As most of you have already noticed, the weather is starting to change. Fall has officially arrived, and the frigid cold of winter might be right around the corner. At Best Friends Dog Walkers, we still provide dog walking and pet sitter services to the area, even when it’s the coldest. Some dogs thrive in the winter months, while some dogs and other pets need the extra protection that comes from staying inside. Therefore it is important to ensure your pets still get adequate exercise. As professional pet sitters with several years of experience, we have come across this issue many times. So we decided to provide some simple ways to exercise your dog indoors.

Make your dog work for treats and food.

One easy way to do this is to take several of your dog’s favorite treats and hide them throughout your home. Not only will you dog benefit from the extra activity, but they will also get tired out from the mental challenge as well.

Stairs can be a great exercise for dogs.

Using the stair climber at the gym for an hour is a butt-kicker for humans, right? Therefore the scaling the stairs at home can help your dog burn a lot of energy. Stairs encourage dogs to use different sets of muscles than they would use while romping around the house as usual. This can be an added benefit of using a pet sitter too. A pet sitter could coordinate this activity in your home, while you are away.

Set up obstacle courses for your dog.

Completing a complex indoor obstacle course is great for your dog because similar to making them work for treats, it causes them to burn physical and mental energy. Try creating hoops to jump through and tunnels to climb out of everyday household items.

Try a few of these tips and see if there are positive effects on your dog’s behavior. If you have any questions about dog walking, pet sitting, or kennel alternatives, please reach out to us at [email protected]