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Great article. This subject is often neglected by dog owners. I’m a huge believer in providing my dogs with mental stimulation. (Thomas).

By:

Diane Podolsky is an Examiner from New York. You can see Diane’s articles on Diane’s Home Page.

In many ways, modern pet dogs have great lives. They are kept clean, receive excellent veterinary care and sleep on bedding most of us would like to have for ourselves. But often there is an important quality of life factor that is overlooked: their mental health.

“Mental health?” you might ask. “Really?” Yes. Really. Boredom is at the root of many of the problems people experience with their dogs. And some dogs are unnecessarily fearful because their families did not know how to prevent this problem from developing or were unaware that they needed to take it seriously when symptoms began to appear.

Dogs in well-run animal shelters, such as the San Francisco SPCA (SFSPCA), are offered leash walks each day, off leash play opportunities with other dogs, opportunities to dissect donated plush toys and eat their meals from stuffed Kongs. The luckiest ones attend training classes, too.

What does your dog do all day? Is your dog’s life as enriched as an SFSPCA shelter dog’s? When you come home in the evening, are you tired and eager to curl up with a good book or looking forward to watching your favorite TV show? Yet there’s Fido, full of mental and physical energy, wanting to play and go, go, go, after saving energy all day by being “good” and sleeping while you were gone! Both of you have needs and both of your needs are very understandable. And yet, at least sometimes, incompatible!

Suggestions from Diane Podolsky, CPDT, CTC of The Cultured Canine:

To help you meet your dog’s mental health needs (and your own), here are a few general suggestions. Each dog’s activity level varies by breed, age and individual, so bear that in mind when considering these options. One size does not fit all! And always check with your vet before increasing your dog’s activity level, even if your dog is in good health.

• Dogs are most active at dawn and dusk. So see if getting up a bit earlier and taking a brisk 20 minute walk helps your dog burn off some energy. For mental benefit, don’t just walk – train, too! Stop every few minutes for a Sit break. (If your dog does not know how to Sit, here’s a reason to teach it!) Feed your dog some of her breakfast each time she Sits for you. Reverse direction and feed her for coming along with you quickly. Make the walk interesting!
• When you return from your early morning walk, train your dog for 5-10 minutes. Work on a new trick or polish an existing one. Feed your dog part of her breakfast this way.
• Repeat this routine in the evening, too.
• Stuff a Kong or other puzzle toy for entertainment after you leave. No food bowl – boring! It is much more interesting to figure out how to extract food from a puzzle like a Kong than it is to simply gulp food from a bowl.
• Rotate your dog’s toys each day. Try scenting them with vanilla, anise or lavender. Or put them in the laundry bin with your workout clothes before presenting them to your dog – a real treat!
• Instead of leaving your dog’s toys out on the floor or in his toy box, hide the toys around your home. Dogs are natural scavengers. They love to discover things in novel locations.
• Teach your dog to come reliably when called and use the recall exercises for physical exercise. Then visit your local dog park a few times each week in the early evening. By the time you go home, your dog will be ready for the sofa, especially after your dinnertime training session.
• Teach your dog to be a calm passenger in the car or a good citizen on the Metro North train. Then go on a small adventure on Sunday morning to a new park, suburban town or into the big city instead of just staying home. Dogs need a change of environment, too.A successful outing not only provides a change of scenery; it is an opportunity for your dog to exercise her problem solving skills. Behaving politely in public (riding in the car, waiting calmly to exit and enter the car, walking with a loose leash past distractions, sitting to greet new people) are all opportunities to practice decision making skills: which behaviors lead to good things for dogs? This is a valuable form of mental exercise!
• Consider dog sports like agility, rally or breed specific activities like lure coursing or earth dog activities. There are local clubs organized for all kinds of dog-related activities. You’ll make new friends and your dog will also.

Work tiny training activities into your daily routine. A sit-stay at the front door each time you go out gives your dog mental work to do (and a chance to earn a treat and a positive interaction with you). Walking attentively next to you anticipating a treat at random intervals is much more interesting than just walking along the same old route while you talk on your cell phone.

A Certified Professional Dog Trainer can teach you and your dog a set of cued behaviors that can be worked into games that you can play together inside and outside to provide your dog with the mental stimulation he or she needs. And your trainer can help you enrich your dog’s home environment to make it more interesting for your pet. Remember: your dog’s mental health helps yours, too!