Home Alone. And Bored. Our dogs spend, on average, twelve to fourteen hours a day sleeping. What happens over the other 10-12 hours? For a good number, they lay around like this English Bulldog pup above. Maybe, if mom or dad works from home, they going for a short walk during a work break. For others, they are alone all day, with nothing to do. Bored dogs are more prevalent than you may realize, and chronic boredom has real consequences for their mental and physical health. Let’s dive into this, so you’re informed.
The Happiness Protocol 
is a topic I’ve talked about a lot; the core idea is that doing more of what they love makes them happier and, therefore, strengthens their immune system. There’s plenty of data on the relationship between the release of the happy hormones and better health, for humans and animals.
With boredom, especially ongoing boredom, instead of building up, there’s breakdown.
A Doctor’s Discovery
“Boredom has long been thought of as a solely human emotion, but animals suffer from it, too,” emphasized Animal Welfare lecturer, Dr. Charlotte Burn, from the The Royal Veterinary College. She used cameras to observe dogs left alone in houses, before publishing an essay recently called “Bestial boredom: a biological perspective on animal boredom and suggestions for its scientific investigation” in the journal Animal Behaviour.
In an interview, she said, “They often yawn, bark, howl and whine. Some sleep a lot – a sign of apathy. Some of this is anxiety, but often they are just really bored.”
I read this and thought, Uh Oh. Just last night, I went out for a quick bite and checked in on Sophie, Jasper and Ani with my Ring cams. All three of them were howling, in unison, like a choral practice. They sometimes howl when I go out, and I don’t go out very often!
So, today, I rummaged through the boxes in the garage (I just moved to a new house and am still working my way through unpacking), found the Nina Ottosson puzzle games for dogs, pulled them out and we had a session.
And, you know what? It’s been a while and they really, really loved it. I could actually see their brains working, figuring out how to get the treats in the little drawers or behind little panels. I’m going to be doing that much more often.
Granted, they’re stressed from living in a new house, as well, but research does show that being kept in environments without regular stimulation, damages the brain.
“Neurones die off if not stimulated, so the brains of such animals tend to be smaller with fewer synapses,” explained Burn.
I thought this next piece of research was interesting; hopefully you will, too, or I’ll just be revealing my geekiness for most things medical. 
Like humans who have no control over an unpleasant environment, which creates a feeling of helplessness, dogs and cats can experience this, too. It’s called learned helplessness and has been shown in both humans and animals to result in associative, motivational, and emotional deficits in that animal or person.
There are neurochemical effects, too, when the event is uncontrollable. Those neurochemical responses have been reported in animals to lead to disturbances in cholinergic, noradrenergic, dopaminergic, serotonergic, and GABAergic systems; called neuromodulatory systems.
What does this mean in plain English? You might have recognized the hormones dopamine and serotonin in there; the happy hormones. These neuromodulatory systems work closely with each other to provide a foundation for cognitive function in higher beings, pertaining to things like attention, emotion, goal-directed behavior, and decision-making. All of these come from the interaction between the neuromodulatory systems and brain areas, such as the amygdala, frontal cortex, hippocampus, and sensory cortices.
There’s a lot more going on underneath the surface than you may have realized when you have a chronically bored animal.
How Does Neural Plasticity Keep Their Brains Healthier?
Neural plasticity is a term you might have heard tossed around a lot these days. What is it, exactly? The term “neuro” refers to nerves of the nervous system and the term plastic comes from the from Greek word “plastikos,” from “plassein” which means ‘to mold.’
Both our brains and the brains of our dogs are always in the process of being “molded” in some sort of way. Neuroplasticity happens when they learn something new or retain some new information that causes new neural connections, which make their brains capable of neuroplasticity.
On a more scientific tip: Neuroplasticity primarily occurs through processes called sprouting and rerouting. Sprouting is the creation of new connections between neurons, or nerve cells. Rerouting involves creating an alternative neural pathway by deleting damaged neurons and forming a new pathway between active neurons.
So, a brain in humans and animals that is stimulated with new tasks and experiences on a regular basis, remains healthier and more able to learn and retain new information.
It was once thought that our brains had a lowered ability to create new neural pathways beyond the juvenile period, when the brain is best-suited to neuroplastic changes, but new studies have shown that even the brain of seniors is capable of being plastic.
“Enrichment is an essential component of care for all pets, including small mammals, reptiles, dogs, cats, and horses, and can have a positive effect on their welfare and well-being,” claims veterinary behaviorist, Lisa Radosa, with Florida Veterinary Behavior Service in Jupiter, Florida.
Is Your Dog Exhibiting Any Of These Behaviors?
Is your dog acting out? Could he be trying to tell you, “Hey, Mom!” Or “Hey, Dad!, I’m over here and I’m bored!!!” Some behaviors dogs have exhibited from being bored include:
- Depression and anxiety
- Excessive Barking
- Destructive Behavior
- Self-Mutilation – Things like incessant licking, biting, scratching, pulling out of hair
- Over stimulation to any event – they go berserk when you come home, not just very excited, but really over the top.
Dogs are not animals that evolved to stand idly like cows; they require constant mental stimulation. A lot of the modern breeds were specifically bred to perform tasks, both physical and mental.
What’s The Solution?
So, what can we do about this? We can’t stop our lives, quit our jobs and become stay-at-home pet parents who dote on them all day. There has to be a compromise that works both ways.
There is.
Interactive toys are wonderful, like the Nina Ottosson puzzles. Also, interactive toys they can do when you’re not home are great. I’m going to be ordering more of these and having sessions with them a few times a week.
And, there’s a great companion tool to these I discovered that uses your dog’s own innate intelligence to learn new behaviors, stimulate them mentally and create more plasticity in their brains. I’m excited about this and want to share it with you!
Using Their Own Intelligence for Mental Stimulation & Training
I came across this wonderful tool for your toolkit, that ticks off the boxes of mental stimulation, entertainment and reversing unwanted behaviors. It’s called Brain Training for Dogs, and it works by using your dogs’ own innate intelligence to motivate and teach them.
Brain Training for Dogs was created by one of the top trainers in the country, Adrienne Farricelli, a CPDT-KA certified dog trainer with many years of experience. Adrienne shows you a straightforward, success-driven way to stimulate and motivate your dog to learn new behaviors and let go of old ones that don’t work for you. Through her methods, the consistent stimulation of your dog’s brain does keep him or her engaged, happier and healthier, and it also keeps their brains flexible; that neural plasticity we talked about earlier.
The training program includes:
- a puppy training section
- two online training courses, specifically designed to boost intelligence, obedience, and behavior
- over 100 articles tackling a huge range of behavior problems (as well as doggy behavior and psychology)
- a private forum frequented by Adrienne.
Take a look at a snippet of what you can teach your dog, while strengthening their brain health.
As mom to a reactive pup, my Jasper, I so relate to the power of engagement and learning new skills, and I get excited by it for my boy.
It was also very important to me that Adrienne is an advocate of gentle and force-free training techniques, which rely only on positive reinforcement.
I also wanted to see what other pet parents had experienced with this program. Here are just a couple of the many reviews:
Try Brain Training for Dogs and let me know how it’s worked for/helped your pup.
Whatever you do, it’s important to add regular mental stimulation to your dog’s day. There’s no time like now to start ensuring long-term good health for your best friend.
To their best health!
Jody 
Has this post been helpful? Let me know in the Comments.
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