Can an old dog learn new tricks? Tips for keeping your senior mental healthy. Howell, MI

Can an old dog learn new tricks?

Of course they can! Mental stimulation is a great way to keep senior dogs active when higher impact activities may be difficult or uncomfortable for them.

What mental activities can I do with my senior dog? 

 'Place' is a great way to give dogs low impact mental stimulation. They just have to maintain self control by not leaving what you have them place on. Place is a great exercise since you can make it varying degrees of difficulty by using an elevated dog bed or other safe platform.

Nose work is also a great way to keep dogs busy and not put a lot of stress on joints! An easy, fun variation of nose work is to simply teach them to find a treat or toy. You can hide things in various places around the house or in objects and have them find the object the reward is in. 

Easy tricks like, 'speak', 'shake', 'hide', 'back up' and 'bow' are usually manageable for most senior dogs as well. They don't ever lose their eagerness to learn and engage with their people! 

What low impact activities are good for my senior dog?

Swimming is a great way to exercise your dog. It's a great low impact activity to work their whole body and have fun! Taking a nice structured walk with your dog in a heel position ignoring distractions is also another great mental and physical activity that isn't too strenuous. Just make sure it's not too hot or too cold before heading out for too long. 

If you have more questions about keeping your senior dog mentally fit, please give us a call at 248-733-3776 or email at info@einsteindogtraining.com!