Dogs have motivations that must be satisfied. This is obvious to anyone who has ever met a dog. They have fundamental needs like eating, drinking, and sleeping, which are typically met if they are cared for by a responsible guardian. However, dogs have their own tools designed to obtain these needs. The most important tool on that list is their nose.
There is a common belief that dogs need to burn off energy, run, go on long walks and chase balls. But have you ever been in a situation where you take your dog on a five-mile hike, only to return home and see them looking at you as if to say, "What now?" Sometimes, the amount of exercise we give them backfires in a few different ways. One issue is that they come to expect that level of exercise, so on days when it isn’t possible, tantrums ensue. Another concern is that some research shows we are overexercising our dogs, leading to joint issues. I'm not saying don't exercise your dog—they need plenty of it. Just don’t rely solely on traveling long distances as your dog’s primary source of enjoyment.
Imagine you had a superpower that others did not, like the ability to fly. But the only time you were allowed to use that superpower was when it was pointless because everything you needed was within arm's reach.
What your dog really wants to do is sniff. They want to use their superpower. Using their nose reduces anxiety, helps ground themselves, and provides more mental enrichment than anything else. In my experience, ten minutes of sniffing a novel environment is worth thirty minutes of walking.
When can you use this? Anytime! Dogs want to use their superpower to discover, track, and scavenge. Let them sniff as long as is appropriate. Obviously you’ve got a life, and when you need to move, do what you need to get them moving like a light pat on the thigh, or a squeak of your squeaker. But if you don’t have anywhere important to be, let them sniff.
There’s more than one way to put them in a relaxed and comfortable state of mind. Another will be covered in my next blog.
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