Boredom: A recipe for disaster

Many of the problem behaviors people come to me with are traced back to a bored, and under-stimulated dog.  If a dog is rarely exercised, and has nothing to occupy their time, they’ll start to look for things to do.  All of a sudden the thought runs through their mind, “Hey those shoes look like fun!”

Exercise, exercise, exercise!  Your dog needs it more than you realize.  I also suggest giving them an adequate dose of daily mental stimulation.  I’m a big fan of the food stuffable dog toys like the Tricky-Treat Ball.  As you know chews can be rather expensive, and dogs can go through them quickly.  The advantage of a good, safe food stuffable toy is they’re long lasting and will occupy your dog’s attention for hours.  If they’re busy playing with the toy, that means they are less inclined to go for something you’d rather them not.   I recommend getting a few of these toys, and rotate them throughout the week.

A Couple of Safe Options:

1. Rather than put your dog’s food in a dish, have them work for it.  Purchase a food dispensing dog toy like the Tricky-Treat Ball.  This will not only keep your dog busy for a while, but also serve as great mental stimulation.
2. I’d also suggest getting a Kong and stuff it with something yummy.  Give it to your dog in their crate if you want to build a positive association to crate train them.  I like to give it to my dogs as I leave in the morning.  This will keep them busy as I’m gone, and after a while your departure will be fun and not something that creates anxiety.   If your dog is good at getting the treats out quickly, try freezing it for a couple hours.  You can also purchase the Extreme Kong for aggressive chewers.