Does your dog or puppy get bored of their toys easily? In this post (and video below), I’m going to explain how to get your pup excited about their toys, so you don’t have to keep buying new ones over and over again.
Step 1: make sure you have a variety of toys with different textures
If your pup is OVER their new stuffed toy and goes for the wood on your furniture, it might be because you need to find a toy with a similar texture to a Gorilla Chew.
I like to provide a large variety of toys, whether its rope toys, rubber toys, or silicone toys, to keep things exciting.
Step 2: play with the toys with your pup and SHOW them how to play with the toys
Your dog simply might not understand how to interact with the toy. For example, some does don’t really understand the excitement of a Puzzle Toy because it’s simply too hard. In cases like this, simply make it easier. For example, maybe your Kong is TOO frozen for your pup. First, try putting some Kibble in the Kong to get them excited to interact with it. From there, you can slowly make it more challenging.
Sometimes, your pup may not really understand the point of the toy. In this case, you may need to ignite their prey drive by making the toy “act like prey.” A good game of tug is also a good idea to enhance your pup’s prey drive.
Step 3: rotate toys out.
Rather than constantly leaving ALL your toys out, rotate them out to keep things exciting. I like to keep just ⅓ of the dog toys out, and then rotate the rest out. That way the other toys are extra exciting – even though I didn’t actually BUY anything new.
If you want more dog training tips, be sure to sign up for my free on-demand webinar “The five biggest training mistakes & how to avoid them so you can live a more peaceful life with your pup.”
I also have a free Facebook Group where you can ask questions to like-minded pup parents. I go live in there with training tips every week!