Picture this: you’re a dog owner, and your nine month old Australian Shepherd, Koopa, is tormenting your every waking hour. Around every corner is a new and exhausting surprise. Your shoes? He chewed them to bits. Your neighbors? Can’t walk past your house without a haranguing. Your privacy? Long gone. Koopa figured out how to open doors the moment he was big enough to reach the handles. So what do you do? You walk, miles upon miles, every day. Maybe you even try running, but it’s never enough. Koopa is constantly coming up with new ways to wreak havoc. Your once-loyal canine companion has turned into a ruthless doggy dictator, forcing you to orient your entire life around his needs.
This is not an uncommon scenario, says Pupstart dog trainer and behaviorist Dana Fedman. “Some breeds and some dogs, you just can't walk them far enough, so what I would do is increase their enrichment in other ways.”
Enrichment is the process of exposing your dog to new activities and environments that exercise both their brain and body in an attempt to relieve boredom and reduce stress. All dogs can benefit from enrichment, but what exactly that means can take many forms.
“Just like people, dogs are individuals with different energy levels, interests, and physical abilities–all factors that determine what sorts and amounts of enrichment will be right for any given dog,” explains the book Decoding Your Dog. “Dogs need both mental stimulation and physical exercise. One can make up for the other to a certain extent, but most dogs need both, so more exercise won’t necessarily fulfill all a dog needs.”
Since a dog’s enrichment needs will change throughout their life, owners should pay close attention to their dog’s responses and adjust as necessary for evolving cognitive and physical abilities. If you’re not sure where to begin, read on for a plethora of resources that can help steer you in the right direction.
The most formative experiences in a dog’s life happen in the first three months. During this period, it’s important that puppies are gradually introduced to a wide variety of positive experiences. This is called socialization. This must be approached carefully because these experiences, whether good or bad, will have a lasting impact on a puppy’s psychological development. One alarming run in with a skateboarder during this period could result in a life-long phobia.
“The development of canine coping skills is a primary building block for ensuring good behavior inside your home and elsewhere,” explains the book Training for Both Ends of the Leash. "It turns dogs into team players as they adapt to the family dynamics and the world around them with greater ease.”
Written by trainer Kate Perry and writer Yvonne Conza, Training for Both Ends of the Leash outlines a clever socialization exercise called “Seven Days of Discovery.” Over the course of the exercise, you will introduce your puppy to nearly 150 new sensory experiences that will help set them up for success in the adventures to come.
“For one week, three times a day (morning, afternoon and evening) expose your puppy to one of each of the following: People–infant, senior, bearded male, tall woman, someone walking with a cane, toddler, teen. Surfaces–grass, concrete, carpet, linoleum, wood, metal grates, sand. Objects–ball, frisbee, hairbrush, nail clippers, hammer, umbrella, bowl. Locations–backyard, basement, car, hallway, vet’s office, groomer, park. Sounds–hair dryer, vacuum cleaner, fax machine, doors opening and closing, squeaky toys, doorbell, sirens.”
Sharing these experiences establishes a strong bond and helps the puppy build the confidence to cope with unfamiliar situations. Pay close attention to their reactions. Too much stimulation can overwhelm a puppy, turning what should be a positive experience into a negative one. It can be helpful to document their reactions–a written record of early experiences can be useful for understanding potential behavior problems down the road. While socialization definitely does not end after the seventh day, this week-long program will help puppies establish a strong foundation for a lifetime of positive new experiences.
By the time a dog reaches adulthood, they are capable of highly complex mental processing. According to a study published in Science Magazine in 2004, most adult dogs can identify and classify objects by type. For example, even if a specific ball is unfamiliar to them, if you were to ask “where’s the ball,” they can be reliably expected to understand and bring it to you. This is something dogs will often learn over time through observation and repetition, but object identification can also be taught intentionally using positive reinforcement.
Teaching a dog to retrieve specific objects has its roots in working dog training. Many service dogs are taught to retrieve specific objects their owner might need, like medication or water, but first-time learners should start with a favorite toy. For more detailed instructions, visit the trick training section of the American Kennel Club website.
If your dog is more of a jock, Fedman suggests participating in a dog sport. Designed to stimulate natural canine behaviors and instincts, they can be a great outlet for dogs with a desire to work. Whether your dog enjoys sniffing, herding, swimming, or just looking pretty, there is a sport for nearly every interest.
In Treibball, a sport with roots in herding, a handler coaches their dog to push several large plastic balls into a goal. The fast-paced game is ideal for high energy dogs who enjoy working cooperatively with their humans.
Conformation is a more low-key option, but dogs must be a registered purebred to qualify. A traditional dog show event, contestants must be relaxed and poised while judges observe and rank them on how closely they resemble the standard qualities for their breed.
Scent tracking is another popular sport that comes naturally to many dogs. “Any dog can be taught to find a particular odor, especially when the odor is paired with a reward such as a treat or a toy,” says Victoria Stillwell in The Secret Language of Dogs. Best of all, you don’t have to take your dog to competitions or purchase any fancy equipment to participate–you can simply use favorite treats or toys you have lying around the house. Start by hiding the prize in an easy location, then ask your dog to find it. After your dog has learned the basic premise, up the ante by stashing more than one treat at a time or by hiding the toy somewhere more challenging.
Whether you play competitively or recreationally, participating in sports with your dog can be a fun way to strengthen your bond while exercising both their body and mind.
As dogs move into their senior years, the physical changes they experience are accompanied by less obvious mental changes.
“Dogs learn more slowly in old age, just as humans do,” says Decoding Your Dog. “The decline in learning ability (and cognitive function) can be slowed to a great extent in dogs, as in humans, with the right diet and environmental enrichment.”
While some cognitive decline is to be expected, in rarer cases dogs will develop a condition called Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome. CDS is a neurodegenerative condition akin to Alzheimer's, explains Fedman. It can cause varying degrees of confusion, anxiety, loss of motor control, changes in greeting behavior and bathroom habits. If your dog is showing unusually dramatic signs of mental deterioration, pay a visit to your veterinarian. They may be able to perform diagnostic tests and help you establish a treatment plan. Whatever the extent of the cognitive decline, there are several things owners can do to support their companions as they approach the end of their lives.
Many older dogs begin to struggle to do activities they enjoyed in their younger years. But this doesn’t mean the fun has to stop! Food puzzles come in a variety of styles, and puzzles that remain stationary (as opposed to rolling around) are a great option for senior pups with mobility issues. Along those same lines, if they love the great outdoors but struggle with movement while out and about, consider alternatives. You could try pulling your elderly dog around in a stroller or take a ride in the car with the windows down instead. Pay attention to your dog’s needs, Fedman says. And don’t be afraid to get creative.
“I had a friend that sprayed perfume on the ground to help her dog find the stairs that led to the potty pads if she was running late getting home from work.”
Preliminary findings suggest that diet changes can also help to slow mental decline in elderly dogs. With this line of treatment, early intervention is key. While it can’t turn back time, a diet rich in antioxidants, vitamin b, and fish oil can help fortify their remaining brain power.
As the aging dog’s body slows down, so too does their brain. But their capacity to enjoy life does not also diminish–with compassionate care, elderly dogs can thrive.
The physical and emotional health of our canine companions is in our hands. From the day they join our lives to the day they leave them, it’s up to us to make it every minute count.