NOVADog Blog

The dog days of summer are upon us! Here are a few enrichment activities to beat the heat and keep your dogs busy!

Enrichment activities give animals access to practicing natural behaviors. For dogs, things like: digging, foraging, sniffing, marking, chewing and social activities are a great start. Dogs that are don’t receive enough enrichment on a daily basis, are more likely to exhibit stress related behavioral problems. Here are a few activities and tips to enjoy the summer (and beat the heat)!

Water Activities—Splashing and Digging: Kiddie pools or drink tubs can be a great way to give your dog access to experimenting with water, without a trip to the local lake.

Place ice cubes, any toy that floats or even biscuits in the kiddie pool.  Treat filled ice cubes or biscuits will float and for the die-hard foodie, most will dig or bob for treats that fall to the bottom.

Chewing— Food Stuffed Toys: Kongs or hollow bones are great for chewing, but many people overlook one easy thing to make these much more challenging for your average dog: Freeze it!  Stuff the toys with a bit of low fat peanut butter, whipped cream cheese or yogurt or even a mixture of wet kibble if your dog has a food allergy- and you are good to go! They will likely last a good hour or so instead of minutes at a time.

Digging— Many dogs like to dig and if you have a back yard, the summer is an especially tempting time to dig to cool off!

If you are willing to allow your dog to dig, but would like to give them a place to do so, consider a digging pit. You can contain the digging by using a sand box or create a corner of the yard that you fill with sand or dirt. Hide a few treats or toys in this area—and guide your dog to this space (point to the shallow holes that have a special treat), and they will be digging for buried treasure in no time!

Sniffing and Foraging— Ah, almost every dog loves to sniff and forage. By doing so they get to exchange valuable information and may even find a mid-day snack or an appetizer before dinner—hey, it pays to forage!  If you have a sniffer on your hands, consider more scent related enrichment.

How? Try tossing kibble in the back yard or in the house. Allow your dog to sniff, toss a few treats or kibble in close range and say, “find it!” You will be well on your way to having a dog that is trained to trail!

Trailing, chewing, sniffing and digging—enjoy the dog days of summer with your pup!

Leigh Siegfried is the Owner of Opportunity Barks Behavior & Training, specializing in behavior consultations and manners training for puppies and adult dogs, serving Northern Virginia. For more info visit www.opbarks.com or email info@opbarks.com

Here’s a fun event you and your dog won’t want to miss!

Exciting events include: Pet portraits–go home with a complimentary photo! Also face painting and balloon art. Strut your mutt fashion show at 12:50 pm, Trick-for-a-treat, best trick contest, store promotions and give aways.
Event Details:
What: Wags ‘N Whisters
When: Saturday, Aug 29
Where: The Village at Shirlington, in Arlington, VA (corner of S. Randolph St. and Campbell Ave.)
Why: A doggone puur-fect way to spend the day!
More: www.villageatshirlington.com

Pet Airways – Travel For Your Best Friend
Most dogs love to hop in the car and go for a ride! Now they are going to love hopping on a plane and going for a flight!

Pet Airways is a newly launched company that caters strictly to the K9’s flying needs (ok, ok cats are allowed too). Pet Airways’ goal is simple: transport your pets safely and comfortably. That means your pet will travel in the main cabin, not in the cargo hold! The main cabins of their planes are specially designed for pets. It is climate controlled, and securely holds crates of all sizes (from Mastiff to Chihuahua) to ensure your pet is comfortable for the trip. That’s just the basics, though, on to the pampering!

Drop your pet off at the Pet Lounge before the flight, if you don’t have a crate Pet Airways will provide one free of charge. If you need to drop off your pet off especially early you can check your pet into the PAWS Lounge up to 72 hours pre-flight, and Pet Airways will ensure your pet makes his flight. Using the Pet Airways Pet Tracker you can check on the progression of your pet’s flight, and will be notified of any delays.

Potty breaks are taken very seriously at Pet Airways. The time of your pet’s last break is monitored, and though it may slow down the flight a bit, regular potty breaks are taken along the way. In addition, a Pet Attendant monitors and checks on your pet every 15 minutes during the flight, ensuring your pet is safe and comfortable. Upon landing pets are given another potty break, then your pet is available for pick-up at the Pet Lounge.

Pet Airways currently caters to New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles. Visit the Pet Airways website to read the rave reviews and make a reservation.

Rudy’s Friends Dog Training, Inc.

Kids and dogs, they seem like a perfectly suited match, smiling, wagging, running and chasing—best friends for life. Contrary to popular belief this kind of bond doesn’t just magically happen. It takes a little bit of education for the dog and the child to establish a respectful, but fun relationship.

Anne Davis of Rudy’s Friends Dog Training offers many dog training and dog care services, but her primary focus is educating children about dogs. Anne has published two children’s books, Rudy’s Friends and Be Safe with Rudy and His Friends.

Rudy’s Friends teaches children to value the differences in each other through photos of Rudy and his wide assortment of friends; short, tall, long hair, short hair, curly hair, straight hair, black, brown, white, red and gray, Rudy loves all his buddies! Be Safe with Rudy and His Friends instills the importance of being safe around dogs and how easy it is to do. This endearing book uses photos of Rudy and his friends to illustrate the very basic ground rules all children should learn whether they have a dog in their family or not. For the child that is fearful of dogs this book will instill confidence, and for the child that is overly rambunctious with the family dog this book will help lay down the rules of proper behavior with and around the dog.

Anne and Rudy can often be found visiting children at schools spreading the message to children about how to be safe around any dog while still having fun! Anne strongly encourages parents to include children in training the family pet. Visit Rudy’s Friends Dog Training for more details.