If you are self-isolating or social distancing because of Covid-19 you may have had to cut back on your dog’s daily walks. But there are plenty of fun indoor games to make sure that exercise is still on the agenda.

Hide and Seek

Even your dog can join in this game! While your dog is not in the room, grab one of their favourite dog toys and treats and hide yourself. Call your dog back into the room and wait to be found. Rewarding your dog once they successfully find you should make the game more enjoyable for your pet. Try to strike a good balance when hiding – if it’s too easy, your dog may lose interest and if it’s too hard, they will probably get frustrated.

Hide the Treat

On a similar theme, try hiding your dog’s favourite dog treats while they are out of the room. If you’re worried about weight gain, try a low calorie treat as an alternative. For this game to work, the treat will need to have a strong enough smell or your dog may not even realise that there is a game in progress! To begin with, look to make it fairly easy for the treats to be found before upping the difficulty level as your dog gets more accomplished at finding the goodies.

Tug-of-War

This game incorporates both exercise and training so it will require some groundwork before you get started. Your dog will need to understand that the toy can only be grabbed on command and must be dropped when you say so. Without this prior training, the game can easily become overly aggressive.

Simon Says

Test your dog’s grasp of training commands in a classic game of “Simon Says”. Switch the commands up regularly so that the game doesn’t get too predictable or easy.  For example, ‘Simon says, roll over’ or ‘Simon Says, go fetch’ Reward your dog with treats for every success.

Hurdles

If you have enough space, you can set up a makeshift agility course using rolled-up blankets as obstacles. Walk your dog through the course a few times for them to get used to it and to encourage them to hop over the hurdles. Once you are confident that your dog is used to the idea, go to the other side of the room and prompt them to come to you via the course.

Fetch

If your home has a hallway or an open space, a simple game of fetch can help to burn some calories. Make sure you do this on a carpeted floor to avoid any slips and use soft toys and balls that don’t bounce. The chuckit indoor ball is perfect for this.

Which indoor games do you play with your dog(s)? Let us know in the comments section below!