Canine enrichment

PART 5

TEXT: SARAH WANLESS

Scatter feeding is one of the cheapest and easiest forms of canine enrichment out there. This method of slowfeeding enrichment involves scattering your dog's kibble (or a handful of treats if they are raw-fed) across an area, thereby allowing them to forage for dinner. It really is that simple!

SCATTER FEEDING 101

We recommend starting out by scattering the food in a small area of grass in your garden just to give your dog time to adjust to this new way of feeding. You can then build up the 'scatter area' from there. Scatter feeding encourages your dog to focus for more extended periods of time (an important skill), and as their attention span improves, you can increase the 'scatter area', spread the meal out in more challenging areas or even create a bit of an Easter Egg hunt both inside and outside the house.

BENEFITS OF SCATTER FEEDING

Scatter feeding is a great way to elongate your dog's meal time (great for those pups who wolf down their dinner) and is a low-arousal activity that engages your dog's brain and sense of smell. Believe it or not, a lot of dogs actually enjoy having to work for their meals.

Scatter feeding encourages your dog to relax, as the act of sniffing lowers the heart rate and stimulates the brain. It also has the added bonus of keeping your pup safe and busy while you send an email, take a bath or make dinner. Depending on the portion and the level of difficulty, a scatter feed can keep your dog busy for anywhere up to 20 minutes.

You can even take your scatter feeding on the move; this works especially well for fearful and reactive dogs but is a great enrichment opportunity for any dog. When you take your dog on a walk, be sure to take some treats and some

of their daily food allowance with you. Find a nice quiet spot and scatter; try to make it as challenging as possible by using longer grass or clover patches to encourage your dog to hunt around for their food. If your dog is encountering a stressful situation (like a dog nearby), move to an area below their reaction threshold (at a distance where they can disengage from the trigger, focus on you and happily accept treats) and do a small scatter feed to deescalate the situation.

NOTE

It is important to note that if you have a dog that is aggressive around food or resource guards, it is best to keep any other dogs separate while employing this feeding method.

SO, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

Get out there and get scatter feeding!