Adam and Eve, Shakespeare and Literature, Newton and Physics! Some of the things are just meant to be together.
The same is the case with the relationship between humans and dogs. Both, different species yet share a fantastic bond of friendship with each other. The amount of love and affection they can have for each other is something to be envied upon.
Dogs have always been a man’s best friend, but in recent times, with the advent of the latest breeds, dogs have become an essential part of our lives. In fact, it is almost impossible for pet parents to imagine a life without dogs.
The best thing about a dog-human relationship is the interaction that the two species may have together. That is something that really sets this relationship apart from every other relation.
Mental Stimulation Toys for Dogs
However, it is very hard for the dog keepers to give his dog proper time to his dog in modern times due to the busy schedule. The dog keeper needs to understand that the dog’s physical fitness and mental exercise toys for dogs are also very much important.
Obviously, it is tough for a dog parent to leave his dog alone because it will miss his owner for sure. Moreover, if the dog gets bored at home, then no matter how well trained your dog is, he needs something to meddle with and play along with to spend his lonely time.
If you are someone who works a job or two and isn’t able to give proper time to your dog for a chunk of the day, you don’t have to worry at all. We have got you covered.
In this article, we will discuss some of the best mental stimulating toys for dogs that will help your dog spend its lonely time by having a lot of fun and not getting bored.
What Is A Mental Stimulation Toy?
Mental stimulating toys for dogs are an essential part of a dog parent’s life, and every person who keeps a dog must have a few of these toys.
As we know, most breeds of dogs are hyperactive in general, both physically and mentally.
If you are with your dog and going for a morning walk or doing some random exercises, his need for physical activity is fulfilled, but his brain also needs a stimulus and it also needs a workout.
This is where the mental stimulating toys for dogs come in handy.
These toys are built in a way that requires the dog to use its brain, and this is how the dog’s need for the mental workout is fulfilled.
The mental exercise toys for dogs can prove very beneficial for the dogs as they can keep them engaged for hours and hours.
Why Do We Need Mental Stimulation Toys For Dogs?
In a utopian setting, you would love to have your dog by your side while working at the office, right?
Would you love to play with your dog while you have your 30 minutes lunch break in the cafeteria of your office?
All of this sounds wonderful.
Well, snap of the fingers, and here you come to the real world.
In the real world, you have to leave your dog every day when you are going to your office, and it surely makes you sad.
But have you ever thought about this period from the perspective of your dog? Imagine just lying in the house with no one to talk to and no one to play with for like 8 to 10 hours.
This sounds like torture. We don’t want our dog to go through this mental trauma.
This is why you need mental stimulation toys for dogs. These mental exercise toys for dogs will help your dog stay active and mentally fresh even while you are away.
Moreover, these toys for dogs are highly durable, and they aren’t damaged easily. They are the missing piece of your puzzle that you’ve been looking to provide your dog with while you are away from home.
Now we will look at some of the best mental stimulation toys for dogs available in the market.
Let’s start the fun or mental stimulation for dogs, as we should say.
#1- NINA OTTOSON BY OUTWARD HOUND DOG BRICK INTERACTIVE PUZZLE
If you want your dog to get its focus back from destructive activities to cheerful treat hunting, this toy is your best bet. Based on the stimulation technique of a puzzle, the toy has twelve different compartments where you can place its food.
While playing with the puzzle, your dog will be constantly stimulated by the aroma of the food you have put inside the compartments, and your hound’s hunting instinct will keep him stimulated to find the food. Mental stimulation for dogs helps to keep your dog happy and fit.
When the chase begins, your pup will keep pushing and pulling the pegs, eventually finding the food inside. Can it get any better with focused stimulation and a happy dog?
Pros:
- Easy to store and clean
- Sturdy design
Cons:
- An unsupervised dog can chew the parts.
#2- OUTWARD HOUND HIDE A SQUIRREL PLUSH DOG TOY PUZZLE
This plush toy looks like a tree trunk where six squirrels are hiding. You can leave your dog to play with the toy, where he will focus on taking the squirrels out due to its hunting instincts.
The toy is meant to be an indoor toy; however, you can take that outdoors as well and keep your pup engaged in the play for hours.
With this toy, there will be no single moment of boredom for your pet because the curiosity will urge him to keep playing with the squirrels.
Pros:
- Easy on the gums of the dogs
- Fetch play becomes easier with this one
Cons:
- Despite the firm stuffing, an aggressive dog can rip the squirrels apart.
#3- PETSAFE BUSY BUDDY TUG-A-JUG MEAL-DISPENSING DOG TOY
Give your pet some challenging mental workout with this tug-a-jug toy. Your dog will start with biting the jug but will eventually get hold of the rope. When it pulls the rope, he will be treated with the goodies which you have put inside the jug.
A clever design to keep your hound engaged in a play-and-eat activity. The toy can keep an aggressive eater engaged in doing some work before getting the food.
Pros:
- You can have an extended meal time with the food dispensing design idea
- The material of the toy is non-toxic
- There are three variant sizes available according to the weight of dogs
Cons:
- You can only use kibble in the jug.
- Some pets may get more interested in the rubber ring around the neck of the jug and chew it off rather than going for solving the puzzle
#4- TRIXIE MAD SCIENTIST FOR DOGS
If you want your dog to get a stimulation boost, go for this toy. This is one of the most popular mental stimulating toys for dogs out there in the market. It has combined many techniques that will challenge your dog’s mind.
There are four compartments in the box where you can hide the treats, but not all the treats can be retrieved using the same technique.
The compartments use a drawer, knob, rope, and flaps to challenge and condition your pet’s brain. With such an engaging and challenging toy, eat and playtime will indeed become a breeze.
Pros:
- The rubber base keeps the toy in its place
- Compartments are big enough to hold a good amount of treats.
Cons:
- The parts are removable and cause trouble if the dog chews them.
#5- TRIXIE DOG ACTIVITY FLIP BOARD, LEVEL 2, INTERACTIVE TREAT PUZZLE GAME
The flip board combines many activities to give a treat at the end of the puzzle solving. Your dog will be engaged with the toy, pushing and pulling the triggers and finding the treats beneath each activity stimulus. This is one of the best mental stimulating toys for dogs.
A combination of cones and disks will keep your pup engaged in finding out the next hidden treasure. This toy will surely fulfill the requirements of mental stimulation for dogs.
Pros:
- The sturdy design makes it durable
- A combination o puzzle techniques
Cons:
- Removable plastic pieces can become a hazard if the toy is given unsupervised.
#6- NINA OTTOSSON BY OUTWARD HOUND DOG HIDE N’ SLIDE PURPLE INTERACTIVE TREAT PUZZLE DOG TOY
This mental exercise toy for dogs by Outward Hound is an activity board kind of a treat puzzle. The combined sliding and pulling actions will leave your dog engaged with the toy for about an hour.
You can put the kibble in the compartments which your pet has to hunt using his hunting skills. With smart activities, the toy will keep your hound engrossed in finding the treat.
Pros:
- Non-slippery base
- Toxin free design makes it safe to use
Cons:
- Not suitable for hounds with smaller snouts because the treat cups are built for longer snouts.
#7- OURPETS WAFFLE & SUSHI INTERACTIVE PUZZLE GAME
If you own a hound that gobbles up food and leaves you frustrated with the fast eating habit, grab this toy. It will tone down your pet’s instinctive fast eating with the mental stimulation of sliding the covers and getting the treats.
The toy is designed to stimulate your dog’s brain to find food in a series of attempts. There will be a lot of going back and forth between the sliders, but that means you can increase the mealtime of your quick eater.
Pros:
- Focused eating habits can be developed if you use this toy for your pet
- The materials that are used to make it are toxin free
- Its Rubber base keeps the tray in place
Cons:
- It can prove to be too easy for some dogs to solve.
#8- NINA OTTOSSON BY OUTWARD HOUND DOG CASINO INTERACTIVE TREAT PUZZLE
This one is an advanced level toy that you can present to your dog after doing the basic and intermediate levels of the puzzle.
Through this toy, you can make your pet learn sequential hunting, where he combines his paw action and mental ability to unlock a treasure.
The spinning and getting the bones in place will make the treat drawers open up, but that too when your hound pulls the drawers out.
There’s a lot of activity and learning involved in a single toy.
Pros:
- Easy to clean and store
- No removable parts
- Lots of activity involved
Cons:
- Some dogs may try to chew the bones off and get injured, and we surely don’t want that, right?
#9- TRIXIE DOG ACTIVITY MINI MOVER TOY, LEVEL 3 ADVANCE PUZZLE FOR DOGS
This toy is an advanced level stimulation toy that uses the hide-and-seek technique that rewards your pup in the form of kibble at the end.
There are sliding parts, cones, and drawers that your pup needs to uncover while on the quest for treasure.
The toy is specially designed to kill boredom and train your dog to work to get treats.
Pros:
- Rubber rings that place the toy in its place
- A price tag that is lower than the average competing products of Trixie mini mover toys.
Cons:
- The kibble may get stuck in beneath the sliders, which will not let the slider move
- The material of the toy is not toxin free
#10- HDP JW MEGALAST MEGA BALL
If your furbaby is big on fetch, fetch this toy to treat him. The mega ball is manufactured using a tough megalastomer that’s sturdy enough to survive under the teeth of the most aggressive chewers.
You can take the ball outdoors to have a mental and physical stimulation of your hound by playing fetch with him.
The ball has shafts that make it easier to hold in the mouth, though there’s no space to hide a treat under the toy.
Pros:
- Sturdy material that can challenge the most aggressive chewers
- Recyclable
Cons:
- Not suitable to leave the toy for chewing unsupervised; it can tear away a piece if it gets aggressive
All in all, it is a known fact that dogs always need some kind of activity to keep them active as well as strong physically.
However, it is also very much evident that not only physical but mental exercise is also equally important for the dogs and these Stimulant toys for dogs are the best gift you can give to your four-legged friends to play in their spare time.
No matter how much you want to be around your dog all the time, it can’t happen, right?
So, these toys for mental stimulation for dogs will do the job for you while you aren’t around and keep your dog busy and happy, and mentally fit.
Precautionary Measures
- The toys that you provide your dog with aren’t too small so that they might get stuck in the throat while playing.
- The toys shouldn’t have pointed metal in them.
- The mental stimulation toys must be durable. They should be able to weather the storm of a dog’s fury.
- Always provide your dog with some food in these toys. This is how you can even feed him while you are away as well.
- The toys should not be that much expensive and should be affordable.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1- Are mental stimulating toys for dogs actually necessary?
Ans. Yes! These mental exercise toys for dogs can prove very helpful for the mental fitness of your dogs, and they will keep your dog busy and active even when you are at your job.
Q2- What are the few qualities that we should look for when buying these toys?
Ans. We all know that most dogs love physical activity, but they also love to train their minds and improve their mental health. The toys should be durable and safe and should allow maximum mental stimulation for dogs.