Working with Pets with Unique Likes
As a pet care professional, we can be faced with multiple pets wanting attention at the same time and in different ways. Often it can be about finding what works by reading them. If you have a dog that tires easily when chasing a ball and it takes them out of the game quickly, it is finding ways to keep them excited, in the field of play while slowing down the game. Shifting from throwing or tossing the ball to rolling it can be the difference as well as sending one kid the length of the yard while the other goes the width. They want to play too yet not be held back by what stops them from keeping up with their sibling. You will know when they are ready to end the game play for the moment and take a break. For the one who love a straight back and forth game of fetch, an uplevel to this game is to slow down the throw by micro movement of your hand requiring the pup to focus on your hand/arm motion for when the ball is released which requires a different level of focus and the ability to not over anticipate the timing of the action. Often when they are done, they will; hold the ball, not bring it back, or lay down.
Sometimes it is finding ways to continue the play while shifting from outside to inside play. If notoriously, you have one who will go long while others end up being the runners in a game of chase switching up the game to put all on an even field of play helps. With one group, I created a game where the ball is rolled which can be just as fun and tiring for them as playing outdoors. This is especially beneficial when it is a hot summer day. Levels of difficulty can be added through other items such as sounds, changing the pace of the roll, and bringing other things in that engage their other senses. With the one group, someone with call a time out on the field when they get tired taking the ball with them. They also know when the game is ending to prep for a meal by me calling last 10 which equates to the last ten rolls of the ball.
The same goes for other pets, with felines it is discovering what they are curious enough about to engage with to promote movement. Some like hide and seek style games, others like playing with toys in new ways. Taking a wand type toy and flipping it over to use the wand as the engager versus the fuzzy, furry item at the end can change it up enough to make it interesting. It also attracts their attention in different ways as a new sound comes through when it is tapped and moved across a floor. Depending on if it is clear, it can also add interest as to whether they see the movement or the item as it runs across the floor – so it asks them to use their sight differently.
It’s not always about new gadgets as it is about discovering new ways to work with what is available to support unique styles of play and provide added interest to engage those where age, energy levels, or physicality is different. I also find that those that typically may not care one way or another about certain forms of play or engagement, do when there is a new person whose attention is mainly focused on the pets in the family. They feel this and recognize the difference.
Fair warning that if you find a game that they love, play time becomes a favorite request and sometimes earlier than you may expect it. That could be 3am, 4am, or 5am in the morning or wanting to play for as long as you are there. I find one just must smile when you hit on something that brings this much joy for them!
