🐾 Hide and Seek: A Fun Brain Game for Your Dog! 🧠
Looking for a fun way to keep your dog entertained at home? Hide and Seek: When Walk Is Not An Option! is a simple brain game that can provide mental stimulation, encourage natural sniffing behaviour and strengthen the bond between you and your dog. Grab some of the delicious treats we’ve gifted you and get ready to play!
(For weekends only — weekdays are for our dog walks!)
🧠 Hide and Seek: When Walk Is Not An Option!
Mental stimulation can be just as rewarding as physical exercise. Hide and seek encourages your dog to use their nose, think independently and search for something exciting.
Five minutes of sniffing and searching can make a great enrichment activity.
🦴 What You’ll Need
- A few of the gifted treats (or your dog’s favourites)
- A quiet space at home
- Your dog’s curiosity and a playful spirit!
🐶 How to Play
1. Let Them Sniff the Treat First
Hold the treat up and let your dog smell it. Build up a little excitement and let them know a fun game is coming!
“Mmm… what’s that smell?”
2. Ask for a ‘Wait’ or Gently Hold Them
If your dog knows wait or stay, ask them to hold still while you hide the treat.
If they don’t know these cues yet, simply have someone gently hold them or briefly close the door while you hide the treat.
Patience makes the search even more exciting!
3. Hide the Treat
Start easy. Place the treat behind a cushion, under a table or just around the corner.
Once your dog understands the game, gradually make the hiding places more challenging.
Start simple and build up the difficulty.
4. Let the Search Begin!
Give your cue word, such as “Find it!” or “Seek!”, and let your dog start hunting.
Use an enthusiastic voice and encourage them as they search.
Let them use their nose and work it out for themselves.
5. Repeat and Level Up
Once your dog understands the game, try hiding several treats around one room.
You can also make the game more challenging by hiding treats in different rooms or taking the activity outside.
🧠 Why Hide and Seek is Great for Dogs
- Mental enrichment: Encourages natural sniffing and problem-solving.
- Burns energy: Searching uses your dog’s brain and can be surprisingly tiring.
- Builds confidence: Finding the reward gives your dog a sense of achievement.
- Strengthens your bond: Interactive games create positive experiences between you and your dog.
- Provides variety: A simple game can add enrichment to your dog’s routine when a normal walk isn’t possible.
Dogs naturally use their noses to investigate the world around them, so scent-based games are a great way to give them an opportunity to use this natural behaviour. For more information about the importance of sniffing and enrichment, visit Dogs Trust – The Importance of Sniffing.
🐾 Give It a Go!
Hide and Seek: When Walk Is Not An Option! is perfect for rainy days, quiet afternoons or those times when getting outside isn’t possible.
You don’t need expensive toys or complicated equipment — just a few treats, a little space and some time to have fun together.
Let us know how your pup gets on. We’d love to hear about your Hide and Seek adventures!
Happy sniffing!
The DogWalk Team 🐶