[Kensi]

Are puzzle toys generally worth it for dogs? Or will the dog just figure it out after a few tries and get bored?
My dog currently has this one, and is still interested/challenged, but I think that's just because the pieces (we have an expansion pack that lets us change the types of box mechanism) all look so similar.

 

[storyist]

It's my impression that most people who use them have more than one and rotate? Like rotating toys to try to keep them from getting bored.

P.S. I've never used a food puzzle but plan to try with my next dog. I sincerely doubt my Rotties would ever get bored with anything that yielded food but can imagine that my Akitas might have shrugged them off as not worth the bother.

 

[Lillith]

Yes, they do eventually figure it out, but if you rotate them it stays interesting. Also depends on how food motivated your dog is. Mine knows the best way to get food out of all of his puzzle toys, but he likes food so much he'll work on them no matter how familiar he is.

 

[DaySleepers]

It's also worth mentioning that, if you're using them for enrichment rather than trying to get a big mental workout every time, the point is less to challenge the dog and more to just change things up and provide a variety of experiences. Kind of like puzzle toys for humans - sometimes it's fun to pick something up and solve it even if you've solved it a dozen times before, unless that's the only entertainment you have and are forced to do the same one over and over.

 

[Tater33]

Our dog still loves any puzzle or games we've tried but she's VERY food motivated. If they want the food baldly enough, I don't think they will get bored.

 

[chfnas19]

When I adopted my beagle mix, she had extremely high anxiety after years of abuse. I took her to a behaviorist and puzzle games was one of the tools she gave me to help her along. (plus a thousand other things..) Hide and seek was another one. I have 3 different ones and I interchange them. She figures them out pretty quickly but still enjoys them. I also hide them in different areas of the house, never putting them in the same place.

 

[K9luv]

Lol I got the level 2 "tornado" puzzle feeder, thought it would be harder to figure out, but my 12 week old pup bombed it in 2 minutes.

Like the others, he has other puzzles and I rotate. It doesn't even have to be something you buy, but I'll rotate hiding piles of food around a room, spreading under a couple tiers of towels or wrapping them in a towel as well.

I got him a 'wicked ball' which does not dispense food, but rolls around on its own. He was intrigued for about 3 minutes and now he will only watch it lol. So if there's no food involved, he's not so interested.

 

[Kensi]

Thanks everyone for the replies!