Article by Ronald Harris
The Effects Of Lockdown
Are you worried about your dog? Do you feel that their behaviours have changed during the lockdown?
Dogs feel insecure in the most challenging time when their lifestyle has been changing quite often. It wouldn't happen in earlier years of a pet's life. The irregular changes make them insecure that their owner might leave them in the lurch.
Many pet owners feel the same, and they have encountered dogs' unwanted behaviors. They become very lazy or not responding to your order or they are not enjoying their food.
These signs show that your dog is not feeling comfortable with your home's new routines. They are unable to understand why in the daytime, the house is fully crowded. You need to make them realize that something has changed, and your pet also needs to follow the new routine of your house.
The Petsnurturing blog helps you to understand their problems and provide solutions to cope with their unusual behaviors.
Give Them A Safe Space
As humans need a safe place to enjoy their activities. Similarly, pets also need a safe place to do recreational activities in their free time. They can do multiple activities like sniffing their head or tail, licking another pet, or chewing their favorite toys, etc.
It is possible only when they have a safe space in your house. You can give them a spare bedroom, bathroom, a bed in the corner room, or under a desk.
Crates can also work as the best option for dogs. You need to assess if your dog is comfortable in crates or open space suits the most. You can make a crate an adorable place for dogs by keeping a bed, favorite toys, a long-lasting chew, or a Kong.
Getting Quality Sleep
Adult dogs sleep 12 to 16 hours a day, and puppies need more sleep than adult dogs. Lockdown has changed the atmosphere of your house.
Before lockdown, family members at work or school during day time. So, this is a convenient time for pets to take a nap. Now, everybody works from home. Dogs didn't find a quieter place to take a nap. And, if children are there, they must play with dogs.
Give them a quieter place in your house where they can take a rest without interruptions. In this way, you can subside their irritation.
Mix Up Walkies
Dogs love outside walks. Some dogs prefer to go in the morning, while some dogs love late-night walks. You need to check which time dogs prefer to go out for a walk. When you notice that your dog starts zooming around you and your house, it means they need to go out for a walk.
These days where restrictions have been imposed, you might find other walkers and cyclists occupy your space. If your dog struggles a lot during the walk, then change the route or try to find a quieter place in your neighborhood.
Stimulate Them Mentally
Mental stimulation enriches the lives of dogs. It will help to become more active and sharp. They are curious to know what kind of mental work their owner gives today. You can think of various types of mental activities from the internet. Like work on a new trick, play interactive games, run errands with your dog, give your dog a new task, introduce your dog to new faces, keep rotating their old toys or sometimes give new toys.
The best mental stimulation is scatter feeding. Scatter the dog's food by placing a distance. The dog will sniff and eat all of the food. Later on, you can perform this activity on the grass or a snuffle mat. You can plan a step further and hide your dog's favorite food in your house. Make sure you won't change the utensil where you keep your dog food daily. In this way, dogs will search only for that utensil, and they don't touch other food.
You have seen dogs' favorite time pass is licking and chewing. These behaviors keep them relaxed. Longer-lasting chews and fillable toys can work best for them. You can fill dog-friendly peanut butter in your fillable toys or kongs. Filling excess food will frustrate them, or eating excess food can make them lazy. So, always avoid overfeeding, and your food should be nutritious and hygienic.
Be Realistic
Before lockdown, dogs have a quiet time. Sleeping in the daytime and enjoying evening time with their owner. But these days, when everybody is at home, pets are getting additional training and exercises that might make them feel irritating.
So, take time, understand them, and make sure they understand why you are doing these kinds of stuff. You are making a new routine for them because everybody is at home. If you think it is tough to handle, then you can take help from a dog trainer.
Conclusion
During the Covid time when the lockdown was imposed, many owners enjoyed plenty of time with their pets. But this will not work for a more extended time. Before lockdown, dogs have a different lifestyle in your house; during a lockdown, you have changed their lifestyles, and after the lockdown, when everything will get normal, they need to change their lifestyle too.
Dogs' mental conditions and human mental conditions are different. Humans can think and analyze the current perspective and make changes to it. But, dogs need special training and constant feedback on their behavior that why they need to go for a change. You need to understand them better and train them to behave like normal. You can perform some mental stimulation exercises to keep them active and engaged.
Never interrupt their chewing and licking behaviors because these will give them a dose of relaxation. Respect your dog's sleep and never interrupt during the daytime when they are fast asleep. Choose a quieter place in your house where they can take a nap comfortably. You can also make the crate a favorite place for them by providing key amenities like a bed, toys, and delicious food.
Article by Ronald Harris
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