Beyond Fetch: At Home Enrichment Activities
Enrichment toys are a paw-some way to offer mental stimulation, prevent boredom, and curbing destructive behaviors for our dogs. They promote natural behaviors like foraging and problem-solving, while also providing physical exercise. As city dogs we have tried a lot of home enrichment activities, from home DIY fun to the trendiest enrichment toys on the market. While there have been a lot of hits, there have definitely been some misses. So I have compiled all of the activities that my pups keep wanting to go back to, and hopefully your pup will love them too!
Button Games
Teaching your dog to press a button is a lot easier than you think. There are also tons of games you can play with your dog using buttons, but our go-to is using it during mealtimes to slow down the eating process and provide extra exercise. Using button feeders, your pup will press the button and a chime will ring out to let them know that they pushed hard enough for food to come out of the main feeder. Our dog Cookie gets most of her meals this way now, and we love watching her excitedly rush back and forth from the button to the feeder.
Toppl’s and Kongs
These durable, chew-resistant toys are perfect for meals or a frozen treat. When I need to make sure my pups are entertained while I am doing chores, work, or running errands, I usually will give them a frozen Toppl. You can also give them an unfrozen meal in the toy and it will still provide enrichment, but if you add a little broth and freeze then that will give you at least 40 minutes of entertainment for your dogs!
Muffin Tins
You don’t have to go out and buy the latest enrichment toys for your dogs when you probably already have one in your kitchen. Muffin tins are the ultimate enrichment toy; Freeze treats in the tin and you have a lick mat, put kibble in the tin and you have a slow feeder, or you can use it to play games with your dog. We play a game with Maple where we add kibble to only some of the tins, and put tennis balls on top to act as a barrier that she needs to move to get to the kibble. She gets excited every time we take the muffin tin out now!
Snuffle Mats
A snuffle mat is essentially a mat made of fabric strips and shapes. The strips create raised surfaces that can be sprinkled with treats, kibble, or whatever floats your boat. Dogs then use their noses to sniff out the hidden goodies, stimulating their natural foraging skills and providing mental enrichment. The best part, they are super freaking cute. Cookie is using a brunch themed mat, and I don’t think it gets cuter than that.
Lick Mats
Lick matts were the first enrichment tool we were introduced to, and it has remained an easy and quick solution for our dogs boredom for years now. You can use any dog safe and spreadable treat to stick on the mat, and optionally freeze for a longer play session. My go to is yogurt with berries smashed into the surface. I would make sure to get a mat with lots of texture to really set in your spreadable treats.
Puzzle Feeders / Slow Feeders
If you are going to buy your dog a bowl anyway, then it might as well be a slow feeder. Our dog Maple has a huge issue with fast eating, which can cause choking and vomiting, and slow feeders have helped us overcome that issue tremendously. They are also an easily accessible item that you can grab just about anywhere that sells pet items, we even see them for a huge discount at TJMaxx!
Hide and Treat
A fun and simple game that you can play at home without purchasing any extras! Just take kibble or treats and hide them around your house, making it a little harder each time you play. I like to hide them under my dogs toys, so that she has to move things out of the way to find the goods.
Cabbage Patch Pups
I saw this one on TikTok being shown as a simple, cheap, and fun activity for dogs. And yes, it was definitely cheap and my dogs definitely had a lot fun tearing apart and munching on cabbages. HOWEVER, this one requires a lot of cleanup. It was like a crime scene of shredded cabbage all over my dining room.
Looking for more enrichment toys? Check out our Amazon storefront HERE!