How Canine Interactions Promote Enrichment

In this episode, Teena Patel defines positive canine interactions and how the University of Doglando uses these interactions with their dogs.

When we think of relationships, we usually think about how we relate to the people who are closest to us: our spouses, our children, our friends. But what about our relationships with our dogs? At Doglando, we believe that relationships are a key component of canine enrichment. Today, I want to break down how we define relationships at Doglando: as a number of positive interactions over time.

"Positive"
When we say an interaction is positive, we mean that it adds value to the dog's experience. There are so many ways our Play Professors add value to our dogs' lives at Doglando. The simplest example of this is something our dogs experience every time they come to us. When the dogs arrive at Doglando, one of our Play Professors opens the gate to let them into the play area. In doing so, they are giving access to all these dogs' needs in abundance. For dogs who are experiencing Doglando for the first time, they are going from a small space where they have no control to a much larger space where they have control over where they can go, where they can do. Opening that gate adds so much value to these dogs' experiences.

"Interactions"
For us, "interaction" means the dog is coming into contact with someone or something using one or more of their five senses and their body. It's activating the whole dog. For relationships with other dogs, that means coming into contact with another dog in a way that adds value to both dogs. We at Doglando work hard to create opportunities for our dogs to behave in a species-typical way and have intraspecies interactions that enrich them by meeting their social needs.

"Over Time"
One positive interaction does not a relationship make. That's why we at Doglando work to promote these interactions over time and maximize the value we add. We only keep about 45-50 dogs in our care each day so that our Play Professors are able to interact richly and in abundance with our dogs. This allows us to create a framework for what interactions look like that we can replicate time after time with our dogs. 

Positive interactions over time form relationships that are the foundation of canine enrichment. To learn more about our approach to canine enrichment at Doglando, schedule a tour today.