DIY Easter Egg Hunt for Dogs
This post shows you how to organize a DIY Easter Egg Hunt for Dogs.
Have you ever organized an Easter egg hunt for dogs? If you haven’t, you should definitely try it this year!
It’s basically a “brain game” that will keep them active both mentally and physically. Plus, it’s so much fun! It’s easy to organize, and it will give you hours of entertainment!
In this post, I’ll show you how to prepare the “eggs,” train your dogs to find them, and have a wonderful playtime together!
1 Get Dog-Safe Easter Eggs
Visit your local dollar store and get simple plastic eggs that you can open and fill with treats!
Make sure they are the right size (not too small!) and made of somewhat durable plastic that won’t shatter. It’s okay if they break, but don’t buy eggs made of rough plastic that can break into sharp pieces.
If you’re not a fan of plastic and have a very small dog, I suggest making eggs from cardstock paper!
Here’s a guide and a template: https://www.paper-shape.com/en/blog/ostereier-basteln/. It’s a bit more work, I know, so if you’re short on time (and who isn’t!), I suggest still trying Dollar Store plastic eggs.
Don’t forget to get blue and yellow eggs, as they are a dog’s favorite!
2 Pick Your Dog’s Favorite Treats
To have a successful Easter egg hunt for dogs, you have to choose the best treats! I suggest small nuggets, lean chicken meat, their favorite meat sticks from the pet store—whatever they like the most.
If your dog isn’t picky, you can also add some regular kibble. But to train my dog, I had to cut his favorite meat treat into small pieces, as the smell alone made him go crazy!
Don’t choose anything overly processed—stick to their favorite stuff.
3 Choose the Hunting Area
Ideally, you would organize the Easter egg hunt for dogs in your backyard, but if you live in the city, maybe take a trip somewhere nice and secluded rather than doing this in a city park.
Is there an area where you can let your dog run off-leash? Maybe near a forest or a lake, but far away from tourists?
Where I am, we have huge parks on the outskirts of the city where we can go and where dogs are allowed.
Another great idea is to connect with people from your local dog park and see if they’re up for it so you can organize it together.
Personally, I like this to be a family game, so only my dog and my extended family’s dogs play together. They know each other, and we feel comfortable letting them go wild together.
If it’s raining or you can’t go outside, don’t worry! You can organize the egg hunt in your house or apartment. It can be a really cool experience!
4 Get Your Dog and Fill the Eggs with Treats so They Can See You
It’s essential that your dog sees you filling the eggs!
You have to spark curiosity and call them over so they can see what you’re doing. Take the eggs and their treats and show them.
Fill half of an egg, let them see and sniff, and then close it.
Now, call them and hide the egg somewhere nearby, like under a blanket or pillow, and let them grab it.
Use your usual verbal cue, like “find it” or “grab it.” My dog responds to questions like “Where is it?” and “Fetch.”
Once they open it, give them a high-five and proceed with preparing the rest of the eggs.
Now, that first egg was just a test. Make sure your dog is still interested, then fill in the rest.
5 Let the Hunt Begin
Grab the eggs, get your dog, and go outside. Let a family member take your dog for a walk around the park while you place the eggs in the bushes, under benches, near trees, and in more challenging spots! Place a couple of easy-to-find eggs, then make them work for the rest!
If you’re doing this at home, definitely let someone take your dog for a walk while you hide the eggs under the bed, couch, pillows, in their bed, in the kitchen—wherever they can reach but still have to put in some effort.
If your dog doesn’t manage to open the egg, you’ll have to chase them and open it for them! Or, if they’re trained to bring you the egg, you can open it for them.
6 Easter Egg Hunt is a Supervised Game
Don’t let them wander alone, and teach them to bring you the eggs! First, you want to make sure they’re okay and that they didn’t chew on the plastic (they most likely won’t, as they’ll be focused on the treats!).
Next, it’s not environmentally friendly to leave plastic lying around in public places, especially parks!
7 You Can Turn This Into a Community Event
As I mentioned, maybe you can organize this with other dog parents and even reach out to a local rescue group. You can charge a small participation fee to cover the treats and donate the rest!
Have you ever done this with your dog? Did they love it? Let us know in the comments!
Don’t forget to pin this post so you’ll always have these Easter egg hunt tips handy!
Love, life, and fur forever!
This post showed you how to organize a DIY Easter Egg Hunt for Dogs.
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