{"id":2574,"date":"2017-11-07T05:15:26","date_gmt":"2017-11-06T18:15:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/?p=2574"},"modified":"2018-01-30T17:36:42","modified_gmt":"2018-01-30T06:36:42","slug":"boredom-busters-dogs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/","title":{"rendered":"Boredom Busters for dogs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Imagine being confined within your own home, without ever leaving, only seeing the same few faces day in, day out.<\/strong><\/p>\n

It would start to feel like a prison, you\u2019d start to go a little crazy, you\u2019d certainly get very bored.<\/p>\n

Understandably when this happens to dogs, they try to overcome this boredom, often triggering unwanted behaviours such as digging, barking, destroying furniture, developing anxiety, and the list goes on.<\/p>\n

It is one lucky dog who gets to travel everywhere with their owner, but clearly this can rarely be a reality.<\/p>\n

What can we do in our busy lives to give our dogs the stimulation they deserve?<\/p>\n

The number one activity is take them for a walk, this exercises mind and body. As a bonus it\u2019s good for us too!<\/p>\n

Seeing different sights, smelling different smells, meeting old and new friends is how life was meant to be.<\/p>\n

If you can\u2019t manage a long walk, a quick trip around the block is better than nothing at all.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re headed for a surf check or school drop off, then take your dog for the drive, just to get them out of the house, and who knows, once you\u2019re out, you may find time for that walk.<\/p>\n

Join or organise your own dog walking group, or employ someone to help you out.<\/p>\n

Along with getting out, playing at home activities, keep their bodies and minds active too.<\/p>\n

There is the obvious ball fun (note \u2013 rolling the ball is better than throwing, to prevent injuries), try a big exercise ball they can push or nudge around.<\/p>\n

Why not set up an agility course in the back yard, perhaps a tunnel, a see-saw, or a hula hoop to jump though?<\/p>\n

For mental stimulation why not teach them some tricks, \u201csit and stay\u201d or \u201cshake\u201d; the concentration required from this can be mentally tiring.<\/p>\n

There are loads of tricks to teach, or why not come up with your own unique trick?<\/p>\n

When you can\u2019t be with them, leaving them with an independent activity like a \u201ctreat ball\u201d can help overcome boredom in your absence.<\/p>\n

Toys are great, but rather than leaving the same ones out daily, why not rotate them throughout the week so everyday feels like something new.<\/p>\n

Over summer, try freezing some treats into a container then empty it out before you leave; this can occupy them for hours. Get creative or look online, the ideas are endless.<\/p>\n

Remember your dog needs both mental and physical activity just like us, without this life would be very boring and will likely lead to undesired behaviours.<\/p>\n

We love hearing your new ideas, so please let us know by phoning the Torquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinics on 5261 4137, or jump on our Facebook page \u201cTorquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinics\u201d so we can share them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Imagine being confined within your own home, without ever leaving, only seeing the same few faces day in, day out. It would start to feel like a prison, you\u2019d start to go a little crazy, you\u2019d certainly get very bored. Understandably when this happens to dogs, they try to overcome this boredom, often triggering unwanted […]<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":2575,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-2574","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-living"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBoredom Busters for dogs - Surf Coast Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Boredom Busters for dogs - Surf Coast Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Imagine being confined within your own home, without ever leaving, only seeing the same few faces day in, day out. It would start to feel like a prison, you\u2019d start to go a little crazy, you\u2019d certainly get very bored. Understandably when this happens to dogs, they try to overcome this boredom, often triggering unwanted [...]Read More...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Surf Coast Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-11-06T18:15:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2018-01-30T06:36:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/11\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"322\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"414\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Torquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinic\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Torquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinic\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Torquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinic\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/057657fa221fa250655317129e1ebde4\"},\"headline\":\"Boredom Busters for dogs\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-11-06T18:15:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-01-30T06:36:42+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":478,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Living\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/\",\"name\":\"Boredom Busters for dogs - Surf Coast Times\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-11-06T18:15:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-01-30T06:36:42+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg\",\"width\":322,\"height\":414},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/living\\\/boredom-busters-dogs\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Boredom Busters for dogs\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/\",\"name\":\"Surf Coast Times\",\"description\":\"Free local news\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Surf Coast Times\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2019\\\/08\\\/cropped-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2019\\\/08\\\/cropped-logo.png\",\"width\":350,\"height\":38,\"caption\":\"Surf Coast Times\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/057657fa221fa250655317129e1ebde4\",\"name\":\"Torquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinic\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/surfcoasttimes\\\/author\\\/torquaysurfcoastveterinaryclinic\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Boredom Busters for dogs - Surf Coast Times","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Boredom Busters for dogs - Surf Coast Times","og_description":"Imagine being confined within your own home, without ever leaving, only seeing the same few faces day in, day out. It would start to feel like a prison, you\u2019d start to go a little crazy, you\u2019d certainly get very bored. Understandably when this happens to dogs, they try to overcome this boredom, often triggering unwanted [...]Read More...","og_url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/","og_site_name":"Surf Coast Times","article_published_time":"2017-11-06T18:15:26+00:00","article_modified_time":"2018-01-30T06:36:42+00:00","og_image":[{"width":322,"height":414,"url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/11\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Torquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinic","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Torquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinic","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/"},"author":{"name":"Torquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinic","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#\/schema\/person\/057657fa221fa250655317129e1ebde4"},"headline":"Boredom Busters for dogs","datePublished":"2017-11-06T18:15:26+00:00","dateModified":"2018-01-30T06:36:42+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/"},"wordCount":478,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/11\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg","articleSection":["Living"],"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/","name":"Boredom Busters for dogs - Surf Coast Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/11\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg","datePublished":"2017-11-06T18:15:26+00:00","dateModified":"2018-01-30T06:36:42+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/11\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/11\/Dr-Kate-Gittings.jpg","width":322,"height":414},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/living\/boredom-busters-dogs\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Boredom Busters for dogs"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/","name":"Surf Coast Times","description":"Free local news","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#organization","name":"Surf Coast Times","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/08\/cropped-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/08\/cropped-logo.png","width":350,"height":38,"caption":"Surf Coast Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/#\/schema\/person\/057657fa221fa250655317129e1ebde4","name":"Torquay and Surfcoast Veterinary Clinic","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/author\/torquaysurfcoastveterinaryclinic\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2574","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2574"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2574\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2575"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2574"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2574"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2574"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=2574"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}