Enrichment engages your dog in activities that stimulate them mentally, physically and socially to meet their natural behavioural needs, leaving them happier, calmer and with fewer behaviour problems. Activities for your dog don't need to cost the earth, and the examples in this book use everyday household items to enrich your dog's life through choice, problem solving and breed-specific behaviour outlets. The games range from easy to hard, ensuring that every dog is challenged at their appropriate level, and there are plenty of options depending on how much time you have, making sure that everyone is a winner. This book is about getting everyone involved, whether they have two legs or four, to build and maintain a happy family.
Dr Anna Muir is the founder of Forests & Fetch: Dog Training and Behaviour and was awarded Best Dog Training & Behaviour Expert 2023 by the Welsh Enterprise Awards. She holds a PhD in Zoology, is an assessed and accredited Dog Trainer and Behaviourist with the Institute of Modern Dog Trainers (IMDT), and is a member of the UK Dog Behaviour and Training Charter. Anna is passionate about building communication between dogs and their owners, and uses her scientific background to ensure that her training methods are in line with the latest research in dog behaviour.
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So great it cured my headache and I bought an extra copy for my obedience club library
This book was so enjoyable it cured my headache and I finished it in one night. Wow did this book DELIVER. It’s great. Everything is laid out so simply and neatly. It is exceptionally family-friendly and accessible. After an easily understood introduction to enrichment and breed-specific enrichment it had pages upon pages upon pages of one-page enrichment games. Each page contained an explanation of the game, what kind of dog it would suit best, what you need then some simple easy steps to achieve the game. With photo examples. It’s very straight and to the point, nothing to over complicate or confuse. It was also split up by games based, DIY enrichment, recipes for novel treats (I didn’t know you could make your own Himalayan yak chews!) and some nice easy tricks. I especially enjoyed how the enrichment weighing was tailored for ways for children to interact with their family dogs in a safe way. I don’t even have kids it was just so great to read. There was even a whole chapter specifically about how to apply those games to a family with children or arriving baby. Just really solid content. There were lots and lots of creative ideas within, and then it branched out into more advanced concepts such as when to use enrichment, when not to use enrichment, how it can be used outside of the home. How to modify it for different life stages, different health, and how it can help with behavioural problems. I especially enjoyed the summary chapter of enrichment plans for different types of dogs and situations. Like this book really went out of its way to be super helpful and broad and enlightening on the ways enrichment can help the owners and dogs. I got this book at the library but I ended up buying a copy for myself and a copy for my obedience club. I can’t wait to share some of the one pagers in our obedience club newsletter because I think people will really like what’s in it.
