Wednesday, December 13, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Paw
Prints
Jodi Schneider McNamee
Columnist
Is your dog
bored?
Does your furry friend
sometimes morph into
a Tasmanian devil in
your absence? It’s likely
because he’s lonely and
bored, bored, bored.
You might wonder why
your pooch is bored. He may
have a whole backyard to
himself or he may have five
acres. The problem is that
you aren’t there.
Dogs are pack animals
— they like to be with other
dogs. We separate them from
their mom and the compan-
ionship of their littermates
when they are only 8 weeks
old. If you have only one
dog, you and your family are
the other members of your
dog’s pack. Rover looks to
you for companionship and
attention.
So, if he doesn’t get
enough, it can drive him a
little crazy.
Life can’t be
Bored and lonely. It’s a dog’s life.
PHOTO BY JODI SCHNEIDER MCNAMEE
one long dog-park visit, but
does your dog understand
that? Probably not. The real-
ity is that many dogs stay at
home while their pet parents
are at work during the day.
Rather than whine around the
house complaining there’s
nothing to do, like a bored
kid, your home-alone dog
may be stirring up trouble.
Often, the dogs that have
behavior problems have lots
of energy and nothing to do.
It’s important to know
that your furry family mem-
ber is not doing this out of
spite. Spite is a human trait,
but not a canine one. Your
dog isn’t going to smooch
you goodbye when you head
off to work in the morning,
just to start plotting against
you before your car
leaves the driveway.
When your dog
becomes bored,
his choices to
amuse him-
self
will be different than yours.
Left to their own devices
lonely dogs have been known
to gnaw furniture legs, chew
shoes, shred pillows, bark
excessively, and get into the
trash. It’s dog boredom that
often causes these sorts of
destructive behaviors.
You’re his main source
of entertainment. You deter-
mine when he eats, plays,
and exercises. If you don’t
give him enough to do he’s
going to get bored, and bored
dogs get into trouble.
In other words, you may
have a stay-at-home dog
with no job prospects and too
much time on his paws. And
that can spell trouble if you
don’t find something worth-
while to occupy his time.
To prevent destructive
behaviors, he needs some-
thing that will engage his
doggie senses. You need to
give your furry friend some-
thing more constructive to
do.
Hide the treats game or
scavenger hunt can keep
your dog busy when you’re
gone. Just select some of
Rover’s favorite treats
and hide them in unusual
spots. The more challeng-
ing the hiding place the
longer it will take to find,
which will help him to
better pass the time.
If your dog is a couch
potato and enjoys watching
17
TV, he may enjoy watching
Animal Planet, nature shows,
or some of the new DVDs
that are produced especially
for bored dogs. These videos
include the kinds of things
that dogs might enjoy watch-
ing in real life, such as other
dogs, cats and even squirrels.
Music is another way to
soothe Rover when you’re
gone. And dogs seem to be
more interested in easy lis-
tening or classical tunes than
heavy metal. So, set your
pooch’s favorite music on a
timer to come on intermit-
tently during the day.
A tired dog is not a bored
dog, and the best way to
ensure your pooch isn’t
bored when he’s alone is to
make sure he gets plenty of
exercise when you two are
together. Walk him for an
hour a day or let him play at
a dog park to help burn off
excess energy.
And while many behav-
ioral problems stem from
boredom, the answer isn’t
necessarily just adding in
more physical exercise.
When it comes to mental
stimulation it doesn’t take
much to tire out your dog;
a frozen Kong, full of his
favorite treats, may tire him
out as much as that walk.
A good combination of
physical and mental exercise
is what helps keep your dog
happy and entertained.