Rain rain go away, my dog is driving me mad again.

We are coming into the dreaded wet season. Which means days upon days of potential rain and doggy cabin fever. Your beloved pooch will suddenly become possessed by a demon and run around the house or worse still through the house wet and muddy like a bull in a china shop.  The BOM is predicting this summer to be wetter than average.  I thought it might be a good time to share my top tips for exercising dogs indoors and avoiding their self-exercising madness.

1. Sit on the floor with your legs crossed. Make sure there is enough space around you for your dog to run in circles. With a tug toy tease your dog and move the toy around your body. This takes practice at being quick at swapping hands so that you get some speed. Only occasionally let your dog catch it, and change direction occasionally to stop them from getting dizzy. Once you get good at smoothly transitioning the toy between each hand round your body, your dog will soon be huffing and puffing. This is a great one for physically exercising dogs indoors.
2. Teach your dog to seek and find treats that you hide around the house. You need to start very easy with this one, so they learn how the game works. Start by putting your dog in a room with the door closed. Say “hide” as they go into the room. This will make it quicker and easier for you in the future, as they will start to take themselves to the room to hide. Then place a treat at the opening of the door and open the door and say, “find it”. Repeat this and gradually move the treat further away from the door and into trickier hiding spots. Once they know the game you can play a lazy version. Which is where you throw a treat in one direction in the house and while they are retrieving it. Throw a new one somewhere they can’t see and say, “find it”.
3. Teach your dog something new or refresh their manners. Research has found that when a dog uses their brain, it is more tiring for the dog than physical activity. Remember to keep it fun and don’t get frustrated with your dog. If your dog is not getting it, maybe you are making it too difficult.
4. Be prepared for the rainy weather and make sure on the rainy days your dog gets their meals in a treat dispensing toys or frozen in a toy. Remember to mix it up, your dog will get bored if it’s always the same toy. If your dog doesn’t swallow plastic, you can use plastic bottles, pizza boxes or any other safe rubbish. The smell of the left overs will make it extra enriching.
5. Take them on adventures with you. If you are going to the shops or for drives take them in the car with you. Remember it’s not safe to leave them in hot cars.

Of course, you could just get a dog walker. Services like Fur Get Me Not dog walking services in Brisbane South will still walk your dog in the rain. When the weather is particularly bad or you don’t want your dog walked in the rain then they can still do a home visit and exercise your dog indoors and ensure that your dog is physically and mentally exhausted. You can find out more about getting a Brisbane dog walker here.