1. Healthy socialization

Most legitimate doggy daycare facilities conduct a temperament testing of dogs before enrolling them. This is important to ensure the safety of everybody involved – the dog being tested, other dogs in the daycare and the expert supervisor. Daycares provide dogs with opportunity to engage in healthy play and socialization with each other.

Most daycares categorize batches based on the size of the dogs because the presence and energy levels of bigger dogs may intimidate smaller ones. 

The environment of a daycare facility is conducive to healthy socialization also because every dog’s need to play or back off from other dogs is taken care of. This is one of the most important aspects of socialization. Dogs also learn the art of setting and communicating boundaries while engaging in play. 

2. Peace of mind for pet parents

Whether their dogs are being tended to and well taken care of is something that is always running on a pet parent’s mind when they are away from their dogs. A good Doggy Daycare facility ensures peace of mind to pet parents by not only caring for the dogs to the best of their ability, but by also providing timely updates to the pet parents about their fur baby. 

Multiple Day care facilities also provide other services like training and boarding that can be availed of along with daycare. This spares the pet parents of the effort of scouting for these services in other places. 

3. Constant supervision by an expert

Doggy Daycare facilities are always supervised by an expert who is trained to read and respond to canine body language. They will be able to immediately tell when a dog is not comfortable in a social setting just by reading their body language and style of play. 

When dogs engage in boisterous play and roughhousing, things may escalate from 0 to 100 in no time. The experts are trained to act quickly and diffuse the situation before things get worse, thereby ensuring the safety of everybody involved. 

Unlike in an unsupervised social setting like dog parks an doff leash play areas, in doggy daycares, behaviours like reactivity, fixation, mounting etc. are not tolerated. 

4. Physical and mental stimulation

Daycares provide a great mix of physical and mental stimulation for dogs. While the dogs get their quota of physical exercise while playing with other dogs, several daycares provide outlets for mental stimulation through canine-friendly games and activities. Furthermore, the experts ensure timely breaks during dog-to-dog play. This prevents overstimulation and hyperactivity while giving ample time to the dogs to calm themselves down. 

5. Builds confidence in shy pups

Several puppies are born with a friendly and outgoing temperament which enables them to make friends and win everyone over wherever they go. On the other hand, some puppies may be a little more reserved and take time to open up. 

Daycares make it a point to accommodate every dog’s unique needs. While the energetic dogs are encouraged to play with each other, shy puppies are given ample space and time to open up and back off if needed. This is crucial to enable shy dogs to come out of their shell faster. Most dogs open up quickly during these play sessions whereas some other dogs may choose to stay aloof the entire time. 

6. Change of pace for the dog

Many dogs are absolutely comfortable staying home in the absence of their pet parents for several hours a day. However, that doesn’t mean that these dogs don’t crave a change of pace. Frequenting the daycare even twice a week can help relieve a ton of pent-up energies in these dogs while making sure they get a fair share of fun and socialization.

Doggy daycares also provide an enriching experience for dogs as they learn to grow comfortable around a wide range of canine personalities. 

7. Great for dogs with separation-led behavioral issues

Dogs that suffer from behavioral issues like separation anxiety and severe isolation distress to the point of hurting themselves do not do very well when left alone, especially for extended periods of time. If group play does not stress these dogs out, daycares are an excellent place to leave them in the absence of their pet parents. 

Not only are they in good company and well taken care of, but they are also getting their required quota of physical and mental stimulation, thereby keeping their anxiety at bay. 

It is important to understand that not all Daycares operate the same way. Make sure that the daycare you finalize on for your dog aligns with your expectations and goals for your dog. Daycares have a wide range of benefits but may also come with its fair share of cons. No matter how enriching or fun a daycare may be, it may not be the best idea to leave your dog there every single day. It may lead to over stimulation and may get your dog used to routine and stimulation level that you may not be able to keep up with in the long run. 

1. Ditch the food bowl

Meals are a huge part of a dog’s life. Some of them live for it! Traditional food bowls make it way too easy for dogs to eat. Furthermore, if food is always readily available to dogs, they are likely to lose respect and value for it.

Consider adopting new and unique ways to feed your dog such as –

• Frozen feeders
• Meals filled in Classic Kong toys
• Scatter feeding
• “Find it” games
• Snuffle mats, etc

These methods of feeding will ensure that your dog is physically and mentally stimulated and getting fed at the same time.

2. Interactive games, toys and puzzles

As much as we’d like it, it is not humanly possible to spend every waking minute of the day with our dogs. But it can be difficult to explain this to our dogs, especially when they are bored and looking for things to do.

Interactive toys like treat dispensers, puzzle toys, Wobblers etc. are a great starting point for teaching your dog the art of self engagement. The also make great companions for dogs inside the crate or the playpen and help in preventing behavioral issues stemming from boredom.

Pet parents have a variety of options available in the market in terms of mental enrichment toys. Several toys come with different levels of difficulty. You can choose your level depending on how well versed your dog is with such puzzles. Make sure to start at an easy level. This will motivate your dog to continue playing with the toy for a longer time.

3. Doggy playdate

If your dog is a social butterfly and enjoys spending time with other dogs, organize a doggy playdate in your house or your backyard. The pre-requisite for organizing a doggy playdate is that all the dogs involved must be comfortable around each other.

Make sure to take a lot of breaks in between and incorporate activities that intermittently encourage the dogs to calm down and focus. This will help you ensure that the dogs are not getting overstimulated and promotes healthy socialization. A playdate done right even for a couple of hours can tire your dog out for the rest of the day.

4. Teach a new trick

Learning tricks is not an essential part of obedience training, but it is a great way to engage your dog in mental and physical enrichment. Even a simple trick like shaking paw or roll over can greatly improve your dog’s cognitive skills and ability to communicate with you.

Trick training is one of the most cost effective, yet best ways to keep a dog engaged indoors. All you need is a bag of your dog’s favorite treats and a little bit of time and willingness from your end to make your dog a social media star! After all, a dog performing tricks in front of the camera never gets old.

5. Long lasting edible chews

Bully sticks, Yak chews, raw meaty bones, collagen sticks are some of the safest, single ingredient chews that are safe and healthy for dogs of all ages and size. The best part about these chews is their ability to last long while cleaning your dog’s teeth!

Make sure to always supervise your dog while they are gnawing on these chews to prevent choking hazards.

6. Teach your dog to help with chores

A dog is known to be a man’s best friend for innumerable reasons; one of the most important ones being their undying willingness to help in whatever way they can. If your dog has a tendency to follow you from room to room and an inclination to be a part of everything you are doing, why not teach them to actually do something to help?

Simple things like putting clothes in the laundry basket, fetching a bottle of water, turning the light switch on and off, closing the door etc are excellent ways to make your dog feel included while making sure they are engaged in productive tasks at home.

7. Toy rotation

Pet parents are not oblivious to the speed at which dogs get bored of their toys; especially the expensive ones! A good idea is to rotate your dog’s toys so that only a handful of toys are available to your dog to play at a given point in time. Once you run out of ideas to engage your dog with the available toys, you can bring the new batch out.

Toy rotation helps retain newness and engagement for a longer time.

8. Do nothing!

Keeping your dog engaged inside the house is important to prevent boredom and destructive behavior; however, is equally crucial to teach your dog to do nothing, especially after they have received ample exercise during the day.

Schedule several minutes of downtime during the day where your dog has to learn to settle down and rest. Doing so helps retain information acquired during the day better, prevent overstimulation and promotes better mental health and well being.

Keeping a dog engaged indoors is all about striking a balance between ample play and rest. Bored dogs get into trouble and accidents. While we have a life apart from them, we are basically their entire lives and they are completely dependent on us for engagement and enrichment. If we do not give them enough outlets to have fun, they will end up creating their own outlets and that is when we end up with chewed up furniture corners and walls.