6 Tips For Keeping Your Maltipoo Fit During Lockdown
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A brief list of lockdown-friendly activities for you and your Maltipoo!
As a crossbreed between a Maltese and a Miniature Poodle, Maltipoo are amongst the most affectionate, playful, and intelligent dogs out of all small breeds. Their playful energy requires their parents to keep them engaged and active or otherwise face the risks of boredom-related behavior.
Let’s face it – keeping your Maltipoo active and fit during the lockdown can be tough. This article explores socially-distant tips and tricks to keep your Maltipoo happy and healthy during the pandemic.
Tip #1: Play with toys
Maltipoo are infamous for keeping their puppy-like playfulness throughout their entire lives. A good way to keep your Maltipoo fit during the lockdown is to toss a toy up and down the hallway for a game of fetch. Thanks to their small size, it’s easy to burn up their energy even in an area as small as a studio apartment.
Below is a list of toys that are bound to get your furry friend riled up for playtime:
Balls: Tried and true, balls are a proven favorite with dogs. Whether it’s a soft plush ball or a tennis ball, this toy is perfect for playing fetch. A ball that bounces and rolls seems to trigger a primal instinct and a chase ensues. You’ll need to use a small-sized ball so that your little Maltipoo can pick is up and bring it back.
Rope Toys: The king of tug-of-war, rope toys are another fan-favorite. When playing tug-of-war, you can be aggressive as you want to be to get your Maltipoo some exercise. Playing aggressively will require your Maltipoo to put more effort into the game, ultimately burning more energy and keeping your pup fit.
Stuffed Toys: Stuffed toys offer the best of both worlds. You can play fetch or play tug-of-war. Stuffed toys are soft and squishy which provide peace of mind when playing tug-of-war. The toy’s softness will protect your Maltipoo’s teeth and mouth.
Chew Toys: It’s natural for your dog to want to chew on things. A chew toy can be thrown for a game of fetch or played with by itself. It’s a great toy to have around the house while you’re at work. Encouraging your dog to chew on a chew toy makes it less likely that your Maltipoo will chew on your sofa or bedpost.
With a small breed like a Maltipoo, playing with toys alone should be enough to keep your dog in shape. It’s recommended that you play with or exercise your dog for 30 minutes to one hour per day to keep them fit.
Tip #2: Puzzles
There are tons of great puzzle options to keep your Maltipoo active while you’re at work or you’re otherwise too busy to play. Puzzle toys are challenging, stimulating, and require brainpower. Since your dog is part Miniature Poodle, it needs its brain stimulated as much as it needs physical exercise. A puzzle offers a solution to both.
Below is a list of puzzle toys to keep your Maltipoo fit and stimulated while you’re unavailable to play:
Kong: The Kong is a classic interactive dog toy. Just fill it with peanut butter and watch your Maltipoo go to work. Be sure to use a Kong that is small so that it’s challenging for your little Maltipoo to get at. Make your dog work for its reward!
Hide-A-Squirrel: Imagine a plush toy log that has little squirrels hidden away within holes on the log. Now imagine your Maltipoo digging through each hole to find a little squirrel with its own squeaker. This is a fun puzzle game that doubles as a stuffed toy.
Treat-Dispensing Toys: Similar to the Kong, treat-dispensing toys make your pup work for its reward. We recommend finding a treat-dispensing toy in the form of a ball. This way, your pup will be clumsily knocking and chasing a ball around the house for hours as it tries to figure out how to get the treats dispensed!
Puzzles: Puzzles require your dog to use its nose to identify where a treat is hidden. Once your pup locates the treat, it will have to either slide, slip, or open a trap door to reap the reward. Puzzles are great because they are sold at different difficulty levels, which is perfect to keep your highly intelligent Maltipoo engaged.
Tip #3: Go for walks
Taking your furry friend on a socially-distanced walk is the best way to keep your dog fit and happy. The benefits of walks stretch beyond just health benefits to social benefits as well. Embarking on just a 15-30 minute walk around the neighborhood once per day will not only keep your dog fit but will help keep you in shape as well.
Health benefits of walking your dog include cardiovascular fitness, lowers blood pressure, builds strong bones, and decreases stress. Regular walks help prevent obesity, which can lead to arthritis, cardiovascular disease, liver disease, and more. And guess what – not only does your dog benefit from these health benefits, but you do too.
A regular walking schedule with your dog will help you bond. It gets both of you out of the house and into the fresh air. Let your dog sniff around and explore during your walks. This is a natural behavior that stimulates and keeps your dog happy. A dog’s nose tells a story. After all, their olfactory receptors are 40x stronger than ours.
Tip #4: Build an obstacle course
There was a viral trend circulating social media platforms for a while where pet owners were constructing towers made of plastic solo cups to jump over. Consider doing something similar for your Maltipoo!
The Miniature Poodle in your dog is intelligent enough to navigate through obstacle courses while the Maltese in your dog is surprisingly nimble and athletic. The combination of the intelligence of the Miniature Poodle and athleticism of the Maltese results in an obstacle-capable Maltipoo.
Start with just one layer of cups on the ground and bribe your pup to jump over it with a healthy treat. If you’re dog successfully jumps over the first layer of cups, then add a second layer. Repeat this process until your dog can no longer jump over the cups without knocking any down.
Other obstacle courses can be created with tunnels, tubes, gates, chairs, or whatever furniture you have available in the house. This is a fun way to change up your surroundings and combat the monotony of the lockdown. Old cardboard boxes from Amazon packages make for great obstacles as well!
Tip #5: Healthy eating
Your pet is likely getting less exercise than normal thanks to the lockdown. Less exercise means fewer calories burned and more calories stored. Because of this, you may notice that your Maltipoo is gaining weight despite not eating more than usual. If this is the case, then take a close look at your portion sizes and the quality of the food.
Think of it like this – If you wouldn’t eat low-quality, highly processed fast food every day, then why should your dog? Cheap dog food is equivalent to fast food for humans. Consider upgrading to high-quality dog food with a natural source of protein, no fillers, and no artificial flavoring.
High-quality dog food can be identified first by a high-quality protein. Look for food with real chunks of chicken, turkey, lamb, fish, or whatever else. Low-quality pet foods use animal by-products as protein, which is pretty much the unwanted animal bits that are ground up and put into your dog’s food.
It’s also important to stay away from fillers like corn, soy, and wheat. Fillers are unnatural in a dog’s diet and can be difficult for your Maltipoo to digest. Similarly, stay away from artificial flavors that may contain unwanted cancer-causing chemicals.
As far as portion sizes go, you have the option of either free-feeding or measuring out your Maltipoo’s meals. Free-feeding is great if your pet has self-restraint and doesn’t overindulge. Measuring your dog’s meals and feeding on a regular schedule is ideal if you notice weight issues.
Check with your veterinarian to see how often your dog should be eating each day. An average Maltipoo that weighs from 9 to 12 pounds should only be eating ¾ to 1 cup of dry kibble per day.
Tip #6: Treat responsibly
We know it’s hard to resist that cute Maltipoo beggar face, but you mustn’t go overboard with treats. More time spent at home during the lockdown means more meals eaten at home, and ultimately more temptation to feed your adorable Maltipoo off of your plate.
Maltipoo are great actors. They can give you that innocent look that says, “I’m starving and I haven’t eaten in weeks!” face pushes you over the edge give them a nibble. Resist the urge at all costs! Dog’s digestive systems aren’t designed to digest people food and you can actually be doing more harm than good by caving in.
We’re not saying that you should never give your dog a treat, rather have restraint and treat responsibly. It’s okay to give your dog the occasional bite off of your plate, but try keeping that to a minimum. Only give your dog a treat as a reward. For example, if your furry friend goes potty outside like a good boy or girl, then go ahead and give them a treat!
Much like humans, treats should never be overindulged. Treat your dog’s diet like you would your own. Although stuffing your face with peanut butter cups is delicious, it’s certainly not good for your long-term health. The same goes for your dog. Especially during a lockdown when they’re getting less exercise than normal!
In Summary
It’s difficult to keep your Maltipoo fit during the lockdown; you can’t take your dog to the dog park, you can’t socialize your dog at your friend’s or family’s house, and there’s more temptation to overeat out of boredom. Thankfully, your Maltipoo is small enough to exercise and keep fit within your residence.
Aside from keeping your pet fit with puzzles, toys, obstacle courses, and socially-distanced walks, keep an eye on your Maltipoo’s diet. If your pet is gaining weight, then you may need to cut back on portion sizes or switch to healthier food. Lastly, resist that signature Maltipoo puppy face, and don’t overindulge your dog with treats!
Author: Hannan Ahmad