Looking for an easy way to entertain your dog? If your dogs are anything like mine they get a little restless from time to time. Having different activities for your pup is a great way to keep their mind sharp. This DIY muffin tin enrichment toy is super quick and chances are you already have everything you need at home!

Right now we’re in the middle of winter here in New Jersey, and this is perfect for those snow days. While this doesn’t replace their daily exercise, dog enrichment toys can be a perfect solution to those days when your pup wants a little extra fun. My dog absolutely loved this, and it kept him occupied for over an hour!

Things You Will Need

• Muffin (cupcake) tin- Mini muffin tins can be used for smaller dogs
• Liquid of choice- Some options are…
  • Water
  • Unsweetened apple sauce
  • Plain yogurt
  • Plain kefir
  • Pure pumpkin puree
  • Sweet potato puree
  • Peanut Butter
  • Whipped cream
  • Bone broth
  • Melted coconut oil
• Fillers
  • Frozen fruits (strawberries, blueberries)
  • Carrots
  • Apple slices
  • Pieces of chicken or turkey
  • Veggies (peppers, sweet potatoes)
• Freezer

Putting The Enrichment Tin Together

Now this is where you can get creative! Once you pick your liquid base, you can start to fill in your compartments. I decided to mix and match my base liquids but it’s really up to you! It’s also not necessary to fill up every compartment in the tin.

I filled each one about halfway with my liquid bases. Then you just place in some of your fillers. If you want to exclude the fillers and just do the base that’s ok too! There is no right way to fill them, you just want to give your dog enough flavor that they’ll want to continue to work through it until the compartments are empty.

Since I have a large dog, I filled up each compartment just to make it a little more challenging for him. If you have a smaller dog you may want to only fill a few of them. I would suggest scattering the ones that you fill. This way there will be some empty spaces in between to help your dog sniff out the full ones. Or you can use the mini muffin tin instead!

Once you have everything filled in the way that you’d like, just pop the whole tin in the freezer. I like to freeze mine overnight, but a few hours should do. You just want to make sure that everything is completely frozen, this optimizes the amount of time they’ll spend on it.

Let Your Dog Enjoy!

I gave this to my dog while he was outside. Since it was a colder day, it took him even longer to get through it all. I placed a towel underneath just to help it from slipping away from him. He was super excited to go through all the different flavors!

I’ve included a quick how to video to help! I hope your dogs enjoy this as much as mine did! Be sure to tag us on instagram if you decide to try this, using the hashtag #dogsdontwearpantsblog! Don’t forget to check out some other enrichment ideas on our site as well!