Month: January 2014

When we were teenagers, my sister had a feisty dwarf bunny named Ribbit that lived in her bedroom. She moaned about cleaning his cage, but we both loved his quirky personality, feeding him crunchy leftovers from my mom’s garden, watching him jump and twirl happy airs above the carpet, and laughing when he very seriously rearranged his dishes and toys! Rabbits can make wonderful pets for gentle older children, teenagers, and adults. They are not usually a good choice of a pet for a home with younger children, as many bunnies do not like to be held – and they are so cute the temptation to pick them up can be impossible for kids to resist! Also, they do have sharp teeth and nails that they will use if frightened, being prey animals by heritage. Rabbits are quite fragile structurally and can startle easily, so should only be picked up and be held by a bunny-experienced adult. An accidental drop can break a bunny’s back or neck, a horrible experienced for everyone involved and definitely one you want to avoid at all costs. Some rabbit rescues suggest to wait until your child is 10 years old or older, so they can really understand and respect the basic bunny safety rules, see below.

1-2-3 Bunny Safety Rules for Kids

1. Be considerate! Never pick up your bunny. Bunnies can bite and kick. Only adults should pick up rabbits.

2. Be gentle and patient! Sit on the ground so you are closer to bunny-size. Ask an adult to put the bunny and some bunny food on the floor near you. Hold out your hand so they can smell it first, then softly stroke the top of their head or back. If they like it, they will stay. If they don’t like it, allow them to hop away, and you can try another day.

3. Be quiet! Bunnies are easily frightened. Talk in a quiet voice. Enjoy together time with your bunny by sitting quietly, feeding them food and treats an adult gives you for them, and watching them do fun bunny things like chewing and hopping around. If you’re patient, you might even see them jump for joy!

Ready to adopt a rabbit? See rabbits for adoption near you on Adopt-a-Pet.com at www.adoptapet.com/other-pet-adoption#rabbit

Adopting a horse is a big decision, in more ways than one! I grew up riding and caring for horses, with a big lesson/riding barn on one side of my childhood home, a small two-horse barn where we kept our adopted one-eyed pony on the other side. When I was a teenager, we build a small barn of our own in our backyard. We moved the pony in, along with a friend’s horse after that horse, a 3 year old thoroughbred – not a safe amateur’s horse – bucked him off and broke his back. We got professional help with the horse, and although he still occasionally had impressive bucking fits (my mom called him “opinionated”), he became a well-loved member of our family. Although I learned a lot about horse care, when a friend recently asked me about adopting a horse, I had no idea of the logistics of how to find a good match of a horse to adopt, much less how much one would cost! To help others who are thinking about adopting a horse, I asked a horse expert I trust – my mom – for some commonsense tips to consider before adopting a horse. Here is her horse adopting advice.

BEFORE ADOPTING A HORSE: COMMON SENSE TIPS

DECIDE EXACTLY WHAT YOU EXPECT. In other words, why are you doing this? If you hope to ride and haven’t much experience, take lessons at a local barn to see if it’s something you really love. If you just love horses and want to give a needy one a good home, volunteer first at a local rescue to see what’s involved and read up on horse care (there are 100s of books on the subject!) so you know what’s involved. Even a retiree, cute pony or miniature horse that isn’t being ridden takes lots of time and money! But the payback is enormous. It might take a while, but most domesticated horses learn to appreciate the people who care for them. So the rewards are huge.

GET PROFESSIONAL ADVICE. Adopting a horse is nothing like adopting a smaller animal. In general, it’s not a wise thing to do unless you have professional help (to chose the right candidate) or are a very experienced horse person. The best rescues will give sound advice and help make good matches, so that a beginner will be paired up with a quiet, kind, safe horse. But many aren’t equipped to make this assessment.

IT’S A LONG TERM COMMITMENT. Bringing a horse into your life is a lot like getting married; it’s a major commitment of time (and emotion, too. Horses typically live to be in their mid 20s (ponies often live even longer) and once a horse is “aged,” it’s often hard to find him another home–good retirement places for horses can be hard to find and obviously your checkbook will still take a hit every month.

DO THE MATH. No matter where you live, horse upkeep can be pretty expensive–even when the initial adoption cost is low. Board is just the beginning. Most barns include feed (hay and perhaps grain) and basic care, but there are plenty of other recurring expenses, such as blacksmith and vet upkeep. (Jen’s note: this is such a huge part of keeping a horse, we made a whole separate article on How Much Does it Cost to Keep a Horse, click here!) 

GET A PRE-PURCHASE EXAM. Find the best local vet (if it’s a very reputable rescue, they will suggest theirs; typically a buyer brings in his/her own veterinarian) and talk to them about what you plan to do with the horse before they come out for the exam. Be sure to be there for the visit. Some horses will be sound enough for trail riding only. A basic set of x-rays is a good investment, often uncovering things that will become problematic as the horse ages or is put into regular work.

ABOVE ALL, BE CAUTIOUS! Not only are you making an enormous financial and emotional commitment, for a novice, there are always safety issues to remember.

Once you’ve done all your homework, make sure you do have a professional or very experienced horse person who can help you when problems arise. And once it’s all in place, HAVE FUN!

We are so happy to be able to share with you some more stories from one of the Adopt-a-Pet.com Veterinary Care Fund grant recipients! The Litter Box Kitty Rescue, Inc. is one of 10 grant recipients this month. (You can see all the recipient’s applications here!) In the last few months of last year, our grant program accepted applications from shelters and rescues across the USA and Canada. All of them already take advantage of the services we offer to help their pets get seen and adopted, by listing their pets on the Adopt-a-Pet.com website, and the grants are just one more way we help them help the pets in their care go from sick and injured to healthy and adopted! The Litter Box Kitty Rescue goes to amazing lengths for cats and kittens. Here are the stories they included in their grant application.

 

The Litter Box Kitty Rescue, Inc. writes: “We have multiple kittens who have recuperated through illness; they have done so with lots of eye medication, lots of antibiotics, and lots of TLC.  Meet a few of our rescues!

*Rupert (orange tiger with white sox – pictured above)

Rupert was a mere 4 weeks old when he was dumped at our doorstep.  He was very tiny and very sick.  He had goopy everything and was just plain ‘out-of-energy’.  We took him to the vet and boy did he have anything and everything going on.  His fecal came back positive for 2 different parasites, he had ghiardia,  ropey intestines, and to beat all an upper respiratory infection due to his lowered immune system from all his other medical issues.  As treatment began we noticed a small incline in his health.  His upper respiratory infection did not go away and we were up to see the vet again.  Poor little Rupert had another kind of worm and was dehydrated, and still under weight.  We continued treatment again and noticed his health improving a bit more.  He still didn’t come out of his upper respiratory infection.  The next vet visit showed us that his ghiardia was gone, his worms were gone, but he had manifested  the herpes virus.  We began treatment and his symptoms were still existent.  We returned to the vet three times and treated Rupert with three different remedies.  We finally had a breakthrough and he started gaining weight and playing with the other kittens.  Now, funny story about Rupert.  The first 2 months of his life he was sick, annoyed by the jubilance of the other kittens, and smaller than most of them.  Now he was a strong boy who could finally ‘get down with the boys’.  On the bed one night, as Rupert is taking his first steps to becoming a wild child, he is darting from here to there and pouncing on all that moves; all of a sudden with zero hesitation, he stops, gives a ‘I am very sorry, but I’m having too much fun to stop and do this correctly’ look, and pees a small flood on the covers.  With no regret he bounds to other end of the bed and starts wrestling with another kitten.  I looked at my husband with a bit of disbelief and a bit of triumph- that little Rupert felt better and he couldn’t get enough of it!  Currently he is a tad smaller than most his age, but still gives them a run for their money.  He is smart, affectionate, and does not pee on the bed at all!

*Lydie (tabby)

Lydie came to us at 3 days old.  She was the first to open her eyes and the first to take to a bottle.  As she began to take her steps and play with her siblings another of the kittens became lethargic with bloody diarrhea.  He began coughing and then paralyzed from his neck down.  The emergency vet thought he had pneumonia and was aspirating on fluids.  Upon returning home, early in the morning, we noticed another of the litter mates was exhibiting similar symptoms, we did not make it to the vet before he passed away.  Two days went by and as we thought we had passed our ‘loss’ stage, another of the litter mates began having bloody diarrhea and rapid breathing.  Not too much longer he was gasping for air.  We made our way to the emergency vet with two kittens.  Lydie who was paralyzed in her back legs and her litter mate who was on his way ‘out’.  We were unable to save her brother, who was was diagnosed with Panleukopenia.  Lydie was given extensive medications and began walking once more after small massages.  She gained weight, played with the other kittens, and has grown up right before our eyes.  She is truly our miracle baby and a new member of our family!

*Darla (white w/orange spots)

Darla came to us a bit under the weather.  She was sneezing and had a goopy nose.  We administered antibiotics and it cleared her sneezes up, but we noticed her eye was becoming cloudy.  We made a vet appointment and the diagnoses was not positive for Darla’s eye.  She had the herpes virus and her eye was worse than suspected.  We were sent home with eye drops, pills, and to expect an eye removal surgery in the near future.  We knew we couldn’t let her lose her eye so we washed, picked, and administered drops a bit more frequently than we were told to, prayed and gave lots of kisses.  She was more than happy to let us medicate her and even began giving kisses back.  She made a full recovery with maybe a pin prick of cloudy white in eye.  She is a joyous little cat who is happy go lucky and LOVES to give kisses, too many kisses…A LOT of kisses!

We don’t exactly look forward to more of these cases, but we welcome them because we know we can handle it, with a bit of faith, perseverance, and love we can make each and every one of them feel better!

Thank you to The Litter Box Kitty Rescue, Inc. for these incredible before and after photos and stories, and for all they do helping sick and injured cats and kittens find loving fur-ever homes!

Horses are beautiful, magical creatures! Humans and horses have shared strong bonds for thousands of years. You may have dreamed a long time about owning your own horse, riding through nature, enjoying the thrill of a gallop or a gentle nuzzle of a carrot-seeking nose. Adopting a horse is a wonderful way to make your dream come true, while saving the life of a horse in need at the same time. But hold your horses… before you jump in, there are some important factors to consider. The biggest one may be finances. The reality is that no matter where you live, horse upkeep can be pretty expensive! These tips below were written by an experienced horse person, Donna Warner Coughlin. They describe the various one-time and ongoing costs involved with caring for a horse or pony, so you can create a realistic budget, and be prepared to be able to afford to take care of your new equine friend, before you adopt a horse. Next week, we’ll publish more her commonsense tips for adopting a horse too!

ADOPTING A HORSE – BUDGET ITEMS

ADOPTION COSTS. Adoption fees at a local rescue or shelter can range from $200-2000. Be sure you’re dealing with a not-for-profit, reputable group and then at least you’ll know that money will go straight back into their budget to save another horse, whether from a kill auction (currently there are no slaughter houses in the US, although legislation is pending, but horses are shipped to Canada or Mexico) or possibly a race track, when the horse is no longer able to run or win. The US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has mustang rescues (as do private groups), but mustangs truly require a very experienced owner. The funds might be used for vet care or feed–all good causes.

BOARDING. If you don’t have your own barn, you’ll likely have to pay to board the horse at a local barn. Do the homework for what it would cost in your area: Search out local barns that board horses and be sure to visit them to see if they’re clean, friendly and safe–and make sure the horses there look healthy and well cared for. Ask what is included in the monthly boarding fee. Some smaller, private barns will often take in a few boarders to help defray costs. Be sure to ask about when you’re allowed to be there and any other “rules” or restrictions–such as what equipment/tack you can keep there, where and when you can ride, how much turnout time your horse will have (and where), etc. These are also questions for larger boarding barns.

BARN. Perhaps you’re lucky enough to have your own property where a horse can live.  Horses need shelter. Maybe not a full-fledged barn, but definitely a shed or place where they can get out of the wind, rain/snow or heat of the sun. They need a clean source of water daily that doesn’t freeze. And, perhaps most important, good fencing. You’ll need storage space for hay, grain (rat, mouse and raccoon proof) bedding, blankets, tack and other miscellaneous equipment, too.

COMPANIONSHIP. If you have your own barn, remember that horses are herd animals, so you’ll need to have more than one–though some horses are happy with sheep or goat companions. Perhaps there’s another person who would share the space and the chores, so you won’t have to be there for each feeding.

FEED. Most boarding barns include hay, and basic care like a daily stall cleaning. They may charge extra for grain such as pellets or oats, and of course if you are keeping your horses in your own barn, you’ll have to buy all their hay and feed. If you feed supplements (like minerals and vitamins or over-the-counter remedies for arthritis, etc.) these will be an additional expense. If you have big grassy fields for them to graze in all day every day, those costs can be minimal, but there aren’t many places that have enough year-round grass to avoid this cost all together. Recommended daily hay (or “forage”) allowance is anywhere from 1.5% to 2.5% of a horses body weight, but it depends on the nutrients in the type of hay being fed, the individual horse, and activity level. So a 1300 pound horse not getting any foraged grass might get about 26 pounds of hay a day. A 50-pound bag of pellets might cost $20-$25, and a 50 pound bale of hay might cost $5 and up. Prices vary enormously depending on where you live (and the time of year), so before you adopt a horse, check local feed store prices and/or hay dealers and do the actual math for your budget.

BEDDING. If you keep your horse in a field with a run-in shed, you may not want to use bedding, but horses do appreciate a soft dry spot to lie down. In a barn stall, you’ll need straw, shavings, or sawdust. Shavings can come in bags, and can be stored in a loft or other dry indoor storage space. Bulk bedding is usually delivered by dump truck, so you need a dump-truck accessible storage area that is wind/rain proof, and not too far from your stalls so you or your caretakers can shovel and wheelbarrow it into the stalls.

MANURE REMOVAL. Some communities have dumpsters or brown bins for removing your horses used bedding and manure. Other communities have regulation about if and where you can build a manure pile, how often it has to be hauled away. Both have cost considerations.

TIME AND LABOR. If you do choose to keep your horse at home, it will take you an hour every day or more (if he’s stabled) to care for him. EVERY day, no vacation days for the caretaker! This usually means 2-3 trips to the barn each day–or more. Even horses that are turned out in big fields with plenty of forage and a good water supply should be checked daily. Training and/or riding time is on top of this.

FARRIER. Whether a horse wears shoes or goes barefoot, you’ll need to pay a trimmer or farrier every 6-8 weeks, year ’round. In Southwestern Connecticut, a farrier charges $40 to $50 for a barefoot trim, and a full set of shoes can be up to $300 each visit!

VET. Basic vet costs would include twice a year visits for vaccinations and a brief check-up. Worming schedules vary by how much exposure the horse has had – and will have – to parasites. You do the worming yourself, and your vet can suggest which wormers are appropriate. Call local vets to see what those costs typically run. Few horse owners are lucky enough to only see the vet twice a year–horses are like small kids, accidents waiting to happen, so count on a few other visits. Weekend or emergency calls run more and if surgery is needed, costs can be astronomical. Horse insurance (mortality, loss of use as well as major medical) is also available, but not inexpensive either. A horse dentist should work on your horse’s teeth every 9 to 12 months. And there are smaller expenses like grooming supplies, blankets if you decide they’re necessary, etc.

EQUIPMENT. Equipment can add up, but good quality tack (halter, bridle, saddle, etc.) will last a long time if well cared for. But the basic stuff is only the beginning–visit a local tack shop or check out online saddlery shops to see all the other tempting “accessories.”

Congratulations to the Georgia House Rabbit Society, one of 10 grant recipients this month! One of the wonderful ways Adopt-a-Pet.com helps shelters and rescues get the pets in their ready for adoption is through grants from our Adopt-a-Pet.com Veterinary Care Fund.  At the end of 2013, we opened up the applications and they poured in from shelters and rescues across North America, eager for the funds to be able to help even more pets get the veterinary care they needed to get healthy and adopted. There were more than 900 applications! While of course we wish we could help them all, we are so grateful to our supporters and sponsors for the chance to distribute 10 grants of $1,000 each for the 2013 program. Drumroll please…. the first of the 10 is the Georgia House Rabbit Society!

As part of their grant application, the Georgia House Rabbit Society said, “…providing our buns with the medical care they deserve is expensive. We have excellent members and wonderful community support, but it takes an enormous effort to help save these precious little souls. We never skimp on medical care for any rabbit and with the generosity of grantors like Adopt-a-Pet, we will never have to.

I have attached four before-and-after picture series of some of the toughest warrior bunnies we’ve ever met. All of them faced terrible odds but pulled through and today are healthy, happy and loved. Details below.

Malibu, pictured above: We suspect she was actually set on fire. Her skin was scalded and her fur burned off on a large percentage of her body. Little Mali has been through so much. She was in pain and terrified but she made it! We’re so proud of Malibu and so happy she made her way to us!

 

 

Zazzle: Zazzle was found pregnant and limping with a broken leg in a grocery store parking lot. A compassionate soul brought her to us. With love and fast vet attention, she delivered five healthy baby buns and her leg healed very nicely. She had to wear a little pink cast for a while!

Mayflower: Poor Mayflower was so infested with mites she could not see or hear. Her fur had been slowly eaten away and her eyes and ears had become crusted over. It took some time, but our wonderful vet, Dr. Colby, helped nurse her back to health. Just look what a beautiful rabbit was underneath!

Marshmallow: Snow-white Marshmallow was dumped at a shelter that didn’t have the knowledge or resources to care for rabbits. His genitals were dangerously swollen and inflamed and his eyes were so crusted with mites he was nearly blind. When GHRS became aware of his presence at the shelter (from a photo on the shelter’s Facebook page) on a Saturday night, one of our volunteers tracked down the on-duty animal control officer, convinced him to let her in, and administered First Aid to the bunny. The next morning, he went straight to the vet. Look how lovely he is now!”

Adopt-a-Pet.com is thrilled to be able to help the Georgia House Rabbit Society with a $1,000 grant for veterinary care for their bunnies, so they can continue to heal them and help them find new loving homes. Thank you Georgia House Rabbit Society, for the amazing bunny-saving work that you do!

Giving a dog a bath can be fun – or a challenge! You might not expect it, but even the most untrained dogs will often be really good when you give them a bath. Dogs can understand you’re helping them get clean, and most appreciate it! If you are an experienced dog bather, you might think a whole blog article about how to give a dog a bath is a little silly! But for a dog bath newbie, knowing what to expect and how to prepare for the experience can make it less intimidating the first time, and soon they’ll be an expert dog bath giver too. Here are a few simple steps so your dog washing event is smooth sailing for both you and your pup.

Photo credit: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/8638

Bath location: Decide where you are going to give the bath. If you’re in an apartment or don’t have a yard, it will likely be in your bathtub or shower. Kitchen sinks can work for a very tiny (under 10 pound) dog, if you have a nice flat big kitchen sink, with a faucet you can move totally out of the way. Even if you have a yard, giving a dog a bath with cold water from a hose isn’t much fun for either of you, except on the hottest days. You’re going to likely be getting pretty wet too! But it is often the only option for a dog that is too big for you to pick up if you only have a tub. You can’t expect a big dog to jump into the tub!

Bath supplies:

• Dog brush
• Dog-safe shampoo
• Dog-safe conditioner (optional)
• Towels 
• A shower nozzle (see below), or a plastic bowl or big cup, to scoop up water out of the tub for wetting and rinsing.

Shower nozzle: If you are going to be bathing your dog at home regularly, having a spray nozzle on the end of a hose attached to your faucet, so you can spray your dog with exactly the right temperature water to wet and rinse them, makes bath time so much easier! 

Find a helper: having someone to hold the dog while you bathe them so they don’t jump out of the tub is ideal. If you can’t find a helper, bathe them wearing their harness or leash, so you have more control – you will be bathing them one handed that way though, so it does take a bit longer!

Steps to give your dog a bath in the tub:

1. Brush your dog. If your dog has longer hair, make sure it is tangle-free. Matts will become impossible to brush out once they’ve become wet.

2. Set the shower or tub’s water temperature to warm – not hot. About as warm as you’d have for a human baby.  If you don’t have a nozzle spray, fill the tub up to six inches at most, even for a big dog. More water usually just means more mess! You also don’t want your dog to feel like they have to swim, so have the water level be low enough so it’s not touching their belly when they are standing in it.

3. Make sure you have all your supplies in the bathroom. Bring your dog into the bathroom and close the door. Pick up your dog and put them in the water. Lots of praise telling them how good they are being!

4. Using the spray nozzle or the plastic cup, wet their fur all over. Do not get water in their ears or eyes – just use your wet hands to wet the fur on their ears and face, don’t pour water over their head.

5. Shampoo: Put a tiny amount of dog shampoo in your hand. Starting with less is better, so you don’t have to do too much rinsing! Lather up starting at their tail. You can often push the shampoo foam through their fur so you don’t need to use as much. To clean their ears and face, wipe your barely-soapy hand over the outside of their ears (never inside) and their face avoiding the eyes by a wide margin.

6. Rinse: Thoroughly rinse off all the shampoo using the nozzle spray or scooping water from the bottom of the tub.

7. Dry: Lift them out of the tub, and towel them off. You’re all done, you have a clean dog! Now all you have to do is clean the tub…

What about blow drying? Dogs really don’t like the noise of a blow dryer. But if your dog is older, is a puppy, or otherwise susceptible to getting chilled and your house is cool, you may want to dry them with a hair dryer, set to medium (not hot) and blown from about 2 feet away from their fur while running your hand over the fur at the same time, so you make sure its not getting too warm. You can also engage them in some active play (race around the living room table!) to get their internal body temperature up.

You may have noticed that we don’t have many blog articles here about adopting parrots or other birds. That’s because although I have had decades of experience caring, fostering, and adopting out dogs, cats, rabbits, and other pets in my work with animal shelters and rescues, when it came time to counsel someone about adopting a bird – I would always ask that one of the more bird-experienced staff handle that adoption consultation. Many first-time bird adopters are just like me: they think birds and parrots are beautiful, fascinating creatures, but know almost nothing about what would be involved with adopting and caring for a bird, especially a parrot. Fortunately, there are great bird and parrot experts who can help guide us bird novices through deciding if we are ready to adopt a parrot, cockatoo, canary, or any other bird. Read on for some basic steps to get you ready to adopt a bird!

1. Educate yourself. You can get books about the bird your interested in adopting from your local library, or read articles on bird rescue website. Every type of bird is different, so make sure you read up on the particular needs. Many birds are very social and need lots of attention. Birds do produce dander so are not hypoallergenic. They can be messy and their area will need daily cleaning. See the bottom of this page for links to more great online articles from bird experts too!

2. What kind of bird? If you’re not sure what type of bird you want to adopt yet, go spend time with possibilities, and talk to their foster homes about their personalities and needs. Birds need varied diets, exercise outside their cage, socialization, sufficient daily direct sunlight or full-spectrum lighting, When you think you’ve decided, you might want to start by fostering a bird for a local rescue. That way you can give bird care-taking a try, without making a lifetime commitment. Parrots  can live 50 years or more!

3. Budget for your bird. Just like other pets, bird costs vary – mostly depending on size. Smaller birds eat less so monthly costs are slightly less, while the initial setup costs can be a lot more for bigger birds for a proper cage, carrier, and flight cage or aviary. Birds need vet care from vets that specialize in birds, which can be expensive. See this PDF of How Much Birds Cost from the Companion Parrot Connection.

4. Check with your landlord or HOA to make sure birds are allowed where you live. Parrots, cockatoos, cockatiels and many other types of birds like to talk! They also can be destructive if not properly exercised and entertained – chewing wood is a natural behavior for many birds, and while that can be directed at an appropriate bird wood chew toy, it can also be a window sill or door frame if you’re not careful.

5. Find a bird to adopt! You adopt a parrot by using the Parrot Search on our website, or you can adopt a bird like an African Gray, Canary, Cockatoo, or even a Chicken using our Adopt a Bird search to find all kinds of birds for adoption near you.

More reading:

• Mickaboo Companion Bird Rescue’s Reading Room dozens of articles.
• The Avian Welfare Coalition’s PDF flyer on Keeping Parrots as Pets
• The True Nature of Parrots as Pets
• Chole Sanctuary online library including videos.

You’re a great pet parent. Your pup eats only the healthiest of dog foods, and follows the perfect exercise regimen for his age and energy level. Unfortunately, winter or bad weather any time of year can throw a wrench into your morning jogs or afternoon walk routine. Have you ever spent a snow day stuck indoors with an un-exercised energetic dog? As the “fur mom” of a 1-year-old adopted Boxer mix, I can personally tell you that it’s a bit like spending an afternoon with a sugared-up toddler! I love my pup so much, but when we’re snowed in and he can’t get his daily exercise, he will get into anything and everything, run in circles around my living room, and won’t stop whining. Fortunately for me, and other pet parents of higher energy dogs, you can give your dog a full physical and mental workout indoors with just a few commands and toys. Here are three games you can play indoors with your dog, no matter what mother nature is doing outside. As with any physical activity, both you and your dog should start out slowly with the intensity and duration of any exercise, and build up your strength and stamina slowly over time. 

 

Photo credit: FlyNutAA

Search

Playing search with your dog is a great way to exercise physically and mentally. As your dog becomes more adept at finding, you can increase the difficulty of the game by using harder hiding spots.

1. Name one of your dog’s toys. For this exercise, we’ll call his bunny toy Bunny.

2. Ask your dog to sit and stay. Let him sniff Bunny. Tell him, “This is Bunny”. Walk away a few paces and drop Bunny at your feet. Call your dog and tell him to “Find Bunny.”

3. When your dog runs over and “finds” Bunny, give him a treat and praise.

4. As your dog gets more comfortable finding Bunny, hide the toy out of sight in other rooms in increasingly difficult hiding spots.

Search games can take many forms. You can hide treats around the house for your dog to find. Or train his nose with a modified version of the shell game with kitchen pots.

 

The Statue Game

A great way to burn off excess energy and focus on training is the statue game. The goal of the game is to get your dog wound up and then having her respond immediately to a sit and stay command. So they need to have a good understanding of the sit and stay command first, before trying this game. This teaches her valuable listening skills for situations when she is overly excited.

1. Start dancing or jumping around with your dog to get his or her energy up.

2. Freeze in place and tell your dog to sit and stay.

3. Hold the freeze and give a treat and praise.

4. Repeat!

Any kind of game you play that will get your dog excited and then immediately require her to calm down and perform some of her commands or tricks will be beneficial to you both.

 

Stair Sprints

When your afternoon visit to the dog park isn’t an option, either because the weather is too bad or because you had to spend more time at the pet wash than you anticipated, you can try this tiring game. Ideally you’ll use a second human to help, but you can get a workout yourself going up and down the stairs too!

1. Position one person at the top of a flight of stairs and one at the bottom, each with a stash of treats.

2. Take turns calling your dog to the top and the bottom of the stairs.

3. When your dog gets to you, give a treat.

4. Immediately have your partner call him back to them.

This game will also work in a hallway if you don’t have stairs. Depending on how energetic your dog is this might be a very short game. Don’t forget to build up their endurance over days and weeks, just like if you were starting a new exercise program! Even if your dog is used to going on long walks or jogging with you, stairs work different muscles.

 

When to Stop

As pet owners we need to make it very clear when the game is over, especially when it involves behavior that would be unsafe in other situations. Imagine your dog sprinting on the stairs every time you went upstairs. Keep your playtime voice and mannerisms more playful. When the games are over, stand up straight use a calm tone and say “over” or “done.” It also helps to redirect your dog to his or her water and a special treat like a peanut butter filled toy that will help them transition to a more calm state.

We hope you enjoy these fun indoor games with your dog!

Michelle Rebecca is an aspiring writer, blogger, and new fur mama to a 1-year-old boxer mix rescue. She has a passion for the Internet, and loves how it connects people across the globe. She loves that blogging gives her the opportunity to voice her thoughts and share advice with an unlimited audience.