We are lucky to be living in what is fast becoming the golden age of dog research.  For years, scientists treated dogs as animals unworthy of serious study due to the particular complications inherent in studying a domestic species, especially one so intricately intertwined with humans.  In the past twenty years or so, though, scientists and researchers are finally giving the dog its due: fundamental questions about who dogs are and what they need are being answered through rigorous scientific research, rather than anecdotal evidence and plausible story-telling.  Allie Bender and Emily Strong have done us a service by seeking out and synthesizing the latest research on what dogs need in their book Canine Enrichment for the Real World.

Bender and Strong define enrichment as “learning what our dogs’ needs are and then structuring an environment for them that allows them, as much as is feasible, to meet those needs.”  Dogs as a species share specific needs, but how strong those needs are vary from dog to dog (and breed to breed), so observation and experimentation with our individual dog is necessary.  Understanding our dog’s needs can also explain the motivation behind some unwanted behaviors as well, so we can redirect that instinctual drive to a more acceptable (to us) alternative.  For instance, once we understand that the act of counter-surfing engages a dog’s sense of smell, scavenging instinct (eat what you find!), and desire to forage (search for food), we have a deeper appreciation of the numerous forces our dog must fight against to resist that sandwich.   As high level trainers, obedience competitors are usually pretty good at preventing unwanted behavior in the first place, but we may not always appreciate that the needs the dog is trying to meet when it seeks to engage in that behavior don’t just go away.  Whenever we are preventing a behavior, we can ask ourselves whether we are giving the dog another outlet to meet that need.  So, instead of just preventing counter-surfing, we can hide a food treat and have our dog have to sniff it out, thus providing a fun and rewarding activity that meets his deep-seated instincts in an acceptable way.

The scope of this book is broad, with chapters on physical exercise, mental stimulation, instinctual behaviors, foraging, social interactions, safety and security, and independence, just to name a few.  Each chapter presents the latest research, debunks some old wives’ tales, and presents many concrete and workable suggestions for meeting your dog’s needs in that area.  While this book is dense with information and suggestions, the authors advocate making small adjustments to your dog’s environment and activities, filling in the gaps you can now see.  However, this is not just a series of obvious suggestions, like retrievers like chasing balls or a Kong in a crate creates positive associations with crating; rather, you will learn to analyze the underlying motivations for your dog’s behavioral choices and get creative with providing acceptable, satisfying, and fulfilling options for meeting your dog’s underlying needs.  

As obedience competitors, we spend a lot of time with our dogs, and our dogs generally get a level of attention, interaction, and care that is above and beyond that of the average pet.  And, Bender and Strong make clear the numerous benefits of training for various dog sports, with specific information on how to make your training sessions even more rewarding and fulfilling for your dog.  But, as trainers for a particular sport, we can also develop a bit of tunnel vision, and miss the areas where perhaps we aren’t as aware of or responsive to every aspect of our dog’s various needs.   And that is the real value of this book: once we understand all of our dog’s needs and the various ways we can meet them, we can make adjustments to create an even happier, healthier, and more willing partner.