Older dogs are often a lot less active than their younger counterparts. Still, older dogs also need to get enough exercise to stay fit both physically and mentally. Of course, you cannot expect as much effort from your 13-year-old dog as you can from your 4-year-old dog. You will see for yourself what your dog can handle.
Older dog
The life rhythm of older dogs changes. Their muscles are no longer as flexible as they used to be. Yet most senior dogs still love working for their owners. Most of the games you played with him as a young dog can therefore still be played, just stop a little earlier. Your dog will usually indicate when he is really too tired to continue. Your dog will lose performance in most areas, but his nose will remain almost optimal. A dog’s sense of smell deteriorates much less quickly than the other senses. For this reason, many games you can play with your senior dog are based on the nose.
investigate
Figuring out is a fun exercise you can do with your dog to properly test his sense of smell. For example, this game can be done in the forest in a place with many different small branches. You pick up one of the twigs yourself and hold it in your hand for a short period of time, this way the twig will start to smell like your body odor. Then you place the twig in a place where there are many different twigs. Make sure your dog doesn’t see exactly where you put it! Finally, let your dog run to the twig bump. In most cases, your dog will have a strong preference for the twig you just held. This exercise is of course possible with all kinds of different objects you can come up with. Please note that the object itself does not yet have a very penetrating odor. The stronger the object smells, the less well the dog will be able to pick out your scent.
Looking for a biscuit
Looking for a biscuit works the same as sorting out, only it is based on the smell of food and not on your body odor. Place three different small containers or plastic cups in a neat row next to each other. Let your dog take a look at all the cups first. Then turn the dog away from you and put a treat under one of the cups. When you let the dog search, he will in most cases immediately knock over the cup under which the kibble is. With this game, be careful that your dog does not get too enthusiastic. Some dogs will knock over all the cups with their front paws, when they do this of course the whole purpose of the game is gone.
Other ball
During a walk, stop in a place where the grass is slightly higher than most places. It is different for each dog how high the grass can best be, it is the intention that he can no longer easily look over it. For you it is useful if the ball is still visible so that you can go and get it if your dog does not find it again. Throw one of the balls you are holding to the left, then throw one of the balls to the right. The dog can only now let go and will search for both balls with his sense of smell. It is noticeable that in most cases the dog will first look for the second and then the first ball because it is still the best in his memory. With some dogs, you can go further with three or even four balls to try and find all of them. This game is quite intensive for some dogs. Do not throw the balls too far and do not continue this game for too long.