I am in the mood to shake things up a bit. Also, I am in the mood to talk about Atlas.

Weimaraners – really, active energetic dogs in general – need lots of physical activity. And by lots, I mean LOTS.

When Atlas gets enough exercise, he is a fabulous dog. When he doesn’t, he drives me crazy. Well, not as crazy as he did when he was a puppy, but crazy enough. It’s as if he channels the energy he didn’t expend into determination and cleverness. And oh, he is determined and clever.

When the weather is warm, he rarely gets enough exercise. He does not do well in heat, so unless I can get to the trails in the early morning, our walks are short. If he were a water dog, I’d take him swimming, but alas, he isn’t.

Fortunately, mental activity is also tiring, so here are five games I play with him to keep his sauciness at bay.

Scent training.

You need: a stretch of grass and some dog treats.

The basics:
Pick a starting location and stand there with your dog.
Put the dog in a stay.
Walk forward with dog treats in your hand.
As you walk, shuffle your feet in the grass to make a path.
Every couple of feet, touch the grass, as if you are putting a treat there, but rub the dog treat in the grass instead.
After a short or long distance, place the dog treat in the grass.
Turn and walk back to the dog, without walking on the marked path.
Release the dog.

(I will say that Atlas doesn’t always follow the path. But even if he doesn’t, he spends a great deal of time sniffing all around so I consider it a success either way.)

(The one trouble with this game is that you quickly run out of grass because you need a completely clean stretch of grass every time you play.)

(An easy alternative to this game is to throw a small dog treat in the grass and let the dog search for it. You might just want to watch where it lands so if it looks like they’ll never find it, you can help. I like to shout HOT/COLD at Atlas, even though I am pretty sure he has no idea what I’m saying.)

Hide and seek for treats.

You need: dog treats.

The basics:
Put your dog in a stay, ideally somewhere they can’t see you.
Hide dog treats around a room or around the house.
When you’re done, release the dog and let them find the treats.

At first, you’ll want to hide the treats in plain sight, somewhere they can be easily found. Slowly, you can hide them in more difficult locations. Under couch cushions or carpets can be fun. Also consider balancing them on doorknobs. Just keep in mind that your dog will be excited so maybe avoid spots with breakable objects.

(I put Atlas in the kitchen. If he peeks his head out while I’m hiding the treats, we start over.)

Cups.

You need: a few cups and dog treats.

The basics:
Put a treat under one of the cups.
Shuffle the cups around while the dog watches.
Let the dog find the treat.

(I think the idea is that they will use their nose to locate the right cup. As far as I can tell, Atlas checks under all of them. But it’s still fun.)

Find the treat.

You need: dog treats.

The basics:
Put a dog treat in one of your palms with your dog watching.
Make two fists with your hands. (There will be a dog treat in one of them.)
Place your hands behind your back.
Sometimes you’ll switch the dog treat to the other hand; sometimes you won’t. I like to switch it back & forth a few times and see where it ends up.
Place your fists out in front of you and tell the dog to find the treat.
When the dog sniffs a fist, open your hand. If there is a dog treat, they get to eat it. If there isn’t, put your hands back behind your back and shuffle and let them try again.

(Atlas has developed a strategy. If he picks the wrong hand, he picks the other hand the next time. Unless he’s picked the wrong hand a few times in a row, after which he starts picking the same hand again and again. He’s so cute and silly.)

Hide and seek.

You need: nothing, unless you want to give them a treat.

The basics:
Put your dog in a stay.
Hide.
Release them and call them to you.
When they find you, jump up and play with them and scratch them.

(You don’t really need a large house for this. I hide behind doors and behind the bed. The only trouble with a small house is that after a while, all they have to do is check all the available locations.)

Have fun!

Feel free to ask if you want me to clarify anything.