Exercise the Mind...

Discussion dedicated to promoting the well-being of your dog through diet, exercise and general health tips.

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Zeldacorgi
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by Zeldacorgi »

I think there's probably a gray area with chasing a dog. I think it would be fun to switch between 'chase me, chase you' but you never want to use a dog's name when chasing them. You also don't want to play this while teaching a dog (young or old) that coming to you is the best thing in the world. It's also not a great game to play right before it's time to leave when they're still in that run away mode. It really depends on dog and owner and individual circumstance. For the most part though, not the best game, especially when there are some many other games with greater benefit that offer built in training.
Christie
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by Christie »

I like those toys that excersies the dogs minds I called my local Pet Smart and they do have them from $7:00 or $8.00 to $20.00 depending on the toy you want those toys could come in handy on the dogs have to be coop up due to bad weather. :D
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Poloplatinum
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by Poloplatinum »

Can you do me a favor emmabeth? Can you recommend certain mental toys for dogs based on breed?
Or is more of what you described as the type of dog being the more important factor?
ALWAYS trust your dog.
emmabeth
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by emmabeth »

Mmm.... sorry I missed this!

Tricky, its more a personality thing really.

You can generalise that terriers will be more interested in digging, finding something and ragging it to 'kill it' - so sandpits and flirt poles with 'skin' type toys on them can be great, as can rope raggers..

A lurcher or a pure sighthound, despite being a hunting dog is highly unlikely to be interested in ragging a pretend dead thing... they do know the difference and their personalities are much more reserved (you get the odd one or two, I know a saluki and a greyhound who ADORE retrieving and would give a collie a run for their money on the obsessive retrieval stakes!).

So then it boils down to personality, and the way the particular dog thinks. Its good to try a variety of mental/physical games with dogs as seeing how they go about a task can tell you a lot about how that dog thinks.

One of mine when faced wtih a slider food hiding puzzle will push it with her nose a bit... and if it doesnt almost immediately produce the yummiest food ever, she goes to sleep. Shes a Deerhound. :lol:

Another will start out with his nose, if that fails paws, if that fails, chew the heck out of it, if that fails SHOUT AT IT.... if that fails (it does, i dont like listening to it!) ..... pretend he never wanted it in teh first place! Hes a Tibetan Terrier.

Third dog with the same puzzle...... charges in, walloping paws around, slamming it, dragging it, scrabbling at it until he gets his reward. Hes a staffordshire bull terrier x breed type.

Same toy - three different dogs and three different responses! It tells me a lot aboutt hem - the deerhound isnt that food motivated and doesnt see the point, she doesnt enjoy the process of working it out. The Tibetan Terrier is a thinker, hes a determined stubborn little guy who can solve some fairly complex puzzles but if he gets frustrated he resorts to barking at whatever is irritating him. He is ver food driven, but he also enjoys the process of figuring something out and prefers to use his nose first, paws second.

Third dog LOVES figuring stuff out, has almost 0 levels of natural self control and is inclined to use his paws much more than his mouth to get at whatever he wants. He does everything he enjoys at a million miles an hour and the phrase 'bull in a china shop' springs to mind. Hes very food driven but probably enjoys the process more than the food reward.
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cece
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by cece »

My dog is very clever , she's a 2 yr old german shepherd cross lab. we've been playing "101 things with a box" she loves it and gets so excited when she sees me get a cardboard box down from the shelf and has even tried to get it down herself! we then moved the game onto a little wooden stool which within three sessions she was standing and sitting on. it's a great party trick and shows how wonderful clicker training can be.
I was thinking of getting one of those nina ottosson toys for her, but don't know which one, any suggestions?
amzh86
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by amzh86 »

i never thought about pass the parcel, what a great idea, i am so glad i joined this forum, it seems so nice with alot more positive comments and tips rather comments which arent appropriate.
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minkee
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by minkee »

Scout's always really enjoyed her bits-of-kibble-wrapped-up-in-all-sorts packages, tearing into them etc etc. I also used to feed her food out of her rolly ball, which took her a good while. Since we're now feeding raw however (only been a few days so far), I'm not sure what's a good alternative for these sorts of games. I don't fancy chunks of meat being flung around the room! Any good ideas?
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Nettle
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by Nettle »

minkee wrote:Scout's always really enjoyed her bits-of-kibble-wrapped-up-in-all-sorts packages, tearing into them etc etc. I also used to feed her food out of her rolly ball, which took her a good while. Since we're now feeding raw however (only been a few days so far), I'm not sure what's a good alternative for these sorts of games. I don't fancy chunks of meat being flung around the room! Any good ideas?

Buy a small amount of good quality kibble eg Orijen or Taste of the Wild and use that.

Freeze what you aren't going to us immediately and then it stays fresh.

Use cheese, sausage, peanut butter (not the salty sugary kind) bits of cooked liver in among the kibble, so it's like roulette :wink: and sometimes you hit the jackpot....
A dog is never bad or naughty - it is simply being a dog

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minkee
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by minkee »

Ah okay. Using some kibble still will be pretty useful! Didn't know if it was okay or not.

I gave her some broccoli earlier to see if she'd chew it - didn't have incredibly high hopes as to how long it would distract her for, but I'll try anything once. Turned out she thought it was the most amazing new toy, got the zoomies, and basically killed it to pieces all over the house. It was pretty fun to watch but not so much to clean up!
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chewtoy
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by chewtoy »

I tried putting my dog's stuffed toy inside a hinged shoebox but he was getting to it too easily. Then I tried covering the box with a blanket, but it only takes him a minute to get to his toy. Any ideas on how to make it more challenging?
Shepherd103
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by Shepherd103 »

Hi,

Its a good game! My dog loves it!
I also do hide and seek and also some sniffing work ( hiding fruit and vegie's in boxes) When he picks up the smell he sits and looks at the box, then at me!
Persevere, hang on till the end. Don't quit, keep going!
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Fundog
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by Fundog »

chewtoy wrote:I tried putting my dog's stuffed toy inside a hinged shoebox but he was getting to it too easily. Then I tried covering the box with a blanket, but it only takes him a minute to get to his toy. Any ideas on how to make it more challenging?
Nest several boxes inside each other, with the toy inside the very most inside box. Hide the boxes somewhere else-- make sure your dog is not watching you hide it-- place several boxes out, with the toy inside just one box, and the dog has to figure out which box it's in.
If an opportunity comes to you in life, say yes first, even if you don't know how to do it.
Secret Someone
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by Secret Someone »

*squee*

I just gave Pan a complicated stuffed cardboard tube with treats in and it's so cute watching him figure it out and rip it up! Awww. We've done a whole set of mind games today. He's getting quicker each time. :)
bendog
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by bendog »

Help me wear out my pup!

From when she wakes up at 7am until her morning nap at 10.30am she is just non stop!

During this time she gets her morning kibble in a Kong, a 10 minute walk (she's only 14 weeks so has two 10 min walks a day), a bit of training whilst she is playing (recall, sit, high 5, down, roll over etc) and I usually give her either another Kong with peanut butter or a bit of kibble in paper and a toilet roll tube to keep her from begging for my breakfast.

Apart from her Kong has anyone any ideas of things I can give her to chew? She likes plastic bottles/yoghurt pots but can already chew chunks off them, same with squeaky toys, they are chewed up in no time so I'm wary of giving her them when I'm not watching, like if I'm in the shower or something. She doesn't seem interested in chewing the rubber type dog toys, she likes plastic.

She's a terrier and digs at the bed covers, I'll probably get a sand pit when she's bigger, but for now is there any games in the house I can play to satisfy her digging instincts as well?
Fundog
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Re: Exercise the Mind...

Post by Fundog »

Put the plastic bottle inside an old sock that has its mate, then she won't be able to chew bits of plastic off, but it will still make the crinkly sound.

Stack a layer of old towels or blankets on the floor, with a tidbit of food between the layers. She will dig through the stack of towels to find her goodies.
If an opportunity comes to you in life, say yes first, even if you don't know how to do it.
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