Keeping Your Dog Entertained but Not Active.
As I have discussed in a previous blog there is nothing worse than the feeling you get when your Vet says you have to keep your dog from playing while he or she recovers from surgery or an injury. I used to struggle with the concept of how does one do that? I have 3 incredibly active dogs and even though one just turned thirteen she is still a handful when she wants to be.
After our latest was neutered, I felt that I had to up my game. I tried a variety of puzzle toys (some of which I will review later) but Dax is a problem solver and most puzzles were conquered in mere minutes. I use the word conquered because the word “solved” doesn’t quite describe his interactions with puzzle toys. Dax, if he was a human, would be that kid that pulled the head and arms off of his sister’s dolls and interchanged them. Given a puzzle toy, his main objective is to secure the treats first and then repurpose the puzzle pieces.
I have been hearing a lot about these snuffle mats and how they invigorate a dog’s sense of smell as well as stimulating their brains. The purpose of snuffle mats is to:
Provide mental stimulation
Prevent speedy eating
Reduce begging
Burn energy
Keep your dog entertained
Help curb separation anxiety
Reduce stress
Stimulate their sense of smell
Help keep doggy dementia away
Redirect problematic behaviors to positive ones
I decided to give it a shot.
After a little research, I decided on two different mats both available at our favorite “go to” online retailer. The price ranged from $32 – $42.99.
The first was the AWOOF Snuffle Mat for Large Dogs and the second was the ZMUBB Pet Snuffle Mat for Dogs. I chose the Awoof one because it had a large surface space and I knew the two girls would be fine sharing the two sides. My girls are not resource guarders and have been taught to share toys etc. The boy, well he is a different story and needs his own. So, he started with the Zmubb.
The Awoof is a large mat, 34.6 x 19.6 inches and had lots of nooks and crannies to hide treats. It offered two different foraging areas. One was a large bowl shape area with tons of felt flaps “grass” to hide treats in. It also has a pull cord which presented a second challenge where the dogs had to figure out how to open that. The second side was a large flower-like section where you could place goodies under the various petals. It also had a crinkle center which made noise when the dogs pushed it with their noses and a bell.
The bottom of the mat is non-slip so it worked well on kitchen floors and other slick surfaces. When you are finished with the mat, it folded up into it’s own carry case. The instructions say to tie it to something to keep it from moving but I did not see a way to do that other than getting some string and tying one of the handle to something. I did not need to do that for the girls.
The second mat the Zmubb was slightly different than the Awoof. It came in 3 sizes and I bought the medium which was slightly smaller than the Awoof at 31 x 19 inch. This was perfect for my 40 pound beast. It, also had a large flower where items could be hidden beneath the petals. There is also a large “grass” area made of felt strands where treats could be tucked away. It has a carrot patch which holds 3 carrot shaped, squeaky toys that could be pulled out with treats hidden underneath.
The Zmubb also has a non-slip backing and it does have a belt that can be tied to a chair or other stationary object to keep it from moving. The belt also helps to secure the mat when you roll it up to put it away.
So, what did the product testing team think?
The Canine Connoisseur’s tested both mats separately. The girls tested the Awoof mat first which they shared. Willow (age 8), loved the bowl of felt grass and was able to open the draw string in a matter of seconds. She spent a considerable amount of time digging into the big bowl and kept returning to it. The little pockets for treats entertained her but she did get a little rough with some of them and in her excitement ripped a few. Sydney (age 13) our oldest tester enjoyed the large flower and being the part hound that she is, had a ball digging out the savory morsels. When the girls swapped sides, Sydney had just as much fun ruminating through the bowl as she did the flower puzzle. Willow, also attacked the flower with as much gusto as she did the bowl. They both found the little pockets entertaining. Willow did figure out that if she flipped the mat over any undiscovered treats were now easily discovered. You can see the girls in action here
Dax, the 2-year-old Aussie, approached the mat as a predator would. First, he vacillated between the giant flower and the thick grass area. When he lost interest there, he immediately removed all the carrots from the carrot garden and located those treats. The carrots themselves were disregarded initially. The mat itself, even though it was tethered to a chair was flipped, shaken and gnawed. The buckle to secure the mat when you roll it up became a chew toy. Later, the carrots with their squeakers and stuffing became interesting and one or two were eviscerated before the human quality control assessor could intervene.
When Dax was switched to the Awoof mat, he really focused on the bowl section. He appeared to find it more challenging than flipping the flower petals over and poking at the little pockets. We thought he might try to chew the cord on the draw string bowl but he did not.
All in all, the team voted these mats to be a great asset for quiet play and crappy, rainy days. If you need to slow down your dogs eating behavior these would definitely help. The mats are well designed and held up well to rough play and chewing. The buckle on the Zmubb was helpful in keeping the mat rolled up but it proved to be too much of an attraction for a young dog that likes to chew. The plastic buckle could be a choking or other hazard if you left your dog unattended (which we do not recommend for any toy that has small parts or could be a resource trigger). The carrot garden, although cute, was too easy for this team to solve and then the carrots themselves were messy because they were easily destroyed and for a small toy, held an unbelievable amount of stuffing.
These mats, although slightly different, both kept the team entertained and busy for 10 to 20 minutes depending on the dog and the curiosity of returning “just to check”. The best part was their minds had been stimulated which equates to tired dogs. As we like to say 10 minutes of training is equal to a 30 minute walk for the mind. We gave these mats a 4 out of 5 WiggleButts.
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