Ways to Stimulate a Dog's Mind

If your dog displays behavioral problems or seems lazy, disinterested or depressed, the problem might be boredom. The solution is to ramp up stimulation of your dog's mind. A happy, alert and active dog is a dog with an owner who exercises its brain as much as its body. By working with your dog's instincts to engage his senses, you'll maximize his ability to learn and make it easier for him to relax at times when high activity is inappropriate.

  1. Smell

    • A game of hide-and-seek takes advantage of your dog's instinct for tracking while stimulating his mind by engaging his sense of smell. Canine behavioral expert Cesar Millan recommends rubbing your dog's food or treats along an "obstacle course" you create in your home or yard. Hide the prize in a difficult-to-find place at the end of the course. Millan notes that this game boosts dogs' confidence by encouraging them to solve problems. Frequent games of fetch exercise your dog's body and mind, too, as he uses his sense of smell to chase down the objects you toss out.

    Hearing

    • Clicker training engages your dog's sense of hearing in a way that's both fun and productive, as it's a legitimate, positive-reinforcement training technique that dogs enjoy as if it were a game. The clicker is a device that makes a popping sound. You click each time your dog obeys a command, and then reward her with a treat. She will eventually associate the click with a treat and respond to the click as if it were a reward. Clicker training takes just a few minutes of work two or three times a day. Talking to your dog also stimulates using sound, as does playing music or natural sounds on TV or the stereo.

    Sight

    • Give your dog new things to look at by changing his surroundings to keep his time outside from becoming too routine. Change the route you take while walking him, for example, or take him in the car with you when you run errands. Use common sense when it comes to leaving him in the car, however, especially in warm weather. Leaving your dog outside, assuming that getting out of the house is change enough, is inadequate, since dogs' social nature means that your pet will get the most out of the experience if you're there to enjoy it with him.

    Taste

    • A "kong" is snowman-shaped toy that you fill with food and give your dog at mealtime. If she's on a regular feeding schedule, she'll work like crazy to get the food out of the small openings at either end. Really flex your dog's taste buds by layering a variety of foods inside the kong and plugging the openings with biscuits or peanut butter. You can also stimulate your dog's mind through her sense of taste by mixing in bits of healthy treats with her dog food.

    Touch

    • Dogs experience touch primarily with their mouths, so give your dog toys that have a variety of textures he can enjoy as he chews. A heavy towel, a rope toy -- preferably one with knots or fringe -- and even a knobby stick while you're outside stimulate your dog's mind by engaging her sense of touch.