It isn’t always about feeding your dog, filling their water bowls, taking them for walks or taking them on their scheduled vet visits.
These are all routine duties that a dog’s owner is obliged to perform.
But have you ever thought of adding more joy to your dog’s life?
It’s not always about doing MORE, but rather about doing what proves to be a joy filled and satisfying experience for your pet dog.
We all love our dogs so much, trust me, there are hundreds and thousands of dog parents out there who love their dogs more than anything in the world. There are numerous ways through which you can add bundle of joy to your dog’s life, so that your dog can live his life to the fullest.
How can we achieve that?
By being more mindful and focusing our attention on dog’s experiences, it’s possible to find ways to bring them happiness and that’s not even hard work.
There are many ways to achieve that, let’s discuss some of them below.
1. Let them Chew, Chew, and Chew
Did you know dogs use their mouth and nose to sense and identify different things just like we humans use our hands for this purpose? They sniff, chew, and lick to differentiate between familiar and unfamiliar things. Along with that, chewing is a natural activity for the dogs as it is very important for the development of their teeth. So, you can get them a variety of chewable and other stuff such as durable chew toys, beef hooves, rubber chews, beef kneecaps and ribs, combination toys and much more.
How about adding some more thrill in their chewing habit? Well, you can stuff treats into rubber chews and beef hooves, and your dog will love them. If you want your dog to spend more time chewing his toys, freeze these treats and he’ll spend hours eating them.
2. Play with them
If only your dogs could talk, many of them would confess that play time is the best part of the day.
I can’t emphasize enough how much play can add joy to your dog’s life. Your dog can literally play for hours until he is a less active breed like a Bulldog or a Maltese. Dogs love fun and you won’t see a dog happier at any other time of the day than the play time. Playing brings so much joy to a dog’s life and has a direct impact on a dog’s physical and mental health.
But, what to play with them? Well, you need to find out what type of activities appeal to your dog. You can also consider playing the following games with him and find out what he likes the most.
Tug-of-war: A knotted rope with one end in your hand and the other one in your dog’s jaws, that’s the best game your dog can ever play, why? Because, it involves play, exercise, and chewing, and all of them could be any dog’s dream activities. You can add several rules and treats to make it more interesting for your pooch.
Hide-and-seek: As a dog owner, you must have witnessed your dog sniffing everything around him, and this hide-and-seek game let your dog use his sense of smell. This game is simple and interesting. Take some of your dog’s favorite toys and treats, and hide them on different spots in your dog’s absence, and then call his name and let him first find you and then his treats and toys.
You can find tons of activities and games to play with your dogs that will please him for sure.
3. Explore new Destinations
Like us humans, many dogs like to explore new and unfamiliar places. How about tying your dog with your bike and explore a new hiking trail, a new beach, a splash pad, or a routine walk but to an unfamiliar place. It’s fun for them and they really get excited when they get to visiting new places.
Moreover, you can train them to accompany you in your activities such as if you love skateboarding, teach your dog how to skate and you won’t regret it. Just imagine both of you are exploring new premises on your skateboards. It can be anything, if you are not into skateboarding thing, just leave it and try something else.
4.Exercise them
Did you know that you must walk your dog thrice a day while in the city of Turin, Italy or you may be end up with a $650 fine to pay?
Almost, all the dog breeds need to exercise daily. According to the experts, you must walk or exercise your dog for at least 30 minutes daily or he may develop behavioral problems such as separation anxiety and destructive chewing that is one of the biggest challenges for any dog owner.
So, walk and exercise them, as much as you can. It’s important for their mental and physical health, as well as it helps them to burn their excessive energy. Remember, a tired dog is the happiest dog and he will sleep like a log while a bored dog is the saddest dog.
5. Take them to Pet Bakery
Well, now this is something interesting and worth seeing at least once in your life. Take your dog to a pet bakery and let him sniff and choose his favorite treats. What you get in return are dozens of kisses, hundreds of wags, and thousands of cuddles. Being a dog owner you must be aware that your dog kisses you, cuddles you and wags his tail only when he is joyous and extremely happy.
6. Give him Attention
Remember, dogs always crave your attention. Hence, they are always trying to impress and please you to get your attention. So, even if they are playing with their stuffed toys or watching TV with you on the couch, a cuddle from you, a soft touch, a belly rub and an affectionate praise can really make their day. Or just a lovely gaze for a couple of minutes can really do wonders for your dogs. You must do it often in order to make your dog happy.
7. Add variety to their food
To work on it, you first need to know what foods are safe for dogs and which ones are harmful. Such as, you can’t feed your dogs with caffeine, chocolate and many other things which are safe for us humans. But there are tons of human food items that can be added to their food.
Wondering what you should add to their food? Well, you can add boiled chicken, boiled turkey, cooked rice, mangoes, plain peanut butter, eggs and honey occasionally in their routine diet. Make sure not to overfeed them or they may gain weight which is not at all healthy for them.
8. Master rubbing them
Have you ever seen a dog high? No? Rub your dog’s ears and see the magic. Not only the ears but they also love to have their belly, chest and neck rubbed gently. Some dogs may have different high points so you need to check different points on your dog’s body.
What rubbing does to them? It calms them and they really feel relaxed when rubbed on a certain part of their body. So, the experts suggest that if you feel your dog tensed or hyped, try rubbing his ears or belly gently as it releases his tension, in fact, it works like a tranquilizer.
9. Go Swimming
The dogs are natural swimmers and watching them swim is one of the most joy filled activities for your dog. Swimming fulfills most of their needs either it’s playing, exercising or releasing all their energy. Swimming has a very good impact on their body and overall health such as mental health, muscles and cardio. Swimming eliminates their stress and boredom, and stimulates their minds.
Moreover, swimming is a tough activity that leaves your dog exhausted that helps him get a peaceful sleep. And yes, in summer, it’s really important to keep your dog hydrated, so swimming can do wonders in this regard too.
If your dog can’t swim, purchase a life jacket for him which will allow him to join swimming with you or the fellow dogs. Make sure to take precautions measure while you let your dog into deep waters.
10. Know Your Dog
It’s just you who can understand your dog and his needs. If you don’t have a dog and planning to get one, try to do some research first. For instance, if you are looking for a specific breed, try to research about that specific breed’s habits, behavior, health-related issues, temperament, and training techniques.
The insights will prove to be really helpful in knowing and dealing with your future dog. If you already own a dog, still a little research will prove to be a great help in maintaining your dog and understanding its different mood swings.
Along with this, try to learn about your dog’s body language like when he is uncomfortable, scared, or stressed, so you can ease him accordingly. It not only makes your doggy’s life easier and happy but also helps you to tackle things immediately.
11. Keep him from things he doesn’t like
Different dogs may have different habits. We have witnessed many dogs who loved to spend their time around other dogs and pets in their households, but on the other side, many dogs use to bark or growl on other pets which can lead to some serious problem if not taken care at the right time.
So, the point to tell is that your dog can feel discomfort or get irritated around several things such as a remote-controlled toy of your child, a pet cat, a specific voice such as a doorbell or stereo, a car’s horn or any other strange that you might not be aware of.
So, try to distract your dog from things he doesn’t like or totally avoid them. Or if your dog doesn’t feel comfortable around some other dogs in your neighborhood while on a routine walk, just change the route or consider going to a different area or street.
In short, you need to learn about your dog’s nightmares, likes, and dislikes, and try to get rid of them or avoid them in your dog’s presence.
12. Let your dog sniff
Dogs love to explore new odors and smells. So, while on a walk they stop at every familiar and unfamiliar thing and smell it. In fact, they are born to sniff. So, they sniff humans, garbage, scents, lampposts, trees and even other dogs.
While they sniff people, trees and lampposts, they gather all sorts of information and check whether they are familiar or a stranger. It’s in their blood and they should never be stopped from doing so. So, if you are on a routine walk and your dog is smelling everything, let them do it and do not distract him.
Now an important thing regarding over-sniffing. If your dog sniffs more than normal or smell weird things such as another dog’s ass, although it is quite normal, still you can offer your dog rewards or treats to move him forward and distract him to other things.
13. Groom them regularly
What if you don’t cut your hair for 6 months, or shave your beard for a long time, or don’t file your nails for a couple of months? You’ll feel untidy and uncomfortable for sure. Well, dogs too feel uncomfortable when their coats are not orderly or their nails are not properly filed. So, grooming your dog on a regular basis is necessary for his comfort and overall health. Do not follow fashion and trends in this regards, do what is best for the comfort and health of your dog.
Remember, different dog breeds have different types of coats and hair, so their grooming needs may be different. A little research on the internet or visiting a specialist can really help in this regard. Moreover, many dog breeds are hypoallergenic that doesn’t shed much, so you need to take extra care of that.
So, these were the 13 ways to add more joy and fun to your dog’s life. Following these ways will surely add more joy to your dog’s life.
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