Things to Do With Your Dog In The Winter
Posted by Kaila Scott on
Keeping your dog exercised and entertained in the warmer months isn’t a problem.
The trouble starts when winter comes around, the temperature drops, and snow, sleet, and rain start to fall! Even if you’re happy going outside in it, some dogs much prefer staying cuddled up in the warm.
Thankfully, there are still plenty of things to do with your dog in the winter to stop them from getting unhappy and overweight. Want to read all about them?
Check out this list of the best winter activities for dogs.
Make Food Fun
Dogs don’t just burn energy by running around in the garden. A mental workout can be equally as tiring! So, when it comes to keeping dogs busy in winter, why not make dinnertime more challenging?
Rather than filling their bowl with food as usual, you could buy a treat-dispensing toy. There are many different models available, but these clever devices all require your dog to solve a problem to release the delicious treats from inside.
Play Hide-and-Seek
Can’t face going out in the cold? Well, another of the best things to do with your dog in the winter is the classic game of hide-and-seek.
At dinner time, you could put their food bowl somewhere new and encourage them to find it. Alternatively, set up a doggy treasure hunt by placing treats in different parts of the house. Another fun option is to throw a treat out of the room you’re in, hide, and then get your pooch to find you!
Fetch and Stair Climbs
If you’re lucky enough to have a long hallway and/or a staircase, then you’ve got another awesome outlet for keeping dogs busy in winter.
Simply bring the fun inside! Play fetch with them down the hall or get them to chase you up and down the stairs (carefully, of course!). Or vice versa! Getting them to fetch toys from upstairs and chasing them down the hall is sure to wear them out.
Embrace the Winter
Assuming they don’t mind the frigid weather, things to do with your dog in the winter don’t get much better than embracing the icy wonderland outside! Go for walks, hikes (along pet-friendly trails), jump around in the snow in your yard, build snowmen together, and play catch with snowballs.
These sorts of winter activities for dogs are fun for everyone and, better still, soon warm you up! Depending on your dog and the weather conditions, you might just want to wrap them up in a coat and go on shorter walks than usual to prevent them from getting too chilly.
Teach Tricks
If you’re still searching for things to do with your dog in the winter, then consider using the inclement conditions as an excuse to train your dog!
If they’re yet to master the basics (sit, lie down, stay…), then this is the best place to start. Once you’ve mastered those, then move on to more advanced tricks like high-5, spinning around, and playing dead. Trust us, the combination of mental and physical exercise involved in dog training makes it a powerful way to tire them out.
Things to Do With Your Dog in the Winter
When the usual walks are off the cards and the weather outside is frightful (as the classic Christmas song goes), finding things to do with your dog in the winter can seem challenging- especially for new owners.
Thankfully, there’s no shortage of winter activities for dogs! Give these ones a try and you’re guaranteed to have a happier, healthier pet pooch this winter.
