All Things Dog Blog

Posted: 01 Nov 2010 09:02 AM PDT

by Carrie Boyko, C.E.B.

Just like us, occasionally our dogs may enjoy a little changeup in the way their dinner is presented. Here's a few ideas that will make dinner a little different, and perhaps even a bit of a mental game. That's good for your pup too:

Play Hide-a-Kibble with Rover's dinner. Choose a contained area where you have a hard floor, to protect from any staining. Measure up your dog's meal and then scatter the chow around and in between all pieces of furniture and other items on the floor. This 'treat for your dog's nose' will make for a fun game of Kibble Hunt. Just to make sure your dog knows what going on, scatter the last few pieces with him watching. Now it's your turn to watch. Grab your camera as your dog enjoys being a hound for a short time, even if he's a Terrier or a Retriever...even a Heinz 57! One final tip. If you have more than one dog, the food may be found more quickly by the bigger dog and your little one may miss much of dinner. Allow your pups to play this game solo, to assure they get to find and eat their own meal.
Tanner's favorite food-finding game is the treat ball. There are a bunch of these on the market, so when you choose one, just be sure to consider its size and weight compared to the size of your dog. A large, heavy treat ball will be difficult and even scary for your toy-sized dog to push with his snout or his paws. That said, "Let the fun begin" by filling the ball with your pup's meal and closing off the area in which you'd like him to play with the toy. Start by dropping the ball on the floor in front of Fido, and then a couple of pieces of kibble just in front of it, as you give the ball a little push. Fido will figure out very quickly where that kibble comes from and start to push the ball. NOTE: This is a terrific way to feed your dog if you have one of those "vacuum-eaters"; you know, the dogs that eat at the speed of light. This is not a healthy habit, so try the treat ball to slow the process down.
Hide and Seek: This game is simpler and again takes only one example to get your pup going. Just drop a mouthful of kibble underneath small items around the house. I like to use toys, rugs, pillows and other light-weight items. Help the dog find one, and off he'll go to seek out other treasures around your home. NOTE: Close doors to rooms you'd prefer he not snuffle through.
Another version of Hide and Seek can be played outdoors in your yard, but only if it is fenced. You don't want a food fight if another dog happens to get wind of the yummies in your yard. NOTE: Don't place handfuls of kibble under bushes, as stubby bush branches could scrape or cut Fido while he's focused on the hunt. Keep it safe!

At the top of this post you viewed a slide show of Tanner playing version #2 with the treat ball. Who can guess how long it took him to empty the ball? The reader with the right answer in a comment below will get a surprise gift.

Want a treat ball for your Fido? We had one of these and it was great!

Be sure to stop in at GoPetFriendly to ready my latest guest post: Preparing Rover to be a Well-Behaved Holiday Visitor, and Fido Friendly, where I offer Healthy After-School Snacks for Kids and Dogs to Share.