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Dear Daphne: Hot fun in the summertime
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Posted by daphne Wed Jul 19, 2006 12:49:34 PDT
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It’s hot.  Not just any kind of hot, but the kind of hot that makes you weary just thinking about having to go outside.  If you’re lucky enough to be a dog owner during the dog days of summer, you’re bound to be outside for some part of the day.

The problem with hot days like these are twofold.  First, it’s way too hot during most of the day (defined as nearly every moment when there is light in the sky) to take your dog for a walk, let alone a good romp.  The nearby dog park looks like a grassy ghost town these days, even at 7:30 a.m. But, if you have a young, energetic dog they still need to be worked out, regardless of the temperature.  What’s a dog parent to do?

First, try and get them outside before the sun gets too warm.  My guideline for dogs out in the sun is simple: If it’s too hot to stand in the full sun barefoot and in pajamas, then it’s too hot for the dog to spend much time there, too.  So get them out early and try to get a little physical activity.  Once they’ve covered the basics, move them indoors for game time. 

As I mentioned before, proper exercise should include working both the body and the mind, so for a good indoor starter game, try a round of “hide the treat.”  Show your dog a treat that he likes and let him watch you place it under a chair or behind a pillow.  Then give him the command “Find it!” and point in the direction of the hidden treat.  Lavish praise when he locates the treat.  Repeat this sequence a couple more times, until you think he’s got the gist of it.  Then, move him to another room while you hide four or five treats in different areas of the room (or rooms, as the case may be).  Bring him back into the room, give the “Find it!” command, along with finger pointing (if need be), and watch the wheels turn as he finds the hidden treasure.

If you want to involve your kids in dog game time, move up to a good game of hide-and-seek.  Have each child get a dog treat and hide around the house.  Then have them call your dog’s name while they are hiding.  You can also use the command “Find them!” if you like, to help build the excitement.  Each child will give the dog a treat after he’s found them.  The best part of dog hide-and-seek is that the dog is always the one seeking and the kids are always hiding, which is their favorite part, anyway.

Another fun indoor game that can be played by you and your dog is “Ball Rally.”  All you need are three or four balls and a hallway, or other long, open area.  This game is best for dogs who are strongly ball or toy-driven by nature.  The game starts with you holding all of the balls at one end of the hallway/room.  Get your dog’s attention, and roll the first ball down the hall.  Once they’ve grabbed it and are coming back to you, just as they get close, let the second ball go down the hall.  The dog will drop the first ball to go after the second, the second for the third, etc.  You can gather up ball one before he comes back with ball two, ball two while he’s chasing ball three, etc. so there’s a non-stop line of balls being rolled down the hall.  Dogs love the perpetual motion of the game, and you’ll love the fact that the continual action supplied by this game wear out active dogs quickly.

Remember in this heat to make sure your dog always has a supply of fresh, cold water available, and plenty of cool places to lie down and relax once game time ends.

Bow-wow for now,

Daphne

If you have other favorite games you like to play when the weather gets hot, email them to daphne@swvoice.com

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