Indoor Games

With the rainy and snowy season upon us, we sometimes want to take a day to relax and not have to go outside to exercise our dogs. But this doesn't mean our dogs still don't need exercise. Here are a few ways to mentally and physically exercise your dog indoors so he doesn't drive you crazy when you take it easy.
Food search: As the name implies, this is where you make your dog go in a down stay while you hide pieces of dog food around the house. Make it as hard or as easy as you like, and once you're done release your dog to sniff out the food. This is great mental stimulation an can occupy your dog for awhile, depending on how well you hid the treats and how food motivated he is.
Tug is a great game to play indoors, but make sure you control the game and your dog drops the toy when you tell him to. Add some more to this game and throw the toy every now again to get your dog moving more.
Food dispensing toys are a good way to mentally stimulate your dog and keep him occupied.
Go on an outing, such as to a store that allows pets, vets office, or just a drive to get him out of the house and into new environments.
Training new behaviors or practicing old can often be just as stimulating and even more tiring than a walk is. Training makes your dog really think, and strengthens the bond between the two of you. This is a great way to exercise your dog indoors.
Have another dog come over so the two can tire each other out.
Hide and seek: this is a game where you hide in a room of the house and have your dog find you. A way to add on to this game is to have two people hiding in two different rooms, both with treats, taking turns calling the dog to them. This is a great way to enforce the recall command and get your dog moving.
Treadmills are a good way to get some of your dogs excess energy out, although some training is usually necessary to get your dog used to a treadmill.