BustopherJones Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 Shadow in approaching 2 years old, and is still essentially a puppy. As I have previously mentioned, Shadow is ball-fascinated. In the past, while I was at work, DW kept Shadow occupied by throwing a ball to her. But now there is a problem. DW is suffering increasing discomfort from arthritis and tendonitis, and throwing the ball during the day is becoming extruciatingly painful. We need to develop a diversion for Shadow that will keep her occupied until I get home at night. Shadow is an indoor dog (epsecially during the winter; remember, this is New England we are talking about). There are no farms around; and besides, Shadow is afraid of sheep. I would appreciate any suggestions that might be offered with respect to alternatives that can be exercised indoors during the day; I will still play ball with her at night. Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 You might try a 'treat ball' if Shadow is feed kibble. Basically, she has to roll the ball around to get the food to fall out. Of course, you will need to cut down on her regular feeding if you do this. I do have to say, I had mixed success with Jazz and the treat ball. He figures he needed to 'throw' the ball to get the food. Dusty, on the other hand, has the 'roll the ball, get the food' down to a science. Maybe DW could teach Shadow some tricks. A while ago, there was an extensive list of tricks listed. Good luck to DW...tendonitis is nasty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaisingRiver Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 There's the balls that you can put treats in that Shadow would have to roll around to get the treats out. She might like that. I have this one And just because Shadow LOVES balls, doesn't mean she has to play with them every second. If she's getting nighttime ball time, that still be enough to content her. Edit: Posted at same time as KrisK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miztiki Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 Hide and seek? DW could hide food or toys throughout the house. Put away toys? Teach shadow to place a toy in a basket or something. Eventually DW could empty the basket and scatter the toys and have Shadow put them away. Teach Shadow some useful Service Dog tricks. If your wife is having trouble now then surely the pain and difficulty will increase over time, so this could be really helpful. Have Shadow fetch objects for her, turn lights on and off, open and shut doors, drawers, cupboards, and the fridge, help get DW's clothes out, take off shoes/socks, pull down pants, etc. If I think of more then I'll add them. Just have your wife think to herself, whenever she is doing *anything*, "Can Shadow do this, or part of this, for me?" Gardening and laundry come to mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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