11 Brain Games To Improve Your Dog's Happiness And Health

Playtime is a must when you have a dog. While there are some dogs that can sleep around all day or are okay with a short walk, others need much more engagement. For the playful and highly active dogs you need to establish a daily regime of fun activities to do. And not just outdoor exercise.

Dogs are smart and they need the mental simulation of games to stay happy because if not they will be overcome by boredom. They are like little children that always need something to stay entertained before they are all pooped out. But unlike small children, dogs can become destructive and chaotic when they don't get their mind and body exercising. Without daily play time you might find that after coming back home your throw pillows are all over the ground, the doors and walls scratched-up, or your floor is trashed with toys, clothes, or objects. Certain breeds like Huskies, German Shepherds, Poodles and Belgian Malinois become especially restless if they don't get the mental stimulation they need daily.

Playing with them the same game every day might also not be enough. You really need to keep each play session entertaining and different to keep your dog interested! So we decided to ask a professional dog trainer, Robert Thomas (BSc) from Marvelous Dogs, to share his best brain games for dogs. Robert has spent two decades training high energy, working dogs so knows a thing or two about how to keep them happy and healthy! These 11 brain games are fun, easy and will help your dog develop their cognitive abilities.

Posted by kalilacourban

1
Hide and seek:

Yes, you can play hide and seek with your dog. They actually love it as much as children! You can train you dog to find you in another room, and imagine the happiness they will feel when they have found you. For this one you might want to start simple and with the help of another person. In the same room, you can hide somewhere where the dog sees you going, like behind the couch or a table. While you are hiding, the other person is restraining your dog. Then you can call your dog with whatever commend you choose like saying their name or using 'find'. When your dog successfully finds you, reward them with lots of praise and treats. Then you can start moving to other rooms and hiding while out of sight from your dog.

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2
Hot and cold

In this game you help your dog find its missing toy or favorite treat by telling it how 'hot' or 'cold' is. The closer your dog is to the item, the 'hotter' it is and the further away from the item it is, the 'colder' it is. Hide the item when your dog isn't looking and let them roam the room. When they get close to the item, say 'hot' with lots of excitement. As they move away from the item you should use a more neutral tone. This game helps with your dog's listening skills.

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3
Treasure hunt

This game will surely entertain your dog for a while as It searches for treats all over the room that you have hidden! As you hide the treats, make sure your dog is outside of the room. Then bring them in and direct them to the first couple of treats. As your dog gets more advanced, it'll start searching on its own for the treats when it understands that there are more hiding around. You can then make a big celebration when your dog has found them all by playing with its favorite toy.

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4
The cup shuffling game

Become a cup shuffler and make your dog guess under which cup all the treats are under. To make it simple, use three plastic cups. Show your dog that two of them are empty and one of them is hiding all the treats under it. Then start mixing up the cups and random and have your dog guess which cup is hiding the treats. You can teach your dog to nudge one of the cups with their nose or paw to make their choice. Reveal the choice they made. If it's empty, repeat the game. If they guess correctly, then they get the treats!

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5
Choose a hand game

This is a simpler version of the cup game. Instead of cups, use one hand to hide the treats. Take the treats and behind your back shuffle all the treats into one hand. Then show your closed fists to your dog and have them guess which one has the treats. They can again nudge your fists with their nose or paw. Reveal their choice. If empty, play again but if they choose correctly they get the treats.

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6
Go find

This time instead of finding a person or treats, make your dog search for its favorite toy. You can start by having your dog sniff the toy and then hiding it behind something where your dog can see you hiding it. Then have them 'go find' the toy. When they do find it, celebrate their successful search and give them treats. As they become more advanced, you can start asking your dog to find the toy in different rooms.

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7
Teach your dog a task

Now that your dog knows how to find something, maybe assign it a task by funding your keys or getting its leash. But make this task fun! You don't want your dog it's doing chores. Maybe make your dog get all these things for when you're going for a walk. Make the whole process exciting and the walk itself will be the reward. You can also teach it to do other things like turn off the lights in a room. Dogs love to please and they will be happy to do anything for you. And the more challenging the task and the more your dog receives praise, the prouder it will feel about itself and the happier it will be to help you out.

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8
Puzzle toys

Using puzzle toys is a great way to keep your dog distracted while developing their problem solving skills and ability to focus. There are many different kinds of puzzle toys that you can buy for your dog, from boards to balls to plush toys. What all of these have in common is that they all release a treat once your dog figures out how to get to it. Puzzle toys are also good to leave with your dog while you're away so that they have a task to work on and realize that being alone can be fun.

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9
DIY Agility Course:

Lots of active dogs like Border Collies and Australian Shepherds benefit from having their own agility course in the backyard. You might not have anything fancy, especially if you're not training for competition, but you can use things already in your house. You can set up dining chairs outside for your dog to crawl under or weave through, a ladder laying down for your dog to cross over, or small boxes for it to jump over. Doing an agility course not only good for mentally stimulating your dog but it will also physically exercise your dog.

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10
Dog Word Buttons

Recently this has become one of the most popular fun things to do with your dog: teach them how to speak! There is even a study ongoing with 1,2000 people and their dogs to try to understand better our canine buddy's' ability to communicate. People create sound boards with different buttons and each button represents a different. When your dog presses the button, the board can say words like 'out', 'food', 'toy', or 'walk'. Some people have even become very creative and have used buttons that say 'I love you', 'ouch', or 'scared' so the dog can express its emotions. This game allows your dog to communicate with you just how its feeling and what it wants, and helps fortify they bond between you because there is a new understanding between you and your dog. First popularized by Bunny the Sheepadooodle, this game is perfect for really smart dogs that are always looking at you as if they want something to say but don't know how to tell you. Dogs like Sheepadoodles are super smart and they really need something that can work their brains and training your dog to speak will make them use their smarts.

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11
Clean up:

Teaching your dog how to clean up your toys will not only help you keep your living room tidy but it is also a fun challenge for your dog. Once your dog has have had its fun with its toys, you can ask them to put them away and they will think that it is still part of the game. This might take a bit of training but with some patience your dog will understand what you want. You can start gathering its toys one by one and use a command word like 'clean-up'. Then put the toy in the container where it belongs. Encourage your dog to repeat what you do with a toy, and excitedly reward it when it puts the toy away.

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