Tips for Big City Living With Your Dog

Living in a large urban environment is how many dogs experience the world, far away from grassy fields and off-lead opportunities.

Every dog, just like us, needs mental stimulation and safe new experiences to enhance their well-being. Activities that suit dogs from your dog's perspective. Here are some dog tips for big city living.

Here are five things you can do today to give your dog freedom.

1. Urban Agility - think parkour: Use the existing urban landscape creatively. Practice navigating park benches, walking around them, jumping on and off, start by encouraging their fore paws up to gather a treat. Weave through bollards or trees, or practise balance on low walls. You could also bring portable agility equipment like collapsible tunnels or weave poles to dog-friendly areas or even your apartment hallway if space allows and the neighbours understand!

   
   

2. Sniff Walks: Instead of rushing past other dogs, arrange controlled, brief greetings with familiar dogs, visit dog parks or organise playdates. More importantly, take your dog on "sniff walks" where the primary goal is to let your dog explore the environment through their nose, their primary sense. Let them to sniff lamp posts, footpaths, and interesting patches of ground for as long as they choose. This provides significant mental stimulation and information gathering.

   
   

3. Trips to explore the next neighbourhood: Introduce your dog to different urban environments. This could be a pet-friendly cafe with outdoor seating and local pet friendly stores, or you could walk through a less crowded neighbourhoods. The new smells, sights, and sounds will be inherently enriching. Keep these outings positive and check in with your dog's body language cues to ensure they are feeling okay, especially if they are sensitive to urban noises and traffic.

   
   

4. Puzzle Toys and Interactive Feeders: A daily opportunity for foraging indoors! Offer puzzle toys that dispense treats or kibble, which need your dog to problem-solve, move them around the house so they are eating in a different spot each day and rotate to keep things interesting. Slow-feeder bowls and scatter feeds can also make mealtimes more interesting and they slow down fast eaters, bonus. Consider D.I.Y puzzle toys using cardboard boxes and toilet paper rolls as well. Check my blog on enrichment feeding.

   
   

5. Scent Work in City Parks: Even small patches of green in the city can become a scent work playground. Bring high-value treats and hide them in the grass, under leaves, or around the base of trees. Encourage your dog to sniff them out. This taps into their natural instincts and provides mental stimulation. You can play these games at home too, starting with easy wins and building difficulty.

Which ever activity you choose, whether its an obstacle course or a sniffy walk, adding them to your dog's daily routine will improve your dog's well-being. Lucky dog!