What is environmental enrichment, and how can it help my dog's behavior?

Environmental enrichment is a lot of interactions that you can have with your dog. For instance, when you have puppies, if you take them for long walks and get them outside, and they've seen different things, they're going to come in and be tired. You can play inside games; dogs love to play hide and seek. You can hide and then call them, and they'll come running and looking for you. There are such things as puzzles where you have food, and they have to do a specific little activity to get the food, which exercises their brains a lot.

Tired animals are happy animals; they behave better. Some people take them to daycare so that they've had a whole fun day and experience, and they come in, and they sleep a little bit better that day and the next day. One of the most fun things a dog loves is to explore an environment. They just love to go for a walk; they love the smell things and see things. So all of that is part of their environmental enrichment.

If your dog is bored, they're going to enrich themselves. If we look in this room, it's not a very exciting room, but this door handle looks pretty chewable. This trim looks nice. My in-laws' dog ripped all of those things off their house. What are you going to give your dog to keep them happy? Lots of attention. You want to make sure that you are not leaving them alone for prolonged periods. If you can give them toys that are safe to play with, that can help. However, you should first observe them play with said toy to make sure the dog isn't going to chew the toy to pieces and swallow bits. Otherwise, that could be a risk. Think of agility dogs. They have holes and tunnels to weave through. You could have rope ties for tug-o-war. You could use a ball to play catch with them, or maybe a paddling pool.

Enrichment is one of the most important things you can do for your pet. It’s easy to think my dog's happy sleeping on the couch while I'm gone because that's what they do. And in some ways, that's true, but it's imperative to think about the fact that our dogs are intelligent creatures that need stimulation. That doesn't mean that we need to be entertaining them 24 hours a day, but it does mean that we need to consider that in our daily lives. And it doesn't have to be labor-intensive, as there are so many different YouTube videos and resources on the website on DIY enrichment.

It could be as simple as taking a cardboard box and feeding half of your dog's dinner in there mixed with some paper shreds so that they have to dig around and tear a little bit to get their dinner for the night. Keep in mind that anything like that should always be supervised, so they're not consuming things they're not supposed to, but enrichment means working your dog's brain and making their life more than just the box that is your house. Get out and let them sniff on walks. Also, walks don't have to be a 20-minute speed-walking marathon. Really let them sniff, let them see the world, and let them interact with the world—obviously on a leash and in a controlled way.

Environmental enrichment is essentially creating an environment for the dog to live in that is as mentally, physically, and emotionally stimulating and engaging as possible. For a dog, that is as simple as having plenty of different types of toys that they enjoy interacting with. Even cycling those toys keeps them fresh and new and keeps dogs mentally and physically engaged. Regular walking is part of enrichment because you're taking them into new environments where they can use their senses. It's beneficial for them both behaviorally and emotionally to have various different stimulating things in their environment as opposed to just laying on the couch all day. Environmental enrichment can take many forms. Some of us, including myself, can't walk all of our dogs daily, and that's okay. We just have to come up with more creative ways in the house to keep them engaged. That's what environmental enrichment is about.

Environmental enrichment is a way to keep your pet happy and satisfied at home. It's primarily treat-motivated and toys that they can play with on their own. You don't need to buy these specific toys. If you Google it, there are tons of things that you can buy for environmental enrichment. I literally just toss some cookies under a rug, and they'll sniff it out and find it and be pretty excited about it. One of my favorite environmental enrichment toys is a kong or maybe a bone marrow stuffed with peanut butter. But if you Google it, there are some pretty cool treat hiding, environmental enrichment toys that you can get.

Environmental enrichment refers to improving the living environment of your pet to better suit their needs and promote positive behavior. Some examples include providing treat balls, hiding food for them to find, offering regular walks or outdoor enclosures, and allowing them to observe the outdoors. By enhancing your dog's environment, you can help to reduce boredom and encourage good behavior. If you have specific questions about your dog's socialization or training, consult your veterinarian or a professional trainer.

Environmental enrichment involves stimulating your dog's senses - smell, hearing, etc. This can be achieved by activities like being outside, playing fetch or ball, and even simple walks. Providing an outlet for the brain helps prevent unwanted behaviors. There are also many tools available like snuffle mats, puzzle balls, and lick mats that can provide additional stimulation. A happy and tired dog tends to be a well-behaved dog. A tired puppy is a well-behaved puppy. Tire your puppies out. Play with them, and then they won't do things that they're not supposed to do, like eat things and make bad life choices.