How to Keep an Indoor Dog Active

Exercise is extremely important for your dog, since there are many behavior problems associated with lack of exercise. During the winter months it can be difficult to exercise the indoor dog-but there are still some steps that you can take to keep your dog active even when the cold weather keeps you inside. Here are some of my favorite indoor activities.

Things You'll Need

  • Ball
  • Toys
  • Treats
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Instructions

    • 1

      Playing fetch with a ball or a toy is a great indoor activity. If you have stairs in your house, one of the best ways to exercise your dog is to stand at the top and toss the ball down the stairs. Your dog now runs to the bottom of the stairs, fetches the ball and runs back up the stairs to give it to you. This is an indoor activity that will tire out even the healthiest of dogs.

    • 2

      Tug of war is one of my favorite indoor activities. You can play tug games just about anywhere in the house because it does not require a lot of space. Tug of war is a great game, but it is important for the owner to always win the game.

    • 3

      Recall games not only provide great exercise for your dog, but are also a great way to do some indoor training. One of my favorite recall games is the spring-loaded recall exercise. This is done by having one person hold your dog's collar, while the other person gets your dog excited and runs away. Your dog is now being held back, but wants to run to you because you just got him all excited. Once you run across the kitchen or into the other room, you excitedly call your dog to you. When your dog gets to you, you can praise and give a treat. Repeat the process in the other direction.

    • 4

      Hide-and-seek is also an excellent indoor game. This is a two-person game that starts by holding your dog's collar. The other person gets your dog excited and then runs into another room. They find a place to hide and then you let your dog go find them.

    • 5

      The "Find it" game is a great way to mentally exercise your dog. Find it is taught by holding onto your dog's collar. While you are holding onto your dog's collar, someone else waves a treat in front of your dog's nose. Walking a few feet away, your partner will hide the treat in a location that will be very easy for your dog to find. Once the treat is hidden, you will give your dog the command "Find it." After a few repetitions, your partner will start to make it more and more difficult to find the treat. Within a short period of time your dog will find the treat wherever it was hidden.