5 ways to exercise your dog on a rainy day

Rainy day walks aren’t for everyone. In fact, some fussy pups flat out refuse to put a foot over the threshold when it’s wet outside. But that doesn’t stop them from bouncing off the walls.

Dogs can quickly become bored without mental and physical stimulation. But if your pooch is a rainophobe, you need to get creative with exercise indoors. Here are 5 fun ways to exercise your dog on a rainy day.

Find it

‘Find it’ is a brilliant scent work game that will get your dog’s cogs working. You essentially hide treats around your home and your dog has to sniff them down.

If your dog isn’t familiar with the game, ensure you make it easy for them first. Put your dog in a ‘sit’ and ‘stay’ position, then place treats around the room where your dog can easily see them. Then say ‘find it’ and encourage your dog to find the treats.

When they do find them, give them lots of fuss and praise so your dog knows they’re doing a good job. After going a few rounds, you can start hiding the treats in other rooms and areas of your home.

Chasing bubbles

This is as simple as blowing a few bubbles and letting your dog go wild. Most dogs find bubbles fascinating and will have a blast trying to catch them around the room.

Just be sure to use a dog friendly bubble solution so you don’t upset your dog’s tummy. You can find bacon flavoured bubbles online for a tasty treat. Either use a good old-fashioned bubble blowing wand, or fill a bubble machine for twice the fun.

Create a towel roll

A towel roll is a great DIY brain game. This is best prepared in a room away from your dog. You don’t want your pooch sneaking a few treats before it’s ready!

Grab an old towel and lay it flat on the floor. Then sprinkle a handful of treats evenly over the towel. Take one of the shorter ends and roll it up with the treats inside. You’re essentially creating a treat filled log. Your dog will need to use their nose to roll out the towel and find the treats.

If your dog doesn’t know what to do, roll the towel out just a little to expose a couple of treats.

Trick training

Rainy days are the perfect time to teach a new trick or brush up on old skills. If your dog’s basic obedience is a little rusty, use the time to reinforce basic skills like sit, lie down, come and stay.

If you’re feeling bold and brave, introduce more advanced tricks like tidy up, the name game or play dead.

Hide and seek

Playing hide and seek with your dog is as fun as it sounds. Our dogs naturally want to be close to us, and will find it hugely rewarding to seek you out.

It’d be helpful if your dog already knows the ‘wait’ command first. Ask your dog to ‘sit’ and ‘wait’ while you hide in another room. Then call out ‘where am I?’ or ‘find me’ and your dog should come running to find you. Give your dog lots of praise when they do.

If your dog struggles to understand the concept, choose an easy hiding spot close by first.

If you’re in need of a dog walker on those rainy or not-so-rainy-days, check out our dog walking services here.