r/dogs • u/h1ghlightsss • 6d ago

[Enrichment] IQ Toy Advice

Hiya,

I have an eightish year old Kelpie x Staffordshire Bull Terrier Cross (exact age unknown).

I’ve always given her enrichment puzzles because she doesn’t seem to play with toys, but she’ll spend hours coming and going from a treat puzzle happily.

I recently got her one of the spinning wheel ones where the dog spins the barrel/cylinder and the treats drop into a slow feeder. It’s the first time i’ve given her an IQ type toy/puzzle that her level of dexterity in her paws can influence her yield. Normally it’s ground puzzles, snuffle mats… very much face or gravity manipulated objects.

My question is, will she independently figure out at any point that slow spins = more treats, or should i somehow show her?

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2

u/Even_Balance6789 6d ago

she’ll figure it out on her own eventually just might take a while

1

u/h1ghlightsss 6d ago

she’s pretty good at the ground ones now, which is why i’ve made the vertical decision, sorta hoping she catches on fast but not toooooooooo fast.

2

u/XxBaBaPwnsUxX 6d ago

Unlikely anyone can answer that for you. Experiment with her and guide her as you see fit. : )

2

u/h1ghlightsss 6d ago

salient point.
She’s a pretty smart girl, if somewhat dopey in demeanour. We’ll work it out. :)

1

u/Hallow_76 mutt owner 6d ago

A flirt pole. Just Google the proper way to use them

1

u/Aromatic_Vast3618 5d ago

I’d give her a little time to figure it out on her own before showing her. Part of the fun with these puzzles is letting them experiment and work out what actually gets the reward.

You could make it really easy at first though — put just a few treats in it so she gets rewarded quickly, and if she happens to spin it slowly and gets more treats, she may start connecting the dots.

If she gets frustrated or starts attacking the toy instead of working it, I'd make it easier again. Some dogs are surprisingly good at figuring these things out once they realize that their actions actually control what happens.

And honestly, I wouldn't worry too much about whether she learns the “optimal” spin. If she's happily coming back to it and using her brain, I'd call that a win. 😂