Are your dogs very busy? Do they need more activities and enrichment? Or do your dogs gobble down their food in no time?
Turn boring old dinner time into interactive snuffle fun!
Snufflemats are one of the most popular canine enrichment tools worldwide.
What is Canine Enrichment?
We all know that dogs need physical exercise. However, we do sometimes forget that they need mental stimulation too. We lead busy lives with full schedules and providing our canine companies with all the fulfillment they need can be challenging.
A snufflemat is a quick and easy way to engage your dog's brain and nose - a double whammy guaranteed to make them tired.
Years ago we came across the Snufflemat concept on international blogs and social media on dog enrichment. The benefits to the dog made it a no-brainer: we were sold! Sadly, the only ones for sale in South Africa were imported and very expensive. Seeing we really wanted one we made our own.
SnuffleMats South Africa
2 years on, that snufflemat is still going and we thought why not share this fabulous concept with the rest of South Africa! SnuffleMats South Africa was born. Handmade with love on the Garden Route, South Africa.
Happy Dogs behaviourist Karis Nafte recently starred live on SABC3's Expresso Morning Show with great tips for pet care in winter. Her Australian Cattle Dog Sam got to snuffle out some food on our SnufflePro in colurs Blue & Yellow. We are happy to report that Sam is a definite fan!
Happy Dogs offers Puppy School, Agility & Obedience Training on the Garden Route. Karis is a certified dog behaviourist and offers online Behaviour Consultations all over South Africa and internationally.
Karis Nafte is also a Pet Custody specialist and can assist with the often emotionally difficult decisions around pet custody in case of divorce.
A snufflemat is your dog's new favourite pastime! Snufflemats tie into your dog's natural instinct to sniff and scavenge for food.
Let the snuffling begin!
Dry food is best. Wet and raw food will leave the mat quite messy so stick with dry treats and kibble.
Always use under supervision to make sure your dog searches for the food but does not chew the mat! Apart from damage to the mat, ingesting rubber and material is dangerous for dogs so always pack away after use.
Ready....
Select your food: dried treats like biltong, dog biscuits or your dog's regular kibble all work. Pro tip: if you use regular kibble, sprinkle a few pieces of something delicious like biltong over it as well to get the snuffling going!
Steady...
Place the food on top of the mat, not too deep in.
Let your dog watch to build up some excitement and then let him snuffle his way to the treats.
Go...!
Your dog is now a pro!
You can start spreading the food out more and bury it deeper in the mat.
It's snuffletime!
...keeps boredom away!
