Fun activities for pet mental health
While we often focus on supporting the body of our older pets to improve their healthspan and lifespan, attending to the mental health of older pets is just as important. Reduced stimulation and engagement can lead to signs of depression and withdrawal and contribute to worsening cognitive function in our dogs and cats.
Enrichment activities can help provide needed outlets for stressed, anxious or bored pets by providing problem solving opportunities, much like Sudoku puzzles help keep aging human minds sharp. They have the added benefit of providing a bonding opportunity for us as pet parents, allowing us to experience joyful moments with our pets as they experience their world in new ways.
The wonderful world of smells
Pet parents often recognize that older pets experience diminishing senses over time, such as hearing and vision loss. However, dogs (and to a lesser extent cats) rely primarily on their sense of smell to interact with their surroundings. Dogs have up to 300 million olfactory receptors compared to a human’s six million. That’s about a 40 times greater ability to appreciate odor. As we understand more about how pets interact with their world, it’s clear that scent plays a huge role. Therefore, as vision and hearing decline, scent becomes even more important to our pets as a way to get information about their environment and stimulate their brain.
Although any age is a great age to incorporate novel scents for our pets, older dogs with mobility concerns benefit most of all because they have a reduced capacity to exercise and explore large territories as they once might have. When we do take our pets out for walks, we can turn them into “sniffari”s rather than simply walking with a destination in mind. This means we allow them to take their time to sniff each interesting smell along the way, without being so concerned about distance. It’s even more beneficial if you can change the locations so that your pet gets new information as much as possible.
You’ll notice these walks will tire your dog out in a good way as they process all the novel input back home - without the stiffness or soreness of long hikes. If your pet has a very low tolerance for exercise, consider pulling them in a wagon on wheels or pushing them in a stroller to expose them to new sights and smells.
For those pets who can’t get outdoors at all (most cats or during inclement weather), consider bringing smells indoors. You can collect leaves and sticks out on walks and put them into a box for your pet to sniff around (Amazon boxes with paper packing make great options for snuffling in). While you’re cooking, let your pet sniff a bit of herbs such as parsley, basil, rosemary, thyme and sage. These are all safe for them to nibble on in small amounts. You can plant them in your garden for your dog or cat to explore as well.
Catios (enclosed patios for cats) can allow indoor cats to experience the sights, smells and sounds of the outdoors in a safe way. Also, placing a bird feeder in view of their window perch can provide many hours of entertainment for indoor-only kitties.
Puzzles for problem solving
Turning feeding time into puzzle time is not only a great way to provide mental stimulation but it often slows down eating, especially important for those pets who gobble up their meals quickly or who are trying to lose weight. Several commercial products are available at varying difficulty levels. A slow feeder bowl, a food-stuffable toy such as Westpaw Topp’l or a snuffle mat are accessible starting places.
If you don’t want to purchase anything, you can simply spread a kibble meal over the floor or on a grassy area so that your pet has to search for their food. Dogs are scavengers and cats hunters so they tend to enjoy the challenge of finding their food.
Other games you can play with food include rolling kibble or treats (or pet-safe fruits and veggies!) in a towel and letting your pet unravel it to get the food. You can also hide food in a muffin tin and put balls on top your pet has to move to get to the treat. There is a Facebook group called Canine Enrichment (and a book of the same name) with many other great ideas that often use items you likely already own for feeding fun.
Altered exercise and play
Play is still important for older pets to get out their wiggles and provide human interaction; however, older pets benefit from some adjustment to their favorite games to avoid injury and soreness.
Ball throwing is a common favorite that becomes much more difficult as our pets age. Instead of throwing a ball your dog will need to run a long way to retrieve, consider rolling the ball to either side of your pet to avoid repetitive injury. Any activities that involve high impact maneuvers, such as frisbee throwing or jumping, may need to be reduced or eliminated.
For cats, a feather wand can be directed lower to the ground to limit jumping and fast pivots while still satisfying their natural hunting instinct. Avoid laser chasing, or if you do, keep it simple and on the ground and reward your cat with their “prey” (a treat) on their last pounce.
Exercise is still important, even for pets with arthritis or other mobility challenges. The key is to keep the sessions shorter and increase the frequency (for example, 2-3 20-minute walks rather than one long hour walk). This keeps joints warm and compresses the joint fluid (which nourishes cartilage) while avoiding inciting inflammation which leads to discomfort. Try to seek out level areas with good traction and soft surfaces, such as grass or dirt, for walks when possible.
Teaching an old dog (or cat) new tricks
Despite the saying, old dogs and cats CAN learn new tricks. Consider trick training to keep your pet’s mind sharp. There are many YouTube videos on this subject that break down the nuts-and-bolts of the approach and many only require 5-10 minutes a day.
More structured training avenues exist for dogs that can be fun “sports” to do together that don’t put any pressure on joints. You can even compete with other teams! Nosework is an excellent activity for almost all old dogs that teaches them to find odors in different environments such as indoors, outdoors, around cars and among containers. Dogs are naturally good at this and it is a great mental workout as they detangle the scent puzzle while experiencing novel areas. Other options include rally (a sport that incorporates performing a series of tricks at different stations) and at-home conditioning work (similar to gym exercises).
Try one or more of these ideas with your pet and tag us on Instagram! We’d love to see you having fun with your senior pet while providing good mental health care.
At Petspan, we’re on the forefront of longevity interventions for pets. Want to learn more about what options are available to help your pet live a longer and healthier life? Schedule a consultation with one of our Petspan veterinarians.
