What are the benefits of play for dogs ?

Play is an important and even essential component of a dog's well-being. It strengthens the owner-dog bond while providing mental and physical activity for our pet. Therefore, it's necessary to find suitable games, but above all to understand the dog's motivations for play. Indeed, why does my dog need to play? What are the signs that show he wants to play? Can he play alone? What behaviors should be adopted or avoided when playing with your dog? And finally, what toys should you choose for your dog?

Why does my dog need to play ?

The dog is a social animal with primary instincts oriented toward hunting and predatory instinct. Play is an activity that allows the dog to perfectly reconcile its hunting instincts with life within the household. Play stimulates the dog's environment, and especially for the puppy, it helps with awakening. Particularly important during the first months of life, play allows the dog to establish a "hierarchy" both in the owner-dog relationship and with other dogs, and to learn to use the primary instincts inherent to its species.

Play thus strengthens the owner-dog complicity and relationship, provides physical and mental activity for the dog, teaches hierarchy and respect, and works on obedience.

What are the signs that show my dog wants to play ?

Several signs indicate that the dog wants or needs to play.

First, an increase in activity around you may indicate that he is demanding attention. He will then try to whine, wag his tail, perk up his ears, get in the way around the house, try to attract your attention by bringing you one of his toys, his stuffed animal, or any other object that might make you think of play.

You can also associate a word with play, for example "wanna play?". Gradually, your dog will associate these words with the action of playing and will respond with a bark or wag his tail when you suggest playing.

In puppies, play is very important; it's one of their main activities after sleep and eating. Play is fundamental for development, learning, and growth.

Given their young age, they won't come directly to ask you to play; you will need to redirect behaviors like chewing or barking into play situations. Offer them chew toys, tug ropes, stuffed animals, noisy toys, etc., to encourage play and expend energy.

He will gradually understand that he can play and will demand it more and more.

Can my dog play alone ?

Play activity is often based on the owner-dog relationship. But it is perfectly possible for a dog to play alone in the absence of its owner.

To do this, choose play objects suitable for this situation where the dog will be autonomous: snuffle mats, stuffing toys like KONG, rolling toys like Pipolino, chew toys... The interest of these toys is to use the dog's greed to encourage him to search and explore his environment for his favorite treats.

These toys often help avoid boredom situations for the dog when you are not home. This will also allow him to develop his intelligence by finding strategies to retrieve his rewards.

What behaviors should be adopted and avoided when playing with my dog ?

Several behaviors should be avoided when playing with the dog. As mentioned earlier, play is an activity that establishes hierarchy and uses hunting instincts. Therefore, it's important to channel the dog and indicate acceptable behaviors.

Additionally, certain gestures can be perceived by the dog as aggressive and encourage attack behaviors. For example, playing with hands should be banned because the dog may confuse play with everyday gestures and try to bite you out of a desire to "play."

Similarly, if you habituate him from a young age to taking the toy out of his mouth, this will facilitate the rest of your relationship throughout life. Especially if the dog is not used to it, be very careful when taking his toy as he might want to protect it and bite you for that reason.

If your dog plays with children, always be present and ensure play happens under your supervision. The dog might unintentionally injure them during play movements.

Likewise, if using tug ropes, avoid these toys with children who have less strength than adults.

From a young age, socialize your puppy and train him so there is a time for play and a time for rest. This will ensure long-term that he doesn't demand play in the middle of your Zoom meeting or family meal, for example!

Also, don't hesitate to use playtime to establish training cues. For example, you can teach him "sit," "down" before throwing the ball in the garden. These training cues will educate and strengthen the bond between you and your dog.

What toys should you choose for your dog ?

Each toy is suited to the desired behaviors. We distinguish:

Indoor games :
These games used inside the house must be suitable for the dog and their indoor use. Among these, there are intelligence and educational games, anti-boredom games, stuffed animals, and others like those for maintaining your companions' teeth. You can also play hide-and-seek, obstacle courses, treat treasure hunts...

There are also connected objects today like automatic kibble dispensers that can occupy your pet when alone at home. Programmable and with good capacity, they can occupy your pet by distributing its food in several small meals.

Intelligence games :
These games aim to exploit dogs' search and hunting instincts through food search. These include snuffle mats, game boards, Pipolino and kibble dispensers, or lick mats.

Anti-boredom games :
As mentioned earlier, these games can be used by the dog when alone while the owner is away. They also exploit hunting and search instincts. These include stuffing toys like KONG, rolling toys like Pipolino, chew toys...

Outdoor games :
Outdoor games mainly aim to expend the dog's energy and ensure regular physical activity. However, don't forget to use outdoor-suitable, relatively resistant objects like balls, frisbees, ropes, water toys...

Balance and coordination games :
Balance and coordination games are often used outdoors. They aim to exploit the animal's physical abilities by stimulating it. Use agility obstacle courses, pools for nice days, automatic ball launchers also exist. Programmable, they allow expending your dog in your absence in the garden.

Finally, different toys exist to expend your dog in various ways. Mixing different types of activities enriches the dog's environment and daily life. Therefore, it's interesting to mix different games and toys daily and, of course, listen to your dog's preferences.

Play is very important for the dog. In addition to exploiting its instincts, play also educates and enriches its environment. By participating in its physical activity, play effectively expends the dog and combines the useful with the pleasant for him and you.

Additionally, it's important to recognize the signs indicating the desire to play and satisfy this need in your pet. However, certain behaviors should be adopted or avoided depending on the game and the bond you want to create with your companion.

Finally, choosing a toy suited to your dog based on its size, age, behavior... and the type of activity you will do is important. Above all, ensure finding an activity and toy that suits both your dog and yourself.