With many countries across he world experiencing long periods of lockdown, people are finding it hard. Not least if you have an energetic Spaniel or two in the house and are limited to the amount of daily exercise that you are allowed to give them.
This is even more difficult if you have a working bred Spaniel, say a Cocker or Springer, who has got more energy than they know what to do with on a normal day, let alone when they can’t spend half the day running around in the counrtyside, or on the beach letting off steam.
Therefore we need to find other ways to keep them busy. Spaniels are highly intelligent dogs and most thrive on playing games, or being given jobs to do. So here are a couple ideas of games that you might like to try to keep your best friend occupied during the tedious spell of lockdown.
Hide and Seek – One game my Springer loves to play is hide and seek. We have a few different things we use for this. His favorites are the retrieving roll and his prey dummy. Both of these items allow put a treat inside. He also likes to use one of his soft toys, although hes normally more focused with the treat toys. The game then works like this:
- Secure the dog in the house so he can’t see us hiding the toy (Rocko does like to cheat if he can).
- Someone then spends 30 seconds or so walking around the garden with the toy.
- Hide the toy.
- Spend another 30 seconds or so walking around the garden to mix up the smells a bit more.
- Go back to the house and tell the dog to “find it”.
- Excited Spaniel charges round the garden sniffing everything in sight to find the toy.
Depending on how new to the game your dog is or the particular breed, you may not need to make the hiding place too difficult or mix the smells up, as you want the dog to find it a fun rewarding game. I find I need to find more complex hiding spots as otherwise Rocko will have it dropped at my feet within 10 seconds of letting him out the door.
Flirt Pole – Another great tool for playing with your dog is a flirt pole, particularly if they have a high prey drive, it is great for getting your dog to exert a lot of energy in a small space. So if you don’t have a lot of room or you are trying to wear your dog out quickly; whilst keeping them focused on you. The flirt pole is basically a long pole with some rope attatched and a toy or rag on the end of the rope.
The idea is you you can move the pole, making the toy move at speed, changing direction and getting the dog to chase it, until he catches it. Then as a reward let him have a little play with it, before asking him to leave it and starting the game again. Using this game your dog can burn off a massive amount of energy in a very short play session.
This is great for conditioning your dog, and to improve impulse control, reduce aggression, manage prey drive, teach your dog to “leave it” or “let go”. It can also help your dog learn to listen better, if you make him wait before chasing it and listening to your verbal cues, both for when to chase it and when to leave it. Using this game regularly will also strengthen the bond between you and your best friend.