Paw5 Enriched Life Challenge: Day 4

This is our fourth day of the Paw5 Enriched Life Challenge. Paw5 has challenged dog owners to make their pets' lives even better, through enrichment of all sorts! The company has provided tons of suggestions for activities and projects to keep dogs busy throughout the day. Paw5 makes the Wooly Snuffle Mat, and the Rock N Bowl, two really neat puzzle feeders, but the Enriched Life Challenge focuses on homemade puzzles and DIY toys. I've included my cats in the challenge, because indoor kitties can definitely use enrichment!

Ru

Ru the chihuahua usually stays home while Godzilla, Zip and I go to work. He often hangs out with my mother, and today he got some extra social enrichment when my niece and nephew came to visit. The kids don't have dogs at home, and aren't confident with dogs that are big, loud, or fast. Ru is just their speed, he is tiny, mellow, and respectful of personal space. 

Ru went for a walk around the block with the kids, and my seven-year-old niece had the big responsibility of holding his leash the whole way. When they got home, my four-year-old nephew played tug and fetch with him. It sounds like it was a big day of environmental, sensory, and social enrichment for everyone!

Godzilla

Godzilla worked on her disc catching skills today. She also showed Zip how to run through two poles as a foundation for learning weave poles in agility. I made her a food puzzle out of a takeout container, and it was a totally different shape than any of our store-bought toy! She has been having some back pain recently, so Godzilla also got a nice relaxing massage today.

Zip

Zip isn't very familiar with food puzzles yet, so she was fascinated with kibble poured on an upside down muffin tin. It's food! And it's not in a bowl!

Zip and I also worked more on running through a pair of poles as a foundation for weave pole training. She's not terribly food motivated, so teaching her the early foundations for tricks and agility requires som creativity on my part. 

The Hellions

My cats, James and Solstice, love to eat houseplants. They are eight-year-old littermates, and for the last eight years I have referred to plants as "cat salads" and only successfully grown them inside terrariums. However, a post on the Chirpy Cats blog got my thinking that they could use a little kitty garden of their own. We're pretty tight on space right now, but I decided to start off with a hanging spider plant in the hopes that they would just devour the dangly bits and let the rest of it live.

Placement of things for the cats requires some consideration around here. There's not a lot of floor space, so most cat-specific things are elevated. I'd love to get them some potted plants, but anything in a plastic pot is likely to get knocked down, and anything in a breakable pot is most certainly going to get broken. We can't have nice things. It looks like hanging and wall-mounted plants are going to be our best bet. So far the hanging spider plant seems to be a success, as there was still some plant in reach when they eventually stopped eating it.

Paw5 Enriched Life Challenge Day 3: Beach!

Today is Day 3 of the Enriched Life Challenge, Paw5's challenge to dog owners to make their pets' lives even better! They've given us six categories of enrichment to add to our days, and some neat plans and DIY ideas. This five-day event is all about games, toys, and adventures. I am also including my cats in the challenge, because kitties need enrichment too!

The dogs and I had a big outing today, we visited Petco, the beach, and took Godzilla to the vet. We met up with my friend Liz, did some training in the backyard, and learned that Godzilla has a paradoxical reaction to Valium. Such fun!

Photo by Erin Koski

Ru

Ru doesn't get to go on as many outings as the girls, so I was pleased to be able to bring him along. We stopped at Petco to pick up some more Cats Incredible litter, and Ru got to hang out with one of his favorite people. Ru and Liz are always cold, they both love sweaters and electric heating pads. Liz says Ru is her spirit animal.

Ru and I also worked on his tiny repertoire of tricks. He can sit, sit pretty, stand on his hind legs, and spin in a circle to the left. I've been trying to teach him to circle to the right as well, but he is very, very slow to catch on. We've been at it for about eight months now. Teaching him to spin to the left took about six months.

 Zip

Zip thoroughly enjoyed our pet store visit and trip to the beach. She was also happy to see Liz, who she has only seen a handful of times so far. Zip was all about chasing a ball on the beach, though she did go for a swim.

Though she's not terribly food motivated, Zip will do absolutely anything for a tennis ball or a disc. This makes training slow, thoughtful behaviors a challenge, because she's often so amped up about the toy that she can't really think. I've been working with her on offering behaviors to get me to throw the ball. This evening we worked on front and rear foot targeting on large platforms, and also running between a pair of weave poles. Zip does a whole lot of zooming around, but occasionally she gets a flash of inspiration and actually offers a behavior. Hooray for progress!

Godzilla

Today Godzilla was supposed to get her hips and spine x-rayed. The vet wanted her to be nice and relaxed, so she was prescribed some Valium to be given before the appointment. Today we learned that Valium does not make Godzilla relaxed at all. Instead, it turns her into an uninhibited wrecking ball. The vet staff knew as soon as we walked in the door that Godzilla would not be getting an x-ray today, as she was just as wired and ready for action as ever. 

While the medication did not remotely diminish her drive or enthusiasm, it did make her extremely uncoordinated. She was merrily crashing into furniture and falling off things until confined for her own protection. She stole and shredded an entire bag of treats out of my purse, attempted to steal or shred everything else in reach, and forgot about housetraining briefly. I made her and Zip each an Unstuffaball so they could get their fill of destruction.

The Hellions

James and Solstice got some training enrichment today. They're extremely slow learners, and haven't quite figured out how to move from one newly-installed cat shelf to another. I've been patiently coaxing them along with spoonfuls of canned food, but they'd probably be more motivated if I just put some breakable stuff up there.

Enrichment

Today the dogs all got some environmental and social enrichment on our trip to the beach with Liz. Ru, Zip, James, and Solstice each got some individual training enrichment. Godzilla and Zip had a round of their new favorite destruction toy enrichment. Godzilla...had a very interesting day.

Paw5 Enriched Life Challenge Day 2: The Unstuffaball!

Today is the second day of Paw5's Enriched Life Challenge. Paw5 has challenged dog owners everywhere to make their pets' lives even more awesome through the use of enrichment of all kinds. This five-day challenge comes with some suggested games and schedules to keep dogs happily engaged throughout the day. I love all the plans and ideas, but they are a little difficult to follow for those of us that must leave our pets home during the workday. I am adapting the Enriched Life Challenge to fit my own schedule, and I've included my indoor cats because I think they can benefit too!

We all started the day with a little bit of sensory and environmental enrichment, because it RAINED last night! This is big news here in drought-stricken southern California, we haven't seen rain in nearly nine months. It was really incredible to walk outside to find everything wet, and the rain brings up an amazing range of smells.

Photo by Erin Koski

Ru

Ru got some puzzle toy enrichment today, in the form of a peanut butter stuffed Can Toy just his size, from Soda Pup. Ru doesn't usually go to work on the sheep ranch with me, so I feel he gets significantly less enrichment than my working dogs. He usually stays with my mother during the day though, and today he got some social enrichment with two little boys who come for piano lessons. 

Zip

Today was a big day at the ranch for Zip and I, we moved and sorted a flock of 40 sheep! This was our biggest task so far, and it really wore Zip out. Herding sheep takes a ton of brainpower. Today's task was a giant chunk of sensory, environmental, and training enrichment. Go Zip!

Godzilla

One of the DIY projects Paw5 suggested for the Enriched Life Challenge is called the knotted fabric puzzle, however I have renamed it the Unstuffaball. This homemade toy hits that sweet spot between a pull toy, and just unstuffing a stuffy. For this project you need some fabric that can be cut up, and some sort of ball with holes in it. A Holee Roller is ideal. 

Cut the fabric into strips, tie knots in some of them, and then cram then in the ball. That's all there is

to it. I used some fleece that I had around, cut into strips of varying lengths and thickness. Some I tied big knots in, some got knotted up together, and some I left untied. I cut enough to stuff the ball pretty tightly.

Paw5 suggested adding some treats to make pulling the strips out of the ball more rewarding, but Godzilla thought this toy was amazing without any food required. I think tugging all the fabric out of this ball may have been more fun for her than unstuffing a plush toy.

This toy was much more engaging than our many toys that can be stuffed inside other toys. It really seemed to hit that destuffing sweet spot. Cleanup was also super easy, I just rounded up all the strips, stuffed them back in the ball, and put it away for next time.

Making this toy was incredibly easy, and Godzilla loved it so much that I am now looking for other ball-with-holes toys in order to make more of these. The Unstuffaball provided all the joy of shredding and disemboweling a stuffy, with none of the mess.

Paw5 Enriched Life Challenge Day 1: Playdate!

Paw5's Enriched Life Challenge has begun! We are kicking things off with a playdate and some fun DIY projects. I built some wall shelves for the cats, and we visited some friends for tea and tennis balls. None of these projects was elaborate or time-consuming, but all of them added some major value to everyone's day. Here's what we did:

Playdate!

Ru the chihuahua doesn't get to go with me to as many classes or events as Godzilla and Zip, so a playdate with friends provides him with some much-needed social enrichment. We went to visit my human friend Kim, her dogs Penny and Ernie, and her cats Freya, Hoshi, Martian, Chulla, and Pluto. Kim lives at the top of a mountain, and the chance to run through the woods provides an enormous amount of sensory and environmental enrichment. Ernie, Godzilla, and Zip spent our visit racing wildly after tennis balls, while Ru hung out with Penny and visited with the kitties.

There is so much for the dogs to do at Kim's house! They love to search through the woods for forgotten tennis balls, and splash around in the pond. Since there are no busy roads up there, and the dogs all stick close to me, they get a whole lot of freedom to play and explore. We did a little bit of property maintenance while we were out, and even ran into some neighbors and their three dogs! Kim sent us home with some nice fresh catnip for the Hellions, along with some freshly-picked limes and persimmons. I got some catnip seeds too, so hopefully I can grow my own!

Cat Shelves

Paw5's Enriched Life Challenge is all about making your dog's life even better, but I wanted to include my cats too. Indoor life can get pretty boring, and cats most definitely benefit from enrichment! James and Solstice have had their share of dried catnip before, but today I'm providing them with some sensory enrichment in the form of freshly-picked catnip. This was a totally new experience for all of us, and I was hoping they'd get a bit silly with it. I was slightly disappointed when they both gobbled it down like every other plant they'd ever encountered.

For environmental enrichment, I installed some wall shelves for the Hellions. These provide them with some much-needed vertical space for climbing, jumping, and just hanging out. They have a litterbox station on one side of the room, and a feeding station on a windowsill on the other side. The shelves now link the two areas and allow them to travel from one to the other without ever touching the ground.

The shelves are attached to the walls via various brackets. The smaller ones are mounted with drywall anchors, the largest is screwed directly into the wall studs. I cut up a rubber-backed non-skid rug and used a staple gun to attach it to the shelves for traction. I hung a total of four shelves, and the entire project took less than an hour. My shelves are sort of a hodgepodge of things we had in the garage, but decorative brackets are easy to find and shelves can be purchased or painted to match any decor. 

Enrichment 

On Day 1 of Paw5's Enriched Life Challenge, my dogs had a wonderful outing and playdate that provided all three with social, environmental, and sensory enrichment. My cats got a new sensory experience nibbling/devouring some fresh catnip for the first time. They also got a big new environmental source of enrichment from their new wall shelves. We didn't quite follow any of Paw5's daily plans, but I think we're getting into the spirit of the challenge anyway!

How are you providing enrichment for your pets this week?

Six Different Types of Enrichment

In preparation for Paw5's Enriched Life Challenge on October 17th, we are exploring all the different types of enrichment that can be added to a pet's life. Paw5 has come up with six different categories for dog owners, but I think these can be applied to nearly any pet's environment. The categories are: sensory, feeding, toys/puzzles, environmental, social, and training. There are quite a few products and activities that fit into multiple categories. I'm a big fan of feeding via toys and puzzles, and I love training my dogs to do tricks. I'm using the Enriched Life Challenge to expand into other categories for my dogs and my cats. What sort of things does each category include?

Sensory

Sensory enrichment is basically anything that activates your pet's sense of smell, touch, taste, sight, or sound. Paw5 suggest rolling in the grass and playing in water, as well as dog tv, music developed specifically for dogs, and scent discrimination activities like nose work. For pets that live primarily indoors, a simple trip to the yard can provide a lot of enrichment. 

A wading pool, sandbox, or digging area is a great way to liven up your dog's outdoor area. Adding toys can help motivate them to explore. 

Sensory enrichment for my cats will be a bigger challenge. I use a Ruffwear Webmaster harness to contain them for leashed trips to the yard, but I may also get them some kitty grass and other ct-safe plants to nibble indoors. Maybe they'll enjoy hearing bird sounds on YouTube? I definitely need to add catnip to my shopping list.

Feeding

My favorite form of enrichment! Feeding enrichment can include hiding food around the house, or tossing kibble out of the lawn for the dogs to hunt. It can be a new kind of treat or chew item. Bowls are boring! There are tons of manufactured and homemade options for feeding enrichment for dogs, but what about cats? James and Solstice are currently eating out of a puzzle bowl, but I can probably find some new ways to liven up their dinnertime. I need to come up with a way to tether a Kong in a spot that's out of reach of the dogs.

Toys/Puzzles

Not every puzzle toy involves food! Sure, we have tons of different food puzzles, but my dogs also thoroughly enjoy pull toys. These are toys that can be pulled apart, or have smaller toys pulled out of them. Food can be added, but Godzilla and Zip very much enjoy disassembling toys just for fun. Paw5 has a bunch of ideas and plans for making different puzzles, and I can probably modify at least a few for the cats.

Environmental

Adding something to a pets environment, or taking them into a new environment, is a great way to provide enrichment. Playgrounds for kids can be a lot of fun for your dog, as long as there are no kids there. Watch out for some of the grate-like surfaces though, sometimes toes can get caught. Hiking in a new place, and asking your dog to hop up on rocks or logs can also provide a lot of environmental enrichment. It's also great exercise!

Environmental enrichment for cats can be a little different. I'm not going to take the Hellions hiking, but I do plan to build them some wall shelves to climb around on. Heck, they're pretty thrilled with a paper bag or cardboard box!

Social

Social enrichment can include interacting with other animals, or just humans. Some dogs really love to play with other dogs, others are more selective. Just hanging out in a busy park and getting treats for seeing people may be enough for some dogs. Other dogs thoroughly enjoy a trip to the pet store. It's important to stay in your dog's comfort zone though! Zip really enjoys restaurant patios, while Godzilla finds them scary and stressful. Ru loves to play with other chihuahuas, but finds many bigger dogs intimidating.

Don't forget about cat socialization! It's an area that is often overlooked. Solstice absolutely loves new people, but James spent years hiding from all visitors until we started having people over on a daily basis. Now he is willing to come out and meet new people from time to time. This might sound weird, but try having a night in with friends, play some board games or watch some movies, and let someone else feed and play with your cat.

Training

Training is my favorite thing to do with my dogs, but some days we don't quite squeeze it into our schedule, and Ru often gets left out because he's a bit slow. I'm going to spend some time during the Paw5 Enriched Life Challenge to run Ru through his tiny list of tricks. I'm also going to do some clicker training with my cats, because they are food crazy, if seriously uncoordinated. What will we accomplish in five days? I can't wait to find out!

The Paw5 Enriched Life Challenge!

On October 17th, Sisci Godzilla, Zip, Ru, and I will be taking part in Paw5's Enriched Life Challenge! Enrichment is all providing your dog with experiences that engage their senses in new and different ways. It's easy to follow the same routine every day and find yourself stuck in a rut, but I can pick up a new book or try a new restaurant when I feel my brain cells dying. My dogs don't have that option. They're stuck with me and whatever I decide we're going to do every day.

Playing with a friend!

What is Enrichment?

Enrichment means to add richness, to make something more valuable. Coming from a zoology background, I'm very familiar with the concept of enrichment for captive animals. Zoo animals that do not receive adequate enrichment tend to go a bit stir crazy in confinement. To prevent them from pacing and self-harming, we add new and different things to their environment. This can be as simple as hiding their food around the enclosure, or stuffing it inside bamboo tubes for them to fish out, or dragging in whole tree branches for them to strip the leaves off. Thanks to dedicated and creative zookeepers, enrichment often gets a lot more creative. Have you seen pictures of tigers lounging in cardboard boxes, or elephants stomping on pumpkins? That's enrichment in action!

Enrichment doesn't just mean adding things to an animals environment, though. It can also include social interactions, and visits to new and different places. Australia Zoo (remember the Crocodile Hunter?) has multiple opportunities for guests to interact with their animals, not just because people enjoy it, but because it provides the animals with novel experiences and social interaction. Most zoos also train their most intelligent animals to comply with routine medical procedures, both because it makes caring for them easier, and because training is so good for their brains.

Doing a job!

What Does This Have to Do With My Dog?

Ok, so your dog probably doesn't live in a cage in a zoo, but he still exists in a somewhat limited environment. Is his world is limited to the yard, house, and a walk around the same block every day? Life can even get a little blah Godzilla and Zip, my working stock dogs. We get up in the morning, go to the ranch and work some sheep, chase some squirrels, fetch some tennis balls, come home and eat dinner, and often that's it.

Our dogs are stuck as long as we settle for doing the same thing every day. Enrichment means breaking out of that rut, and adding some things that adding value to their daily activities.

The Enriched Life Challenge

Paw5 is challenging dog owners to commit to daily enrichment for five days. Even though I spend a whole lot of time coming up with new and different things to do with my dogs, it can be tough for me to break out of my comfort zone of toys and treats. Fortunately, Paw5 has come up with six different categories of enrichment, with ideas and activities for each one. They've got a whole menu of sensory, social, and environmental enrichment ideas, and I can't wait to get started!

I think Ru is really going to enjoy the Enriched Life Challenge, he tends to get left behind a lot when I'm doing things with the big dogs. I'm also going to include the Hellions in the challenge, because cats deserve enrichment too. The fun starts on October 17th, want to join us?