January 13, 2012
Posted in Pet Food, Pet Supplies, Pet Training

The majority of dogs were originally bred for some type of purpose – whether chasing fowl or guarding a home. Today, most dogs are kept solely for companionship. While your pooch may be thrilled with this "job," its natural instincts to use its brain and body are not always fulfilled. Some owners report that their dogs get destructive when they are home alone, or start misbehaving even when people are around. These behaviors can almost always be stemmed back to boredom or too much energy.

Experts have designed toys to help our domesticated dogs keep their minds and bodies engaged, keeping them fit and less bored – food puzzles. According to the news source, food puzzles come in a variety of shapes, sizes, materials and colors. You can even make your own, or create your own game using pet food. What they all have in common is that they use the promise of food to force a dog to exercise its mind and body.

The Buster Food Cube, for instance, is a large plastic block that holds a small amount of food. Fill this toy with Taste of the Wild Dry Dog Food and give it to your pooch. Because of the way it is designed, your pooch will have to roll the cube in a particular direction to get just a few pieces of food. The constant reward is what keeps the pooch's mind and body engaged.

Kongs or other rubber ball-like toys can serve a similar purpose, as long as they can be filled with food and your pooch can get the food out somehow. If you decide to use wet dog food like Wellness Canned Dog Food, make sure your dog can get its tongue inside the toy to clean it out completely. You might also need to wash the toy afterward to remove remaining bits. Even smearing some peanut butter on toys like the Durable 10-Inch Football Dog Toy can be a good puzzle for your pooch, or sprinkling Halo Spot's Stew Puppy Dry Dog Food around on the grass for the canine to find.

Of course, all dogs will complete these puzzles at different paces and with different levels of interest. Dogs that are extremely food-oriented, like Labrador retrievers, may stay interested in a food puzzle longer than a dog that prefers to graze on its food. 

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