Dogs, cats and other pets can get bored just like we do. I struggle not to binge on snacks and bad TV. Keeping our minds and bodies active is important for our health, and environmental enrichment elevates your dog’s physical and emotional health.

When Shadow-Pup feels bored, he terrorizes Karma-Kat. Oh, they love to play together, but he overdoes things and can get too rough when he feels bored. He’ll also demand more attention from his humans. That takes the form of staring and barking at us (READ MY MIND!), or bringing toys to play, or even indulging in zoomies–racing around and around the house l

There are many ways you can add some stimulation into your pet’s world. That doesn’t have to be expensive or time-consuming. Check out these easy and green pet-parent projects you can try this spring.

Boredom is the worst. When I’m bored, I want to snack, usually on high-carb stuff that packs on the poundage. Hey, Cheetos and M&Ms are brain food, right? It’s not just us humans who fall into bad habits, though. Dogs do too. At least we can control what goes in their bowls.

One of the easiest ways to keep your dog blissfully busy is exercise. Shadow-Pup loves games of fetch, and also adores games of wrestle-and-tag with Karma-Kat. Oh, and cats get bored, too. And when Bravo-Dawg was alive, his Big-Ball (water-filled tug toy) brought him joy even after the loss of his leg.

While physical exercise is important for dogs, they also need to keep their brains busy too! Besides, this hot weather means outdoor fun gets limited to early morning hours before we hit triple digits here in Texas. I’ll put together a dog enrichment webinar and booklet in the coming months. Meanwhile, here are my 6 quick tips to enrich your dog’s environment to help them stay mentally and physically active – and out of trouble.