Boredom Busters for Dogs: 40 Tail-Wagging Games and Adventures
()
About this ebook
Nikki Moustaki
Nikki Moustaki is the author of twenty-five books on the care and training of exotic birds. She holds an MA in creative writing, poetry, from New York University, an MFA in creative writing, poetry, from Indiana University, and an MFA in creative writing, fiction, from New York University. She has received a National Endowment for the Arts grant in poetry, as well as many other national writing awards. She splits her time between New York City and Miami Beach.
Read more from Nikki Moustaki
Lovebirds: A Guide to Caring for Your Lovebird Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFinches For Dummies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Parrots For Dummies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Conures: A Guide to Caring for Your Conure Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsParakeets For Dummies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boredom Busters for Dogs: 40 Tail-Wagging Games and Adventures Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBoredom Busters for Birds: 40 Fun and Feather-Friendly Toys and Activities Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Boredom Busters for Cats: 40 Whisker-Twitching Games and Adventures Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Boredom Busters for Birds: 40 Fun and Feather-Friendly Toys and Activities Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBoredom Busters for Cats: 40 Whisker-Twitching Games and Adventures Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Wirehaired Pointing Griffon Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGreater Swiss Mountain Dog Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsExtremely Lightweight Guns Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKuvasz Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Boredom Busters for Dogs
Related ebooks
SCAREDY DOG!: UNDERSTANDING AND REHABILITATING YOUR REACTIVE DOG REVISED EDITION Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dog: A Natural History Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5From Birdbrained To Brilliant: Training The Sporting Dog To Be A Great Companion Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsStop Dog Aggression: Everything You Need to Know to Handle Dog Behavioral Problems Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5PLAY WITH YOUR DOG Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fun and Games for a Smarter Dog: 50 Great Brain Games to Engage Your Dog Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIntelligence Games and Mental Exercise for Dogs: Dog activity for home with many dog games and much more! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMIND GAMES FOR DOGS: DOGWISE SOLUTIONS Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHaving Fun with Your Dog Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOUT AND ABOUT WITH YOUR DOG: DOG TO DOG INTERACTIONS ON THE STREET, ON THE TRAILS, AND IN THE DOG PARK Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5WHEN PIGS FLY: TRAINING SUCCESS WITH IMPOSSIBLE DOGS Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5TRAIN TO ADOPT: HUMANE GUIDELINES AND A TRAINING PROGRAM FOR DOGS IN SHELTERS Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPOSITIVE PERSPECTIVES 2: KNOW YOUR DOG TRAIN YOUR DOG Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5NEW KNOWLEDGE OF DOG BEHAVIOR Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5American Pit Bull Terrier Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Secrets Dog Training Methods: Getting Your Dog Trained In a Few Easy Steps Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTake Control, But Don't Lose Control: Help for People With Dogs That Are Excellent Human Trainers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTricks Any Dog Can Do! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCanine Enrichment for the Real World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Guide To Living With & Training A Fearful Dog Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tricks and Games to Teach Your Dog: 75+ Cool Activities to Bring Out Your Dog's Inner Star Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Dog's Fabulous Sense Of Smell: Step by Step Treat Search Tracking Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Possibility Dogs: What a Handful of "Unadoptables" Taught Me About Service, Hope, & Healing Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings25 Games to Keep Your Pooch Active Indoors! A Guide on how to Keep Your Pet Busy and Mentally Stimulated Indoors Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Teaching Dog: Partnering With Dogs for Instruction, Socialization and Demonstration in Your Training Practice Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMental Illness in Dogs: A Guide for Trainers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Dogs For You
Dog Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How Stella Learned to Talk: The Groundbreaking Story of the World's First Talking Dog Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Edward's Menagerie: Dogs: 50 canine crochet patterns Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5BEHAVIOR ADJUSTMENT TRAINING 2.0: NEW PRACTICAL TECHNIQUES FOR FEAR, FRUSTRATION, AND AGGRESSION Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Ultimate Service Dog Training Manual: 100 Tips for Choosing, Raising, Socializing, and Retiring Your Dog Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5DOG LANGUAGE: AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF CANINE BEHAVIOR Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dog Training For Dummies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Puppy Training: Owner's Week-By-Week Training Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSigns From Pets In The Afterlife Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Your Dog Is Your Mirror: The Emotional Capacity of Our Dogs and Ourselves Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Puppies For Dummies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cesar Millan's Short Guide to a Happy Dog: 98 Essential Tips and Techniques Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5How Dogs Learn Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Before and After Getting Your Puppy: The Positive Approach to Raising a Happy, Healthy, and Well-Behaved Dog Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Australian Shepherd Training: Dog Training for Your Australian Shepherd Puppy: Australian Shepherd Training, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow to Teach Quantum Physics to Your Dog Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dog Food Cookbook: 41 Healthy and Easy Recipes for Your Best Friend Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5If My Dogs Were a Pair of Middle-Aged Men Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5ON TALKING TERMS WITH DOGS: CALMING SIGNALS 2ND EDITION Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Canine Body Language: A Photographic Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5100 Ways to Train the Perfect Dog Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Amazing Afterlife of Animals: Messages and Signs From Our Pets on the Other Side Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Goodbye, Friend: Healing Wisdom for Anyone Who Has Ever Lost a Pet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Home Cooking for Your Dog: 75 Holistic Recipes for a Healthier Dog Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Training your Own Service Dog: Complete Guide on How to Train a Reliable and Trustworthy Service Dog Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The Dog Whisperer (2nd Edition): A Compassionate, Nonviolent Approach to Dog Training Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Your Cat: Simple New Secrets to a Longer, Stronger Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5No Ordinary Dog: My Partner from the SEAL Teams to the Bin Laden Raid Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Boredom Busters for Dogs
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Boredom Busters for Dogs - Nikki Moustaki
Enriching Your Dog’s Life
In the mid-1990s, zookeepers at the Central Park Zoo in New York City noticed that their 700-pound male polar bear, Gus, seemed to be coming unhinged. Gus swam back and forth in his small pool day after day, for hours on end, in continuous figure eights. It was obvious to both zoo visitors and zookeepers that something was desperately wrong with the bear. Not knowing how to respond to Gus’s apparent unhappiness, the zoo hired an animal behaviorist to study Gus and try to resolve his problems.
The verdict? Years of life in captivity had turned the poor bear neurotic, which had led him to exhibit obsessive and compulsive behaviors, probably to prevent himself from going out of his fluffy polar bear mind. Quite simply, Gus was in desperate need of something interesting to do.
The animal behaviorist recommended that the zoo implement enrichment activities for Gus and enhance his environment in ways that would stimulate some of his natural tendencies and break his neurotic patterns. Zookeepers installed a polar-bear-entertaining whirlpool and gave Gus interactive toys. They started offering him food in packages he had to open, hid other food around the habitat for him to track down, and froze fish in giant blocks of ice for him to break into. Gus appeared to be thrilled with the new additions to his home and daily life. He stopped his neurotic swimming pattern as he learned to play and forage as he would have in the wild. This is what pet enrichment is all about: keeping an animal active and engaged in his environment by offering him activities to stimulate natural behaviors.
As Gus so aptly demonstrated, lack of enrichment can cause stress, anxiety, and boredom, leading to problems. In your dog, they can include such behaviors as inappropriate elimination, excessive barking, and furniture dismantlement. It’s a recipe for dogsaster that can end with a trip to the local shelter or a classified ad: Take my puppy, please!
Many of these problems can be solved by adding enriching activities to your dog’s life. This book explores some simple ways to provide your dog with stimulating environmental enrichment to keep him happy, healthy, and out of trouble. If enrichment can work for a bored polar bear in the Central Park Zoo, it can certainly work for the