Enrichment is vital for your dog's well-being.

• Dogs often become bored and restless at home, leading to destructive and "unwanted behaviors". 
• There are many ways to ensure that dogs receive the enrichment necessary to help them thrive. Enrichment encourages both mental and physical activity and grants dogs a choice over their environment and how they spend their time.
• Enrichment also helps reduce aggression and fear in dogs.
• Enrichment is classified into 5 categories:

1. Social  
2. Cognitive
3. Sensory 
4. Food 
5. Physical 

• 1. Social Enrichment - any interaction between a dog and other living beings can be considered under social enrichment.  This ranges from taking them to a new place or facilitating social interactions within their home.  It is important to ensure that all social interactions are positive and rewarding. Here are examples of social enrichment:
• Going on walks
• Dog parks
• Doggy Day Care
• Play Dates
• Group Training
• Puppy Socialization
• Pet shops
• Dog-friendly restaurants

• 2. Cognitive enrichment provides mental stimulation. Positive reinforcement training promotes thinking, enhances problem-solving behavior, and improves attention duration.  Training and brain games are helpful for older dogs, as they can slow down age-related cognitive decline. 

• 3. Sensory enrichment is achieved through activities that engage the senses. Did you know that 20 minutes of sniffing is equivalent to 1 hour of exercise for a dog?  Sniffing is enriching and calming for dogs.
• Scatter feeding:    Scatter kibble in short grass or astro turf so that dogs can use their sight and sniffing abilities.
• Search: hide tasty treats around the home and garden, encouraging your dog to "search".
• Lucky box:  fill a cardboard box with scrunched-up paper or towels and then scatter their kibble throughout. Let them search through it to find their meal. 
• Go sniff:   Take smelly food and drag a trail of it around the garden. Drop tiny scraps along the way for extra motivation. Place a small portion at the end of the trail as a prize. Take your dog to the start of the trail and encourage them to “go sniff”. 
• Lick mat, Toppl, or Kong:  choose the correct size Kong or Toppl and fill it with various ingredients such as kibble, wet food, dog-safe fruits, vegetables, or yogurt.  Spread soft and tasty treats such as peanut butter, apple sauce, or plain yogurt onto a lick mat. All these items can be frozen once prepared.
• Swiss roll:  Lay down a dish towel and sprinkle dry food over it.  Roll it up, knot it, and let your dog use their problem-solving skills to get to the food. 

• 4. Food enrichment   
• Satisfies your dog’s instinct to forage.
• Slows down eating to aid digestion and reduce bloat.
• Makes meal times more interesting for picky eaters.
• Nervous dogs may prefer a predictable eating routine, i.e. from a bowl. 

• 5. Physical enrichment encourages dogs to stay active and explore physically. It is important for a dog's overall health by helping to prevent obesity and providing an outlet for excess energy. 

 Enrichment is vital for your dog's well-being. The opportunity to express their natural behaviors and experience new things helps alleviate stress and anxiety.