to be a detective for the day.

Make an obstacle course for your dog in your house with objects you already have on hand. For instance, you can put a hula hoop, a cardboard box tunnel, or chairs he must zig-zag through. You can also block the hallway with a chair on its side so your dog can figure out how to get through, around, or over. Place a treat or two on top of a TV tray in a room where your dog can sniff them out. Hang a few toys from the ceiling with strings so your dog can find out how to grab them with their tongue.

This exercise helps in challenging their brains and keeping their body working.

It is critical to consider your dog’s abilities, size, and current fitness level to avoid endangering him or her.

This is a pleasant activity for the whole family because many young children will want to take part in the course.

Conclusion

When a dog isn’t given enough stimulation (physical or mental), he or she may frequently let out pent-up energy in unwanted ways. Often, they may start chewing on their owner’s socks or damaging a piece of furniture. Therefore, it’s critical to provide your dog with lots of mental and physical stimulation.

 To keep active, healthy, and happy, dogs need both physical and mental activity. Walking, jogging, and playing provide desired physical activity, but not always possible. But there are a variety of activities that can provide mental and physical stimulation.

 Mental activity results in a cheerful dog. This is so, whether it’s tracking odors indoors, concentrating hard on obedience training, or striving to get food out of a puzzle toy.

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