Just like people, dogs can get bored too. Imagine spending most of the day at home with nothing interesting to do. I’d feel bored too!
When dogs don’t get enough physical activity or mental stimulation, boredom can lead to a variety of undesirable behaviors. Chewing furniture, digging in the yard, or other nuisance behaviors can all be signs your dog is bored. If you don’t entertain your dog enough each day, they will find their own ways to amuse themselves, and you may not like the ways they accomplish it.
The good news is that a bored dog isn’t a bad dog, and it doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong. Depending on what your dog likes, it’s easy to entertain your pup and have fun at the same time! Often, these dog boredom symptoms simply mean your dog needs more mental stimulation, attention, or exercise. In this guide, you’ll learn the most common signs of a bored dog, why dogs get bored, and some simple activities for a bored dog that can keep your dog happy, active, and mentally stimulated.
Why dogs get bored
Dogs need both physical activity and mental challenges to stay happy. Boredom often appears if these needs go unmet. Over time, this can lead to unwanted bored behavior from your dog, such as chewing, barking, or pacing around the house.
Understanding the causes helps you recognize dog boredom symptoms early. Once you know why boredom happens, it becomes much easier to recognize the signs your dog is bored before they turn into unwanted destructive habits.
Lack of physical exercise
Many dogs simply do not get enough daily exercise. Without regular walks, playtime, or active games, their energy has nowhere to go. When that energy builds up, your dog may start chewing furniture, digging holes, or pacing around the house restlessly. These are common signs your dog is bored and needs more physical activity.
This will vary by breed and the dog as well. For example, herding dogs require much more activity than many other breeds, and what would tire out a normal dog, like a pittie, is just a warm-up for your collie. For us, Goomba is significantly more active than Primmie ever wants to be, and both are the same breed.
Lack of mental stimulation
Dogs also need mental challenges to stay engaged and tire out their minds. If their environment is too predictable, they may begin looking for ways to entertain themselves. This can range from acceptable behaviors like window watching to destructive behavior like chewing one of each pair of your shoes your spouse has, like Goomba did when he was younger.
If you want some more information on the benefits of mental stimulation for your dog, check out VCA Hospital’s article on enrichment and foraging toys!
Being left alone too long
Dogs are social animals and often struggle when left alone for long hours, especially when they have excess mental or physical energy. Without appropriate interaction, you will notice signs your dog is bored, like whining, pacing, or excessive barking. Most dogs will get used to a routine, but there are typically only so many ways your dog can entertain themselves without interacting with anyone.
Repetitive daily routine
Routine is important for dogs, but too much repetition can lead to boredom. Walking the same route every day or playing the same game repeatedly can make their environment feel dull. Dogs thrive on novel experiences, and they will be much more excited about a new place than one they’ve been to daily. Even minor changes, like taking a different path home or walking your normal route backwards, can help keep your dog excited and mix up your routine.
5 common signs your dog is bored
Recognizing boredom early can head off many potential behavioral problems. Below are some of the most common signs your dog is bored that pet owners often notice at home.
1. Destructive chewing
Dogs often chew furniture, shoes, cushions, or other household items when they lack stimulation. This type of destructive dog behavior usually appears when a dog has extra energy and nothing productive to do. There are a bunch of options to manage this, and we highly recommend giving some of them a try before it gets worse.
One of the easiest options is to try a long-lasting chew or bone. Our dogs loved these Nylabones when they were in their chewing stages. If you get one, make sure it’s an appropriate size so that it isn’t a choking hazard. If you’d rather have a long lasting treat, check out our post on DIY stuffed bones. Our pups get at least one a day and really love them!
2. Excessive barking
Constant barking without an obvious reason can be a strong sign of boredom. Excessive dog barking often happens when dogs are seeking attention or trying to release built-up frustration.
Primmie does this when she gets a little crazy and has too much energy. This differs from your dog barking at something that is exciting or scary. That’s called reactivity and involves a different process for decreasing. Check out our friends over at Spirit Dog Training for their Tackling Reactivity class. We’ve used it on a variety of sounds and sights, and it works great!
3. Restlessness or pacing
A dog that walks back and forth around the house may be mentally under-stimulated. This dog pacing behavior can mean your dog is looking for activity or interaction. It can also mean that your dog is anxious or excited, too. We don’t typically just use this as one of the more important signs your dog is bored.
For example, Goomba paces when he thinks he may get his toy or go on a walk. Primmie paces if she thinks she’s getting treats. On a less positive note, Primmie also paces when she hears fireworks as a stress response. For restlessness and pacing, you’ll have to do a little more analyzing to determine what’s causing it.
4. Digging in the yard
Digging can be a natural instinct and a fun hobby, but frequent digging can signal boredom, too. Digging behavior in dogs can often appear when dogs are left outside with nothing to do for long periods of time.
On the other side, some dogs just love digging. For us, Primmie loves digging in the area that we allow her to, while Goomba has no interest at all. I wouldn’t get too wound up about this one, because if you’re reading this post, you’re probably not leaving your dog outside all day.
If your dog is digging to escape a fence, that’s a whole different issue. Check out our post on dog proofing a fence if you’re dealing with that.
5. Attention-seeking behavior
Attention-seeking behavior is a good indicator to use if you’re looking for signs your dog is bored. This can include nudging you, jumping on people, bringing toys, and even light nipping. Attention-seeking behavior typically occurs when your dog wants additional interaction. Herding dogs will even herd their humans around as they would do with sheep and other animals.
What to do if your dog is bored
Is your dog displaying some signs of being bored? No worries, we can fix this for you and your dog. Once you notice the signs your dog is bored, the goal is to give them healthier ways to release their energy. Dogs need both physical activity and mental challenges to stay satisfied, so if one of these needs is unmet, it is likely that your dog will present some signs of boredom.
As a note, this will vary heavily depending on your dog’s breed and specific personality. We have two pitties, Goomba and Primmie, and they are on opposite ends of the spectrum with their required activities. Goomba could play all day if his joints allowed, while Primmie is good for a few minutes a day most days. She’d much rather spend her time sunbathing and sniffing out treats.
Increase daily exercise
Physical exercise is one of the most effective ways to reduce boredom, and there are a ton of ways to help burn your dog’s energy that they’ll enjoy. We have a whole post dedicated to outside games with dogs, and we highly recommend it if you need some ideas. The most obvious are walks, playtime, and romping around outside, but there are options for limited space and indoor use, too.
Some of our favorite activities for indoor use are agility (you can use all of our DIY agility course obstacles inside, too) and the “get it” command. This will look a little different depending on your dog prefers food or toys, but the idea stays the same. For Goomba, we get his toy (he loves this Hero boomerang) and put it on the other side of the room or house and have him go get it. For Primmie, we put two snuffle mats on opposite sides of the house and rotate which one we throw treats in.
This is by far Goomba's favorite toy and it isn't even close! It's surprisingly durable, even with a power chewer like him. It's weather-resistant and he still loves it even after he manages to damage the squeaker. This is one of the toys we use for him as a reward for training and it works great!
The result is that your dog runs back and forth between two areas. If you want, it’s a fantastic way to work on a stay/release command and the leave it command. If you’re using treats, we’d highly recommend checking our favorite low calorie dog treats.
Check out the rest of our list of our favorite indoor games for dogs if you want even more ideas. Our dogs love all of them, and we regularly use each, especially in the winter and spring.
Use interactive dog toys
Physical exercise is one part of enriching your dog, but there’s a second part: mental exercise. Fortunately for us, there’s an unlimited number of ways that we can accomplish this depending on what your dog enjoys. The next three options for what to do will all be for mental enrichment.
The easiest option by far is interactive puzzle toys. There are a million different options for interactive toys, but our favorites are the ones that are the easiest to clean. Our preferred options are ones that are easy to clean (and ideally dishwasher safe) that hold up well to frustrated interaction. Here’s a list of some of our current favorites:
We're huge fans of the Lickin Layers by Outward Hound. It has all the benefits of a normal slow feeder, but has 3 levels which turns it into a puzzle, as well. Both of our pups love it and we love that it is easy to clean, unlike most other options. It's a great option to make meal time last longer, even for dogs who are less interested in food.
Any of these toys help prevent destructive dog behavior by keeping your dog’s brain busy. We have an entire list of DIY dog puzzles that are a great place to start if you’re new to enrichment.
Food-based enrichment and sniffing games
We think that one of the easiest ways to fight the signs your dog is bored is through food. Specifically, food-based enrichment and sniffing. There are an endless number of ways that you can accomplish that, but we wanted to go through some of our favorites.
The easiest way to start is with sniffing games. All you’ll need for this is something to sniff in and some kibble or low calorie dog treats. Toss some kibble or treats into whatever your dog is using to sniff and repeat until you’re done. We usually use our DIY snuffle mats or the Best Friends by Sheri dog beds for this, and they both work great! If you don’t have either, a pile of toys works fine, and even grass if you’re able to go outside.
The Pupsicle is one of our two favorite options for food-based enrichment and it's Prim's favorite enrichment option! It's extremely durable and lasts surprisingly long, even without using the Woof refills. We highly recommend it and think your dog will love it, too!
Next up is food-based enrichment, but we wanted to separate lick mats as the best place to start. They’re by far the easiest and most cost-effective option, and even less motivated dogs will use them. Our current favorites are the Frisco lick mats because they’re the perfect size and dishwasher safe. We’ve made a bunch of posts about lick mats and would point to frozen lick mat recipes and not-frozen lick mat recipes as perfect places to start.
Other food-based enrichment works perfectly, too. We made an entire guide on our favorite frozen enrichment for dogs, but our dogs’ favorites are the West Paw Toppl and Woof Pupsicle. It’s a great way to entertain your pup, and you can get around a half hour to yourself, too! Check out our guides on Toppl recipes and Pupsicle recipes for more information about both.
Obedience & trick training
Another great option for tiring out your dog’s brain is obedience or trick training. Really, any sort of training is perfect here, and there are a ton of different options. We prefer trick training because it’s fun for us and our dogs seem to like it the most. We love seeing our dogs’ brains work as they are trying to figure out what we’re asking them to do.
If your dog is displaying pacing behavior or shows other signs your dog is bored, even a brief training session can tire them out. Reactivity training (we highly recommend the Tackling Reactivity course from Spirit Dog Training) is taxing for your dog if that would be helpful. Our favorite option for trick training is Do More With Your Dog’s trick titles. We’re currently working on the expert titles with our pups and it’s been really fun.
Stewart's freeze-dried beef liver is our go to option for beef liver! We love it because it's affordable and our dogs love it for the taste. We use freeze-dried beef liver as everything from a reward for training to recipes in frozen enrichment. We find that Stewart's has the best value for beef liver for a product we feel good about feeding to our dogs.
We typically use string cheese, Full Moon savory bites, or Stewart beef liver for this sort of training, and our pups love them all. Check out our guide on beef liver for dogs if you want to learn more about one of our favorite treats.
Socialization and playdates
A lot of dogs enjoy interacting with other dogs. Playdates or visits to dogs that your dog gets along with can provide a lot of physical exercise and mental stimulation. We’re not fans of dog parks because you don’t get to control the interaction at all, but if you’re comfortable with them, they can be a good option, too.
Even if your dog doesn’t like other dogs (ours don’t really), playdates with other humans are always an option, too. A lot of dogs like interacting with new or irregular people, so it can get a great option for both your dog and the visitor. For us, Primmie gets super excited when she gets to see and meet new people. Goomba doesn’t enjoy new people or dogs, so he has a specific set of people he’s willing to deal with.
Whichever you choose, social time can help minimize excessive dog barking by helping tire out your dog while they’re having a great time with a human or dog.
Conclusion
Remember, dogs rely on their humans to provide stimulation and activity. Without appropriate enrichment, boredom can quickly turn into frustrating habits. Recognizing the signs your dog is bored early helps you address the problem before it grows, which makes any undesirable behavior much easier to fix. Simple changes like increasing exercise, obedience training, and engaging games can help reduce many dog boredom symptoms.
With the right balance of activity and attention, your dog will stay happier, healthier, and be far less likely to develop bored dog behavior.
Did you notice different signs your dog is bored? We’d love to hear from you about your own experiences. Give us a shout by email or on Instagram @TheRulyBully.
Have fun!