Bored? …Your Pets Have The Answer

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Written By Abbi Colborn

I don’t know about you, but I am increasingly fed up with spending time on the internet. At the end of the day I close my laptop, feeling numb instead of satiated. Call it doom scrolling, binge watching, or a screen addiction, we all get stuck in an online feedback loop sometimes.

It’s always my cat, Juliet, who pulls me out of that numbness. Pets are a great way to unplug from the internet. Play is an essential part of life, for humans and their fur babies, it has many health benefits and improves quality of life for all. Here’s some fun activities to try with your pets!

Enrichment

A leopard bites into a grey plastic bin. The bin has several bite marks and missing pieces, indicating it's been a toy for this big cat for a while now.

In the animal care world, enrichment refers to providing a psychologically stimulating environment for your animal. There’s lots of products to help you do this, we’ll recommend some of our favorites. However, you can utilize boxes, paper bags, all sorts of materials as toys for pets.

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The Basics:

A dog on its back in the grass opens in mouth, the rope chew toy the pup was previously holding drapes itself against their sternum. Frayed ends swish into the pup's open mouth, the dog's expression is wild with excitement.

There’s different types of enrichment: Social, Cognitive, Physical Habitat, and Sensory are the main 4 categories. While trying out different enrichment techniques for your pets, you might learn a thing or two about yourself along the way. Here’s some examples of each category:

Social

Letting your dog say hi to another dog or person provides enrichment because it is an introduction of new stimuli, and the stimulus is another living thing. Social interaction is healthy for dogs, cats, and people! Know your pet, though, some animals are less social than others.

Cognitive

This type of enrichment involves novelty and challenging the animal to think through something they normally do not. Examples include puzzle feeders, training, and toys. Introducing a new scent, item, or activity encourages investigation and curiosity, thus enriching you and your animals life.

Physical Habitat

Beds, cat trees, shelves, these are all additions to your home that your animals will love! Giving your animal a safe place to retreat to gives them a sense of comfort. Consider frequent behaviors you notice your animal doing, and adapt their habitat to their individual needs.

Sensory

Sensory Enrichment bleeds into the other categories, as we are always taking in sensory info. This is an advantage, you can embellish the enrichment with new scents, tastes, sounds, and of course sights. Think of squeaky toys, catnip, or treats. Your animal loves these because it’s a pleasant sensory experience.

The Benefits Of Play

A grey tabby kitten balances a leopard print wool ball on its left front paw, pawing at it with their other front paw.

Ever heard the phrase “Laughter is the best medicine?” There’s some validity to that! Playing with your pet gives both of you a chance to release pent-up stress and energy together. Simultaneously, de-stressing and being silly is a bonding exercise. It strengthens your relationship, and decreases the likelihood your pet will destroy your stuff. In addition, it also strengthens their bodies and brains.

Playing With Cats

A black cat with yellow-green eyes looks toward the camera, a feather toy (with green, yellow, purple, and pink feathers) hooked on a claw. The cat lays on its side, twisting its head so one ear is flattened between it and the ground.

There are some distinct behavioral differences between cats and dogs. Playing with cats brings out their more affectionate side, and helps build their confidence. Cats love exploring vertical space, installing shelves or getting a cat tree with platforms for perching will make their whole week.

Wand toys are great for kitties as well. If you notice them losing interest, experiment with different movements, with moving the toy out of their sight, and encouraging them vocally when they pounce. I like to alternate between laser pointers and wand toys when playing with my kitty cat.

Playing With Dogs

A white woman with brown hair in a bun plays patty cake with a brown dog with long floppy ears. The dog balances on its hind legs, and flicks its tongue to lick its chops.

Dogs have the instincts of a hunter, they need to chomp, tear, and run. Depending on what breed you have, their energy levels can vary greatly. Fetch and tug of war are popular games, make sure you find a sturdy toy if your dog’s a strong chewer.

Bones, sticks, and chew toys give dogs a safe place to sink their teeth into. You can also put peanut butter in a kong and freeze it. Your pup will be entranced for hours. Another option, provided by my childhood dog Maggie, who enjoyed tearing apart fraying bath towels.

At The End Of The Day …

White Pitbull with brown patches over their eyes and spine balances a tennis ball on its snout. The dirty tennis ball rests between the pup's eyes, its head tipped upward to maintain the balls balance.

Play is essential to all forms of life. It builds neural pathways faster, keeps you and your pet active, and just improves quality of life all around. With new understanding of the benefits of enrichment, and different ways to enrich your pet, you might find it easier to disconnect from the internet after work.

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It really feels good to have pets in the house because they bring happiness to the whole atmosphere and even to the lives of the people who are living with them. This realization made me wish that our two dogs and one cat were still with us until today. They actually died last two years ago and there are times when I still think of them. Anyway, I have also realized how this quarantine made us lazy but needs to be productive at the same time. There are days when we feel like we are not in the mood to do anything at all and I think that it is okay to feel that way. It is necessary that we allow ourselves to slow down and be satisfied with less.You don’t have to pressure yourself to accomplish lots of things and this quarantine is indeed the best time to spend time with your pets and of course loved ones.

Enrichment