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Rainy Day Activites?


Jake-K9
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I did try a quick search before posting but didn't come up with much, I'm likely using bad terms but oh well.

What do you folks all do to amuse your dogs when it's too wet to go out? Google seems to suggest hide and seek and indoor agility - neither are an option for me as the dogs are not allowed on the carpet (all of the house except a tiled lounge), I have no furniture to hide stuff in/around anyway... and indoor agility with a malinois is just asking for holes in your walls! >_<

"Just get wet" is also not an option for my work dog, unless he has hours and hours to get completely dry again before we start work. :(

Any and all suggestions appreciated. :)

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Trick training!

There are heaps of tricks you can train indoors.

walk backwards

beg

play dead

roll over

retrieve object

put object in bucket

get in box

get on box

front feet on box

back feet on box

nose target

paw target

etc

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This!!

And a raincoat (doggie!). Best investment I have made. I have a dog with an absorbant coat too and use to hate the wet (bring back the drought......) the coat has solved it for us.

Meea

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Having said that I do brave the rain and just get wet :laugh: but for me the walk is one of my few times where I get 'me time' away from the kids and I generally don't let weather interfere with that little bit of peace and quiet!

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Training is the main thing.

Grooming the dogs.

Napping on the couch together.

We play fetch down the hall way.

Play Search with Charlie (he has a good nose that one)

I have a treadmill and my dogs often ask to go on it when it's raining...

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Cheers for the ideas. :)

For those of you who use a dog raincoat, which brand/s do you use and how dry do they keep the dogs? I know legs are still going to get wet but they dry fairly quick at least.

Kavik, with the tricks, how do you go about starting "walk backwards" and "back feet on (object)"? Lure with food and mark? Also what sort of command would you pair with two on / two off?

I don't own a treadmill... I've got nowhere to put one anyway. :(

We ended up going out to the dog park today - what was light drizzle turned into a downpour as soon as we walked in the gate. :<

Still let them have their run around but had to go to the coin operated dog wash up the road to blow dry the work dog - the bloody things are minimum $10 to start the machine so it can't be a regular occurrence...

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With backup, I shaped it, mark and reward any foot movement, then any movement backwards, even if just a step or foot movement, then wait for them to offer more. You can start by making a corridor out of furniture/walls to limit their options. It can take a little while to get started, but once they get the hang of it it is pretty cool. I even managed to teach my old dog who is now 12 1/2 - taught her about a year or so ago so she was still pretty old when I started lol. Kaos will now go back quite a distance.

With back feet on object, probably easier if you have walk backwards first. I am about to teach this as part of a contact course. Kaos will always offer to put front feet on things as we have done a lot of perch work, not so good at offering to put back feet on things so will take some experimenting I think lol. It is a separate exercise for me than going into 2o2o position for agility.

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I have chillydog coats - expensive but warm. Itsmeg on this forum also makes coats. It is important for both humans and dogs to get outside daily for vitamin D - which is essential for both physical and mental health.

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With a Mali? Just get wet :p

But if it's really bucketing down I drive out to the school, park under the big outdoor shelter and train some obedience. Most of the primary schools have them now, so if they don't lock the gates and you can get in it's a pretty good place to go. There seem to be a few fenced off undercover playgrounds around now too, don't think they'll be full of kiddies if it's pouring rain either - improvised agility?

I'm finding puzzle toys great for keeping mine entertained too. http://www.vetnpetdirect.com.au/Products?search=nina

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Do you have a shopping centre near by with an under cover car park, not sure if its legal but I have walked my dogs around each level of the car park. Its not very exciting but at least its a walk.

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Thanks Kavik. :)

No reverse cycle on the vacuum. :( I'll have to keep that in mind when I need to replace this one!

Thanks for the suggestion of the chilly dog coats, they look great. :)

As far as covered areas go I don't know of any nearby... I run my dogs in the supermarket carpark up the road of a night time now as the nearest dog park is in complete darkness after sundown. The only nearby shops I know of just have shade sails which block sun but not much rain - and the local schools aren't really an option as the majority of them have fortress fences that are locked outside school hours. Those that don't have huge fences tend to have cameras. :/

I'll have to do some investigating to see what I can find though, cheers for the ideas!

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My tibbie girls meditate by taking a nap. Curled up on their big cushions, with nose tucked into fluffy tail. The cat is next to them, lying exactly the same way.

They only come awake for a quick trip to the toilet outside. Then much rubbing of fur and wiping of feet, with nice warm towels.

I guess they think that's one job they can give me on a rainy day.

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Blowing out is not a setting. You just plug the hose into the exhaust -blow out the dust (best done outside!) and off you go.

I have been able to do this on every vac for years. Probably not on an upright if thats what you have but works on any barrel.

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