We are now officially in winter, which means spending more time indoors or bearing the cold. But there’s no need to fear, there are still plenty of ways to spend time with our dogs to keep them active!
Take your dog shopping
Grocery stores don’t allow pets by the FDA’s rules (except for local markets), but if you want to take your dog shopping with you, there are plenty of dog-friendly stores in San Luis Obispo County, including PetSmart, Petco, Home Depot, the Apple Store, and more. Check out The Dog People for a list or call stores near you ahead of time!
Play fetch inside
Fetch, a classic game that can be played just about anywhere. It might be tricky to play with a big dog if you don’t have much space at home, but there are plenty of other games you can play like tug-of-war. Bored with those games? You can find more indoor game ideas from our past blog post on games to play during the quarantine.
Teach new tricks or commands
Take advantage of the time inside to try some fun new tricks or teach your dog that one command you’ve been meaning to. What you teach your dog is highly dependent on your dog. What motivates them? What skills do they already have? When you know that, you can get a good gauge about the tricks you can teach your pup! These tricks can be as simple as retrieving their favorite toy, putting away their toys, or playing dead. If you want some extra help with teaching your dogs tricks, you can also sign them up for some training classes with our awesome trainer, Wesley!
Get some new toys for your pup
Getting new toys is always exciting for your dog. You can do this when you take a trip to the pet store with them or you can order some new toys on Amazon like a Kong Cozie! These are cute and soft but also come with an extra layer of material to provide a little more toughness. If you want to keep your dog entertained with an interactive toy, you could also get them a bobble and treat dispensing toy like the StartMark Bob-A-Lot Interactive Dog Toy. Ultimately, you know your dog better than anyone else and know what kinds of toys are the best for them!
Brave the cold and play outside together
The initial step outside of your heated home can be dreadful, but once you start running around with your dog, the cold won’t be so bad. The exercise is great for you as well! Of course, if you are still worried it might be too cold for your dog, you can also put some doggie boots or a coat on them.
We hope these ideas make your San Luis Obispo cold weather more comfortable and fun for you and your pup!
All proceeds from Thousand Hills Pet Resort support New Life K9s. New Life K9s provides service dogs to veterans and first responders with PTSD at no cost to them.
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