Lately I've been seeing a frenzy of dog enrichment toys on social media. While food toys are great (we literally have a separate mini freezer in our house for our food enrichment toys... and for the frozen rats for our snake) a lot of people don't actually know what dog enrichment is or why it is important. Let's take a deep-dive.
What is Dog Enrichment?
Dog enrichment is not just a food puzzle. It’s so much more than that. The idea of animal enrichment started in zoos in the 1970's when Hal Markowitz started to brainstorm how he could make captive animals feel more comfortable so that they were overall happier and healthier. The basic idea was that if the animals were enriched that it would yield better results for breeding and sustainability programs. Hal determined that the best way to give enrichment was to try to replicate as much of the wild environment as possible. So essentially- to take what the animals would do in the wild and try to integrate that into their captive world.
The same ideas can be applied to our own personal animals. And I'm not just talking about dogs here- reptiles, rodents, birds, and really any captive pet can benefit from enrichment. When we are specifically talking about dogs, enrichment entails taking what a dog would need to survive on its own thousands of years ago and try to replicate those needs in the home. Now this doesn't mean we need to grow a forest in our house but rather make sure that all of our dogs basic pillars of enrichment are met each day.
What are the Pillars of Dog Enrichment?
FIRST PILLAR- SENSORY EXPERIENCES
Sensory experiences help your dog activate their primary senses. All of the food-enrichment toys you see on social media fall into the "tasting" category of sensory enrichment. But there are actually other types of sensory enrichment that you can do at home!
Smell- let your dog smell and explore the world on walks, allowing tracking, play scent based games
Sight- programs on tv, open a window
Hearing- playing classical music, playing sounds from tv (birds chirping, wind chimes, etc.)
Feeling- wobble boards, allowing dogs to go over and under objects, walking on odd surfaces
Tasting- Kongs, Toppls, lick mats and other enrichment toys
SECOND PILLAR- AGENCY
Agency is basically a fancy term for giving your dog basic control over some of their environment. Most of our dogs lives are dictated by our decisions- when walks happen, meal times, so on and so forth. This is incredibly boring and predictable for dogs.
Now we don't need to give dogs the ability to make all of the decisions but some simple things can help award your dog with some autonomy. Some examples include- letting them decide where to go on a walk, letting your dog pick a toy to play with, or letting your dog pick which treats to train with.
THIRD PILLAR- SAFETY
In order to thrive all dogs need to perceive that they are safe in their environment. Now I'd also like to point out that there is a HUGE difference in a dog being safe and a dog feeling that they are safe (that could be a whole other blog post), but regardless safety is very important to our canine friends.
If a dog doesn't feel that they are safe they won't be able to relax in their environment. Which means no deep REM sleep and no naps. That's right! Even naps are enrichment for dogs. It's estimated that adult dogs sleep 14 hours each day and it's very important that dogs feel safe in their environment to do so.
On top of this it is also important for dogs to realize that certain perceived threats aren't actually unsafe. This could be certain "scary" sounds around the house like the vacuum cleaner, a neighbor being out in their yard, or even the mailman. It is vital to desensitize our dogs fears to various stimuli to help them perceive they are safe at home.
FOURTH PILLAR- HEALTH
This one likely won't surprise anyone. All animals need to be physically health in order to live enriched lives. Being up to date on vaccines, being at an appropriate weight, and being free of pain are all very important. In addition to vet care it should also be noted that grooming and nail care are also paramount. Dogs with nails that are too long or mats in their fur will experience pain from negligence and will not be able to live their lives to the fullest.
FIFTH PILLAR- LEARNING
We all know that dogs like to learn- but did you know that we should aim to let our dogs learn something new every single day? I'm not just talking about tricks here. Even just allowing your dog to discover something new for the first time can count as learning. This could be sniffing a new bush on the walk, smelling a new smell from a candle in the house, letting them try a new food, and etc. Allowing your dog to learn something new keeps life interesting for them.
What Food Enrichment Toys Should You Buy?
There are tons of products on the market for food enrichment but we certainly have a favorite brand. In the past we religiously used Kongs but we have recently converted to West Paw's Toppl for our primary food enrichment toy. Kongs are great but they are very frustrating to clean and fill. Toppls are the same concept as the Kong but in a much better design. After your dog is done using the Toppl just toss them in the dishwasher and boom you're ready to use it again. If you want a true pro tip remember to use a silicone wine cork stopper to plug the holes on the Toppl while you are filling and freezing.
If your dog is just starting out you can smear some peanut butter or something similar inside the Toppl to help them get the idea. After they know the game you can freeze your Toppl to make them last longer. Another fun fact- you can also take a Small and Large or a Large and Extra Large Toppl and stick them together to make a fun dog puzzle toy!
West Paw also has another toy we love- the Qwizl. This toy is perfect for putting expensive dog treats into (like bully sticks) to make them last longer. We actually use a water bottle ice cube tray and freeze things like bone broth, coconut milk, baby food, and small treats into long cubes. After they are frozen we insert the concoction into the Qwizl and watch our dogs enjoy.
As if you need another reason to look into West Paw products at this point- you might also like to know that their toys are 100% recyclable. The Zogoflex material West Paw uses is zero waste. Once toys are worn out you can send them back to West Paw and they will recycle them into brand new toys. How awesome is that? You can read more about the eco-friendly nature of West Paw toys by clicking here.
Let it be known that we don't only use West Paw toys in our house (although they're 100% our favorite). We also love to use lick mats! Lick mats can be found all over Amazon, Chewy, and pretty much any pet retail store. They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. My personal favorite lick mat is the one linked here on Amazon. I love that these come in different sizes and the hexagons are deep enough to make the mats last a decent amount of time once frozen. If you want a helpful tip for lick mats you can use parchment paper in between the mats to stack them while freezing! This helps to save space so that you don't need to buy a whole extra freezer for your pets (like I did).
Although I despise cleaning them I still use my Kongs about once a week. Kongs are great for dogs who want more of a challenge but keep in mind that before freezing you must place a straw or something similar through the center to make sure that the small top hole is open at all times. Otherwise your dogs tongue can actually become suctioned in the Kong and trapped! I actually use plastic crotchet needles for this and it works great. Just be sure to obviously remove the crochet hooks before giving it to your dog. Straws work as well but be prepared to clean food out of the inside of them (yuck). I plan to eventually ditch Kongs entirely due to the safety issue and the cleaning struggles but in the meantime I will continue using them until I acquire more Toppls.
Need New Ideas for Food Enrichment?
Now that you know what our favorite food enrichment toys are you are probably wondering what on Earth to stuff the toys with. It's easy to get in a rut with food enrichment just like it is with our own daily meals. Here are some dog-friendly food ideas to use with your enrichment toys:
Re-hydrated dog kibble
Canned dog food
Raw dog food
Dog treats
Applesauce
Pumpkin
Peanut Butter
Oatmeal
Greek yogurt
Cheese
Cottage Cheese
Bananas
Apples
Strawberries
Blueberries
Cranberries
Carrots
Broccoli
Bell peppers
Sweet potatoes
Beans (green, pinto, garbanzo)
Cucumbers
Watermelon
Coconut oil
Coconut milk
Rice
Quinoa
Chia seeds
Honey
Eggs
Cooked ground meat
Canned sardines
Salmon packets
Bone broth
Cheez-wiz
Baby food
Bee pollen
How do you think your dog could benefit from enrichment? Or what are some of your favorite enrichment toys? Let me know in the comments below and as always- thanks for reading!
Until next time-
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